Editorial Board: The public deserves a clear understanding of the health impact of the plant’s operations and assurance of its compliance with the law.
If the announcement of new violations at the Erie Coke Corp. plant seemed numbingly familiar, that’s because they were. The state Department of Environmental Protection said since June 2017 it had “documented numerous and ongoing violations at the facility located near the channel entrance to Presque Isle Bay.” The plant, which transforms coal into foundry coke, failed to operate a hydrogen sulfide pollution control device, flared this toxic gas in illegal concentrations, and failed to prevent “fugitive particulate matter emissions” from leaving the property, among other things, DEP alleged.
It directed the plant to correct the violations. Erie Coke has the right to appeal.
Many of the violations listed in the Feb. 4 administrative order, were, DEP said, similar to those addressed by a consent decree reached between DEP and Erie Coke in 2010.
It is confounding that authorities continue to detect such problems, especially given the costs associated with that earlier regulatory clash, which involved both DEP and the U.S. Department of Environmental Protection. Erie Coke closed out two consent decrees in 2015 that required $15 million in pollution reduction measures and plant repairs, plus $4.3 million in fines.
In between that and the action taken on Feb. 4, the plant in 2016 agreed — while not admitting wrongdoing — to pay $500,000 and make repairs as part of a consent decree stemming from its alleged failure to control the emissions of the known carcinogen benzene. In April 2017, federal agents served a search warrant at the plant as part of what they called an ongoing investigation. Erie Coke said it was operating within the law.
Erie Coke and Erie are at a turning point. The city has set aside clinical pessimism and a siloed, tribal approach to its challenges and opportunities. Stakeholders are acting with intention to create a new economy and foster inclusion by embracing diversity. It looks to become a city of choice, pedestrian-friendly and bikeable with a downtown core rich in activities and attractive housing.
Erie Coke offers badly needed employment opportunities. But not at any cost. The activist group Hold Erie Coke Accountable observes rightly that the uncertainty posed by Erie Coke’s uneven compliance record does not sync with the city Erie looks to become.
The plant has a pending application to renew its Title V operating permit. DEP says many of the current violations were discovered as it reviewed Erie Coke’s compliance record. As we have said, Erie Coke enjoys the right to due process. The public also deserves a clear understanding of the health impact of the plant’s operations and assurance of its compliance with the law. We commend regulators for their vigilance and urge them to apply the same to the permitting deliberations.
