The Lever: Before A Steel Plant Exploded, Trump's EPA Hid Risks From The Public
Link: https://www.levernews.com/before-a-steel-plant-exploded-trumps-epa-hid-risks-from-the-public/
The Pittsburgh plant that exploded on Monday had a history of chemical accidents and the Trump administration made that secret.
The Trump administration, at the behest of the powerful chemical lobby, has been working to gut oversight of so-called Risk Management Program facilities, chemical plants that are considered at the highest risk of deadly explosions. In April, two months after an explicit request from industry, Trumps Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) scrubbed a tracking tool listing such facilities from its website.
Clairton Coke Works, the U.S. Steel plant near Pittsburgh that erupted in black smoke on Monday, is one such facility. Deemed high risk by environmental regulators, the plant, which manufactures materials used in steel production, is subject to various risk management requirements under the Clean Air Act aimed at preventing chemical fires.
The plant has a history of chemical accidents involving ammonia, a reactive chemical, public records show. From 2017 to 2022, it received 32 formal enforcement actions from the EPA, according to the agencys enforcement records, the most of any facility of its kind covered under Risk Management Program regulations during that time period.
That included high-priority violations of the Clean Air Act, the records indicate, which could relate to the release of pollutants or problematic chemical safety procedures. Its unclear what led to these past violations or what caused Mondays explosion.
In case you're wondering, coal is processed into coke before it can be used in steel manufacturing. It's a necessary but dangerous process because of the volatile chemicals that are involved. Employees are carefully trained and there is a constant review of safety requirements, monitored by the EPA. There should never be any side-stepping of safety requirements for things that are volatile and dangerous.



nature-lover
(1,852 posts)hadEnuf
(3,397 posts)It used to happen all the time until those barely human Democraps started putting safety protocols in place to take away your freedoms (and enormous corporate profits).
But Fuhrer Trump will fix injustices like these and Make America Great Again!
Deep State Witch
(12,199 posts)Yet the rank and file steelworkers are told to blame the environmentalists when the steel mills are shut down. I remember seeing a bumper sticker on a car back in the '70's that said "Hungry and out of work? Eat an environmentalist." It's easier to blame the people fighting for clean air, water, and safe work environments than Big Steel.
Bluestocking
(296 posts)That was Trumps fault too. When bad things happen you can always link it to Republican policies