Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. and its parent corporation, Glencore, are moving ahead with plans to decommission and clean up the plant site and have launched a public-relations campaign to solicit input from the local community.

Glencore has hired West Virginia-based public relations firm Ann Green Communications to improve dialogue between the company and Columbia Falls, where both the mayor and the Chamber of Commerce have been critical of the company’s commitment to the community.

Over the last month, the firm surveyed community representatives, elected officials and former employees and put together an advisory panel of 27 company officials, local elected representatives, business leaders and citizens.

Those panel members were given a tour of the plant Thursday, followed by a meeting at Freedom Bank.

The meeting was light on details about the company’s plans for the site, instead focusing on the panel itself and how the company could be more transparent with its future work on the property.

“The idea is to create a cross-representation of the community,” explained Mary Green, a senior consultant with Ann Green Communications. “We want to be here to serve you. We will be here to create a forum that serves everybody.”

The public relations push comes within two months of the Environmental Protection Agency recommending the aluminum plant be added to its National Priorities List, which would designate it as a Superfund site.

Glencore and some people in the community worry that the listing would unnecessarily delay the process of cleaning up the site, and give the area a bad reputation. Others remain skeptical of the company’s commitment to fully restoring the property, which sits just north of the town and is leaking contaminated groundwater into the Flathead River.

The listing proposal is still in a 60-day public comment period that ends June 2.

Virginia Sloan is one of two field directors for Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., on the panel. When Green asked the group for suggestions, Sloan quickly requested more open, public notice and inclusion for future meetings.

The Thursday meeting had not been publicly advertised, although a spokesman for CFAC responded to media requests the day of the meeting to attend. No photography or recording was permitted.

Kristi Moore, a senior consultant with the communications firm, accepted that suggestion but noted that the members of the core panel had already been selected and they would have priority when offering input at future meetings.

Cheryl Driscoll, a senior executive with Glencore’s U.S. operations, flew out from Connecticut for the meeting. She acknowledged the strained relationship that had previously existed between the company and many members of the community, and said she would work to change the company’s local image.

“I’m committed to helping through this process,” Driscoll said. “CFAC is responsible for the cleanup and Glencore wants to help.”

Members of the group ventured ideas about what they would like to see from the dialogue process, including the needs of the community, a timeline, a current environmental baseline and what plans the company has moving forward.

Columbia Falls Mayor Don Barnhart has been critical of Glencore in the past, but said he was impressed that the company appeared to be sincere in reinventing its role in the community.

“I’m always in favor of working with them and getting it cleaned up,” Barnhart said. “We didn’t feel that they were very straightforward in some of our dealings, and hopefully that will change. I was very impressed that they brought management out.”

Erin Sexton, a research scientist with the Montana Institute on Ecosystems, was selected as a panel member, but noted she is only there to represent herself rather than the institute.

“My highest priority is understanding what the current state is and what’s going to be done to clean it up and who’s going to be responsible for that,” she said, adding, “I want to make sure they’re not just going to give us lip service and do what they want to do with the property.”

After talks between Glencore and the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation to develop a cleanup plan fell apart last year, Driscoll said the company no interest in pursuing an agreement with the state. Still, Driscoll said she was surprised that no representatives from the state environmental or wildlife agencies were present Thursday.

“We have state agencies that are here to help us manage our fish, wildlife and water quality, so I was a little surprised they weren’t at the table.”

Two state legislators, Rep. Zac Perry, D-Hungry Horse, and Sen. Dee Brown, R-Hungry Horse, are also on the panel. Brown was supportive of the process and thought the meeting had been productive.

“I think it’s moving forward right now,” Brown said. “They’ve come to the realization that the EPA is involved, and they’re going to be held responsible. That’s what everyone in the community has always wanted.”

Other panel members included several former CFAC employees, county Commissioner Phil Mitchell, a representative for Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., several company officials, Columbia Falls City Manager Susan Nicosia and several other community members.

The next meeting will be June 11 at 6:15 p.m.  

Reporter Samuel Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com