Waste Not, Want Not

Even TSP tacitly acknowledges this truth. "These kinds of facilities under the present law are free market," says Szekelyhidi. "The market determines whether or not they succeed."

That's not good enough for the residents of Beach City, whose persistence and unity will stand as a model for other grassroots environmental efforts in the future. "We don't need the landfill," says Mickey Eastman, founder and president of the Gulf Coast Troutmasters Association. The group will hold a special fishing tournament in July to raise money for ICU. "There is no such thing as a good location for a toxic dump, but goddamn, why do they have to put it here?