Federal lawsuit against Monessen coke works announced
PITTSBURGH – Viktoryia Maroz said noxious pollution that seeps into her Donora home from a nearby coke plant keeps her awake at night with worries about her health.
“When the odor gets inside the house, you can’t escape from it,” Maroz said Tuesday when she announced her intention to join others in filing a federal lawsuit against ArcelorMittal, the owner of the Monessen coke works that reopened 15 months ago.
Maroz joined Edward Tolliver of Monessen and representatives of PennEnvironment in announcing the impending citizens lawsuit against the world’s largest steel producer at a media briefing outside the federal courthouse in Pittsburgh.
“I’ve met with residents who live in towns all around this plant, and their stories about pollution from this facility are gut-wrenching,” said David Masur, executive director of the Philadelphia-based environmental group that filed the notice of intent to sue the company.
Their notice gives ArcelorMittal 60 days to seek a solution to the residents’ complaints. It also gives the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Environmental Protection time to file separate lawsuits against the company.
Masur said the Monessen plant has a “track record of chronic violations.”
“The paperwork speaks for itself,” he said.
Air pollution from the plant has diminished the quality of life for local residents who have “endured ongoing odors and soot,” Masur said.
“This is appalling and unacceptable,” he said.
Heather Govern, an attorney with the National Environmental Law Center, said the Monessen plant has received more than 300 violations for exceeding air pollution standards involving such pollutants as sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide, limitations that are in place to protect the local residents
“Nearby residents have been suffering,” said Govern, who attended the media briefing in Pittsburgh. “They’ve had respiratory problems. There’s been noxious fumes and waves of soot and black dust rain down on their homes and backyards.”
The state Department of Environmental Protection has been monitoring the coke works since it started up last year, and the information gathered has been brought to the attention of the plant’s management, said John Poister, DEP spokesman in Pittsburgh.
Poister said the plant has received numerous DEP notices of violation for having visible and fugitive emissions.
“The department’s enforcement efforts are ongoing,” Poister said.
The lawsuit would not seek compensation for the residents, Masur said. It’s designed to force ArcelorMittal to comply with clean-air laws and seek fines for the violations the company has received, he said.
“The quality of the air has been declining to the point that it makes it unbearable to breathe the air in your own house,” said Maroz, who also joined a separate class-action federal lawsuit filed in June seeking damages from the company.
The plant manager referred comment about the notice from PennEnvironment to corporate spokeswoman Mary Beth Holdford, who did not return messages Tuesday.