Today Amnesty International issued The Cost of Doing Business? The Petrochemical Industry’s Toxic Pollution in the USA. The report shows how people living close to the Houston Ship Channel are breathing toxic substances, linked to a wide range of illnesses, emitted by facilities that routinely flout regulations and release pollutants into the environment. It scrutinizes four plants in particular: ExxonMobil’s Baytown Complex, LyondellBasell’s Channelview Complex, Shell Chemicals in Deer Park, and the infamous Intercontinental Terminals Company petrochemical storage facility in Deer Park.
Bayou City Waterkeeper’s Yudith Nieto and Kristen Schlemmer were interviewed for this report.
Read Amnesty International’s press release and report.
Bayou City Waterkeeper protects the waters and people across the greater Houston region through bold legal action, community science, and creative, grassroots policy to further justice, health, and safety for our region. Bayou City Waterkeeper’s participation in this report supports our strategic objective and broader work to “Work with communities to reduce pollution, environmental injustices, and climate risks created by industrial facilities and infrastructure and improve systems of accountability and enforcement.”