Cancer and chemicals in Reserve, Louisiana: the science explained
Source: The Guardian
Cancer and chemicals in Reserve, Louisiana: the science explained
In the area closest to the local chemicals factory, residents face a cancer risk of 50 times the national average. So what’s in the air?
Jamiles Lartey and Oliver Laughland
Mon 6 May 2019 11.00 BST Last modified on Mon 6 May 2019 13.45 BST
St John the Baptist parish sits about 20 miles from New Orleans in southern Louisiana. Home to about 45,000 people, this predominantly black parish contains the US neighborhoods most at risk of cancer due to air toxicity, according to government science. The parish sits at the heart of a region sometimes described as “Cancer Alley” because of the pollution from a high concentration of petrochemical plants.
Throughout the year, the Guardian will be reporting from St John and other places nearby. Here’s a rundown of the common questions on the science behind the health hazards in this corner of Louisiana.
What’s in the air in St John the Baptist parish?
There are nearly 50 toxic chemicals in the air here, including known carcinogens like benzene, 1,3 butadiene and formaldehyde. But according America’s environmental regulatory agency, the EPA, the two most pressing concerns for residents in St John the Baptist are chloroprene and ethylene oxide [EtO].
The chloroprene comes from the Pontchartrain Works facility, which straddles the towns of LaPlace and Reserve in St John the Baptist. The plant was built by chemicals company DuPont and sold to the Japanese firm Denka in 2015. According to EPA data, the facility presents the greatest risk of cancer from air pollution of any factory in the US.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/may/06/cancertown-chemicals-reserve-louisiana-science