Latest news with #KerriGefeke
Chicago Tribune
13-07-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Environmental groups file petition against IDEM air permit renewal
Various environmental groups have submitted a petition to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, alleging the Indiana Department of Environmental Management issued an inadequate air permit renewal to U.S. Steel's Gary Works facility. 'U.S. EPA should object to this permit because it's inconsistent with the Clean Air Act and the region's Hoosiers should not feel like they are living in a sacrifice zone,' Kerri Gefeke, associate attorney at the Environmental Law and Policy Center, said in a news release. 'Numerous studies show that residents living near Gary Works already suffer from some of the highest rates of air pollution in the nation — resulting in high rates of asthma, cancer and other diseases.' The petition, submitted on July 3, claims the permit 'fails to include many basic provisions of the Clean Air Act,' according to a Thursday news release from the Environmental Law and Policy Center. The petition alleges that the permit renewal is missing clear and enforceable monitoring, testing and recordkeeping requirements sufficient to assure compliance with all applicable requirements, according to the news release. r 'Permitting decisions are made based on an applicant's ability to demonstrate compliance with applicable state and federal rules and regulations, including the Clean Air Act,' IDEM responded in a Thursday statement. 'The U.S. Steel Gary Works Part 70 Operating Permit was issued following an EPA review and comment period.' U.S. Steel also responded to the petition in a Thursday statement. 'Environmental stewardship is a core value at U.S. Steel, and we remain committed to the safety of our communities as do our more than 3,400 Gary Works employees,' a spokesperson said in an email. In addition to the Environmental Law and Policy Center, two regional groups participated in the petition: Gary Advocates for Responsible Development and Just Transition Northwest Indiana. In the petition, the organizations argue that IDEM disregarded concerns from the EPA and commenters during the public comment period. The petition asks for the EPA to object to the renewal permit. The petition asks IDEM to revise the renewal permit to include supplemental monitoring for various emission limits, and include contents of the continuous compliance plan and corrective action plan, among others. Petitioners also want IDEM to provide detailed rationales in the renewal permit record about the adequacy of monitoring requirements to assure compliance, according to petition documents. An October report from Industrious Labs found that most residents in Gary are in the top 10% of U.S. residents most at-risk for developing asthma and at-risk of low life expectancy. Earlier this year, the American Lung Association gave Lake County failing grades in three categories: ozone pollution, 24-hour particle pollution and annual particle pollution. Porter County only received a passing grade for annual particle pollution. Ozone and particle pollution can cause premature death and other health effects, including asthma attacks, heart attacks, strokes, preterm births and impaired cognitive function, according to the American Lung Association. The organization also found that particle pollution can cause lung cancer. In a statement Thursday, GARD President Dorreen Carey mentioned how Gary residents have suffered from air pollution, saying that upgrades in pollution monitoring are required to ensure public health is protected. 'EPA must object to this deficient IDEM permit renewal and require revisions to the air monitoring methodology that will include updated and supplemental monitoring of emissions and opacity limits to ensure permit compliance and current and ongoing protection of Gary residents' health and environment,' Carey said. Susan Thomas, director of policy and press for Just Transition Northwest Indiana, said the permit is missing 'the most basic environmental management provisions,' including monitoring, testing, recordkeeping and reporting requirements. 'This dangerous situation is totally unacceptable and unprecedented, opening the door to an 'anything goes' model for industry pollution standards in a community that has historically been pushed to the brink,' Thomas said in a statement. 'Access to clean air, safe water and healthy soil is a fundamental human right, one that Gary, and every community, deserves without compromise.'
Chicago Tribune
15-05-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
NWI environment advocates worry about BP permit application
Local community and environmental groups are worried about a proposed water pollution control permit for the BP Whiting refinery. Permit comments filed by the Environmental Law and Policy Center and Environmental Integrity Project say the permit will allow the facility to dump 'unhealthy levels of pollutants,' including mercury, into Lake Michigan, according to a news release. In a statement to the Post-Tribune, a spokesman for BP said a draft of the permit is available for public comment, but it has yet to be issued. The corporation's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit is subject to renewal every five years. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management held an April 22 public hearing as part of the renewal process, according to BP. '(BP) is committed to safe and compliant operations at the Whiting Refinery and across our global operations,' the company's statement said. 'We will continue working every day to keep this commitment and to ensure the refinery remains an important part of the Northwest Indiana economy for years to come.' Activists are asking IDEM to revise a draft permit for the plant to include stronger pollution limits for mercury, PFAs and other toxins, including arsenic, benzene and lead, according to the news release. Mercury is harmful to people of all ages, according to the news release, and it can cause brain damage to infants and poisons fish. PFAs are dangerous in very small 'parts per trillion' amounts and don't easily break down in the environment. 'The permit demonstrates BP's and the state of Indiana's disregard for the health of the people of Northwest Indiana and the Chicago area,' Kerri Gefeke, associate attorney at the Environmental Law and Policy Center, said in the news release. 'It's particularly egregious for the state to allow BP to discharge elevated levels of mercury, unknown amounts of 'forever chemicals' like PFAs, and numerous other chemicals into Lake Michigan mere feet from the beaches where people swim and fish, and a short distance from where the City of Hammond withdraws its drinking water.' Meg Parish, senior attorney at the Environmental Integrity Project, agreed with Gefeke, saying the state of Indiana shouldn't allow the permit. Various organizations sent a letter to IDEM asking the department to not renew the permit at the Whiting refinery. Carolyn McCrady, member of Gary Advocates for Responsible Development, said IDEM works for people and asked the agency to do a 'real analysis' before allowing the permit. Lisa Vallee, organizing director for Just Transition Northwest Indiana and a Whiting resident, said she was dumbfounded by the permit renewal application. The new permit contains more lax regulations, neglects to address more than 20 toxic chemicals and concerns about forever chemicals, Vallee said in a statement. 'We are not fools,' Vallee said. 'We know because we live here; every day, we smell it, see it and become ill. We will never stop fighting for the clean water, air and land we deserve.'
