Official: Western Pa. coke plant improving
NEVILLE ISLAND (AP) – Health officials in Western Pennsylvania say a Pittsburgh-area coke plant with a history of emission violations is beginning to show improvement.
The Shenango Inc. plant on Neville Island agreed last month to spend just over $1 million to upgrade its pollution control equipment.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Jim Thompson, environmental health deputy director, said Wednesday at an Allegheny County health board meeting that the plant has had no emission violations for the last two weeks. He said he was “cautiously optimistic” that compliance would continue.
The plant employs about 165 people and processes 1,500 tons of coal daily to produce coke, a fuel used to make steel. In 2012, the company agreed to pay $1.75 million in a federal settlement over persistent air and water pollution violations.