Winters was distraught when she found out about the plant and its long history of Clean Air Act violations. She worried about her own declining respiratory health, but was even more concerned about the impact the air might have on her daughter’s young lungs. But then, in 2016, the Shenango plant shut down following several years of escalating community protest. It wasn’t long before Winters was able to stop taking her daily asthma medication altogether. She said her respiratory health has steadily improved in the last two years—and she’s not alone… Members of the community group, including Dawn Winters, urged the health department to undertake the study after the plant closed, and have shared their stories about life before and after the plant closure in an online collection of essays, “Living Downwind.” The group hopes their stories, along with the health department’s findings, will help empower other communities to fight for cleaner air.
