Latest Chemicals Headlines
All the headlines from our Chemicals Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Fire at Hurricane-Hit Louisiana Chemical Plant Contained
Aug 30 2020 // A chlorine chemical fire that erupted last Thursday, triggering shelter-in-place orders and closing roadways in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura, has been brought under control, the plant’s owner said on Friday. KIK...
Fire Burns at Hurricane-Hit Louisiana Chemical Plant
Aug 28 2020 // Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards on Thursday asked residents in three southwestern communities to stay indoors with windows and doors shut as a plume rose from a chemical fire at a Biolab plant in an area hit by...
Wisconsin Board Delays Rules Setting New Restrictions on PFAS Chemicals
Aug 17 2020 // Environmental regulators in Wisconsin has voted to table rules setting new restrictions on firefighting foam containing PFAS chemicals. The Department of Natural Resources’ policy board made the decision in a...
Gutted Chemical Safety Board Tries to Proceed with Single Board Member
Aug 3 2020 // The U.S. Chemical Safety Board, which has only one board member instead of the usual five, on Friday postponed a scheduled public meeting that was to include discussion of its plans to operate even as President Donald...
Alabama Environmental Regulator, 3M Reach Agreement on Contamination Cleanup
Jul 31 2020 // The Alabama Department of Environmental Management announced Friday that it has reached an agreement with chemical giant 3M regarding cleanup of “forever chemicals” at its plant in Decatur and at multiple sites...
Chemical Firm BASF and Its Law Firm to Pay $72.5M to Close Talcum-Asbestos Claims
Jul 24 2020 // BASF SE, the world’s biggest chemical maker, and a law firm agreed to pay a combined $72.5 million to resolve claims they hid evidence that certain talc products contained asbestos in an effort to scuttle thousands...
3 Workers Injured at West Virginia Chemical Plant
Jul 15 2020 // Three workers have been injured at a West Virginia chemical plant, officials said. The incident happened Sunday evening at the Westlake Chemical plant, which produces chlorine, news outlets reported. Details of what...
India Investigator Recommends Moving S. Korea-Owned Plant After Gas Leak
Jul 7 2020 // CHENNAI/SEOUL – An investigation into a deadly gas leak at a South Korean-owned chemical plant in southern India that killed 12 people in May recommended the factory be moved away from inhabited areas, according to its...
Health Experts Caution Over Disinfectants, Cleaning Methods Used in Rush to Reopen
Jun 16 2020 // Businesses across the U.S. have begun intensive Covid-19 disinfection regimens, exposing returning workers and consumers to some chemicals that are largely untested for human health, a development that’s alarming...
Derailed Train in Oklahoma Spills Toxic Chemical, Spurs Evacuations
Jun 15 2020 // Dozens of residents of a small Oklahoma city were temporarily evacuated early on June 13 after a train derailed and spilled a hazardous chemical, officials said. The train went off the tracks at around 2 a.m. in Wynnewood,...
Iowa Chemical Plant to Pay $80K for 2019 Spill that Hurt Worker
Jun 8 2020 // A Waterloo, Iowa, chemical plant will pay a nearly $80,000 civil penalty to settle violations of federal Clean Air Act following a spill last year that hurt a worker there, federal officials said. The federal Environmental...
EPA Report: North Carolina Chemours Plant Chemical Release Went Unchecked for Years
Jun 3 2020 // Environmental regulators did not inspect a North Carolina chemical facility for eight years even though it was under a federal agreement to prevent the release of a potentially toxic substance known as PFAS. WRAL reports...
2 Companies Fined $1M Each Over Kansas Chemical Leak
May 29 2020 // Two companies that caused a chlorine gas leak over Atchison, Kansas, in 2106 have each been fined $1 million for violating federal clean air laws. Harcros Chemicals Inc., and MGP Ingredients Inc., had pleaded guilty to...
OSHA Cites, Fines Texas Chemical Plant Owner $514.6K After Explosions, Fire
May 28 2020 // A chemical manufacturer has been cited by federal officials for workplace safety hazards and fined more than $500,000 after a fire and explosions at its Port Neches, Texas, plant in November 2019. The U.S. Department of...
Officials: Harmful Firefighting Foam Chemicals Found in More Wisconsin Wells
Apr 16 2020 // Wisconsin state officials say additional private wells around Marinette and Peshtigo have elevated levels of harmful chemicals which may be linked to a firefighting foam manufacturer. Johnson Controls and its subsidiary,...
Delaware Judge Dismisses Chemours Lawsuit Against DuPont
Apr 1 2020 // A Delaware judge has granted the DuPont Co.’s request to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that it massively downplayed the cost of environmental liabilities imposed on spinoff company Chemours. Vice Chancellor Sam...
Chemours Claims Against DuPont Over Environmental Liabilities Left to Arbitration
Apr 1 2020 // A Delaware judge has granted the DuPont Co.’s request to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that it massively downplayed the cost of environmental liabilities imposed on spinoff company Chemours. Vice Chancellor Sam...
Massachusetts Contractor to Pay for Clean-Up Costs Following Chemical Explosion
Mar 26 2020 // A Sutton, Mass.-based contractor has agreed to pay $120,000 to reimburse the state for the cost of responding to a 2017 explosion and fire of a backyard shed at a Shrewsbury residential property, Massachusetts Attorney...
Louisiana Chemical Plant Asks Regulators to Allow Higher Emissions of Potential Toxin
Mar 18 2020 // A Louisiana chemical plant that agreed to lower its emissions of a potentially harmful toxin now wants to raise them based on research indicating the compound is safe at much higher levels than what federal environmental...
Arkema, Executives Accused of Failures in Chemical Fire at Texas Plant
Feb 28 2020 // Jurors in the criminal case against the U.S. arm of a French company on Feb. 27 heard it routinely stored combustible chemicals where floodwaters could reach them and failed to alert emergency workers as toxic fires...
