The chemical plant near La Place is cutting emissions.
A German company has agreed to substantially reduce air pollutants from a chemical plant near LaPlace, according to a settlement reached this week with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Evonik Corporation, which operates an alkoxylated alcohols production facility in the St. John the Baptist Parish community of Reserve, will reduce emissions of ethylene oxide and other pollutants by 5.6 tons per year. Air monitoring and enforcement efforts by the EPA and the state Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) last April indicated that Evonik repeatedly violated air pollution rules. An airplane and mobile monitoring vehicle collected emissions data in Reserve’s neighborhoods and unannounced inspections at the plant confirmed elevated emissions of ethylene oxide, a chemical the EPA says is a proven carcinogen to humans. “Even though Evonik is technically classified as a minor source of emissions, the facility’s impact on people living nearby can be significant,” EPA Regional Administrator Earthea Nance said. “Through an innovative enforcement approach, EPA’s team was able to secure a meaningful reduction of air toxics for the people of St. John the Baptist.” Evonik apologised for polluting the region’s air. “We want people in the community to know that we are very sorry,” said Kelly Lanz, an Evonik advisor. “As soon as we realized that our emissions exceeded the permitted limits, we voluntarily shut down production and self-reported the data to both the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality and EPA Region 6. We have installed improved control technologies to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
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The company has already started the improvements needed.
The EPA says the company has already replaced some equipment that the agency expects will substantially reduce harmful emissions. Evonik will also need to install and operate a thermal oxidizer that will remove even more air pollution, and implement a new leak detection and repair program, the agreement says. These steps will reduce volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, which can result in asthma and other lung problems, by 2.6 tons per year, and ethylene oxide by nearly 2.2 tons per year, according to the EPA. The agreement requires Evonik to spend about at least $335,000 on equipment upgrades and pay a $75,000 civil penalty to resolve its alleged air quality violations.
A German company says “I am sorry” as a US one would say see you in court.
