As a result of local resistance to the proposed disposal of toxic wastewater from the site of last month's Norfolk Southern train crash, a contractor in Baltimore has agreed to move the processing of hundreds of thousands of gallons of wastewater. Between 600,000 to 800,000 gallons of water from East Palestine, Ohio will be handled elsewhere, Clean Harbors of Baltimore Environmental Services announced on Tuesday morning.
On Friday, local officials learned that Norfolk Southern had hired Clean Harbors to transport tons of polluted water from the derailment site to Baltimore. From there, the water would have made its way to the problematic Back River Wastewater Treatment Facility in Baltimore via the city's outdated and leaky sewer system. The authorities warned of impending "catastrophic failure" at the factory last year, and an explosion in one of the plant's buildings used to filter sewage sludge forced its shutdown less than a month ago.
The city council of Baltimore voted on Monday to ask the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reconsider its decision to send the wastewater there, but the EPA has refused to listen to their concerns and instead warned state environmental agencies in a letter earlier this month that preventing Norfolk Southern's hazardous materials from passing through their jurisdictions would be "impermissible" under the Constitution's Interstate Commerce Clause.
But, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott reasoned that once the effluent from Clean Harbor crossed into Maryland, the city was under no obligation to incorporate it into the local sewer system. This man declared on a Monday that the city could "protect its sewer system from the Ohio wastewater by altering the discharge permit provided to Clean Harbors to'safeguard Publicly Owned Treatment Works.'"
The highly toxic vinyl chloride that spilled from five of the cars on the Norfolk Southern train that derailed in East Palestine last month was allowed to be burned by local authorities, resulting in the release of numerous toxic substances, including dioxins, into the air, water, and soil in the area. Even while the EPA tried to convince people that the pollution wasn't dangerous, several experts have pointed out that exposure to even trace amounts of chemicals like dioxins over time can be fatal.
On Friday, local officials learned that Norfolk Southern had hired Clean Harbors to transport tons of polluted water from the derailment site to Baltimore. From there, the water would have made its way to the problematic Back River Wastewater Treatment Facility in Baltimore via the city's outdated and leaky sewer system. The authorities warned of impending "catastrophic failure" at the factory last year, and an explosion in one of the plant's buildings used to filter sewage sludge forced its shutdown less than a month ago.
The city council of Baltimore voted on Monday to ask the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reconsider its decision to send the wastewater there, but the EPA has refused to listen to their concerns and instead warned state environmental agencies in a letter earlier this month that preventing Norfolk Southern's hazardous materials from passing through their jurisdictions would be "impermissible" under the Constitution's Interstate Commerce Clause.
But, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott reasoned that once the effluent from Clean Harbor crossed into Maryland, the city was under no obligation to incorporate it into the local sewer system. This man declared on a Monday that the city could "protect its sewer system from the Ohio wastewater by altering the discharge permit provided to Clean Harbors to'safeguard Publicly Owned Treatment Works.'"
The highly toxic vinyl chloride that spilled from five of the cars on the Norfolk Southern train that derailed in East Palestine last month was allowed to be burned by local authorities, resulting in the release of numerous toxic substances, including dioxins, into the air, water, and soil in the area. Even while the EPA tried to convince people that the pollution wasn't dangerous, several experts have pointed out that exposure to even trace amounts of chemicals like dioxins over time can be fatal.
