July 19, 2006—Oxy Vinyls has settled with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and New Jersey and Louisville entities to significantly reduce vinyl chloride emissions at its plants in Pasadena, TX; Louisville, KY; and Pedricktown, NJ.
Oxy Vinyls has agreed to perform three environmental projects at an estimated cost of $1,224,000 that are expected to permanently decrease emissions of the human carcinogen vinyl chloride by approximately 40,000 pounds per year within five years. The company is reportedly North America’s largest polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resin supplier and the third largest PVC supplier worldwide.
The Oxy Vinyls settlement is part of a larger federal initiative focusing on the polyvinyl chloride manufacturing industry. The settlements with Occidental Chemical Corp. in 2004, Formosa Plastics’ Delaware facility in 2005, and Oxy Vinyls in 2006 will reportedly reduce vinyl chloride emissions by a total of approximately 128,000 pounds.
A copy of the Oxy Vinyls consent decree is available on the EPA Web site.
