There’s a beast on the banks of the Ohio River in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. It spews fire, smoke, and steam, emits foul smells, and sends toxins into the sky.
Above left: Impacted residents and allies gather at downtown Beaver's Irvine Park for a rally and press conference on the first anniversary of Shell Polymers Monaca's opening. Photo by Erin Ninehouser / Rustbeltmayberry.com. Above right: Hilary Flint speaks at the press conference. Photo by Maren Cooke.
Shell is polluting an already-burdened community at alarming levels Beaver County already
This beast is Shell Polymers Monaca, a plastic-producing ethane cracker plant. Since opening in the fall of 2022, it has become notorious for malfunctions, permit violations, and dangerous pollution. A huge column of fire is never a good sign In February 2022, Shell Poly- mers sent a towering blaze into the air for hours on end. It was flaring, which burns off chemicals and emits toxins into the air, often in response to a malfunction. At Shell, regulations require that flaring be kept under five minutes, every two hours. Yet the community has seen many prolonged flaring events, exposing them to dangerous amounts of particulate matter, cancer-causing benzene, and other toxic pollutants.
510.89 tons in September 2022 alone — before it even started operations . With every following month, it flew by its 12-month permit limits. Moreover, from November 2022 to May 2023, the plant racked up over a dozen air permit violations and blasted through its allowed limits for carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and other hazardous pollutants. Shell worsens plastic pollution and the climate crises Shell Polymers Monaca will produce up to 3.5 billion tons
struggles with bad air quality. Residents here face a higher risk for cancers, heart disease, and respiratory disease — all of which can be caused or wors- ened by pollution from this new Shell plant. Shell Polymers Monaca is allowed to emit up to 516.2 tons of ozone-causing volatile organ- ic compounds (VOCs) for any 12-month period, which is bad enough. However, it spewed
VOCs are No Joke Volatile Organic Compounds or VOCs cause eye, nose, and throat irritation, headaches, and nausea. Long-term exposure can damage the liver, kidneys, and nervous system, worsen asthma, and cause cancer.
New Shell Plant - continue on Page 3 >
FOOD & WATER WATCH / ACTION — LIVABLE FUTURE NOW | 2
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