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Harrisburg, PA – Moms Clean Air Force, State Senator Katie Muth, Environmental Health Project, and Clean Air Council held a press conference at the Pennsylvania State Capitol today, calling on state leaders to safeguard Pennsylvanians from the impacts of a fossil fuel and plastic industry buildout. Existing facilities are already sickening people in local neighborhoods and heating the planet with their pollution. Any proposed expansion of facilities would lock Pennsylvanians into more plastic industry buildout, more fracked fossil fuel infrastructure, and more pollution.
At the end of the press conference, Moms Clean Air Force delivered 5,000+ signed petitions to Governor Shapiro and the PA DEP, urging them to protect Pennsylvanians from the expansion of five proposed facilities: Marcus Hook Industrial Complex in Delaware County, Revolution Gas Processing Plant in Washington County, Harmon Creek Gas Processing Plant in Washington County, ARCH 2 KeyState Natural Gas Synthesis Plant in Clinton County, and Nacero Marcellus Facility in Luzerne County.
“Every step of the petrochemical and plastics supply chain releases harmful pollutants – from extraction of fracked ethane gas used to make the building blocks of plastics to processing, production and transportation. This is not the legacy we want to leave for Pennsylvania’s children and future generations,” said Rachel Meyer, Ohio River Valley Field Organizer, Moms Clean Air Force. “Living near these facilities and supporting infrastructure puts our children at greater risk for negative health outcomes such as low birth weight, developmental issues, asthma, and cancer. Families need protection from the petrochemical industry’s harmful air pollution and planned expansion that impacts health, contributes to climate change, and perpetuates environmental injustices.”
“Petrochemical plants, like those that make plastics from fossil fuels, put the health of residents living nearby in serious jeopardy,” said Alison L. Steele, executive director of the Environmental Health Project. “These plants release toxic substances that accumulate in bodies and ecosystems, and pose a significant threat to the climate. Our governor, our agencies, and our legislators must do more to protect public health from the harms posed by these outsized polluters.”
“As the demand for oil and gas decreases due to the availability of clean renewable energy, the oil and gas industry is looking to plastics and other petrochemicals to keep profits high,” said Echo Alford, Delaware County Advocacy Coordinator, Clean Air Council. “The fossil fuel industry is polluting our environment to supply the building blocks to manufacture even more single-use plastic, adding to the global plastics crisis. Communities need the strongest possible standards and health protections from petrochemical facilities and from the fossil fuel infrastructure that feeds them.”
“My area of Washington County rapidly went from farming to fracking over the past twenty years while the state ignored health impacts caused by the shale gas industry,” said Cat Lodge, local Washington County resident “It is long overdue that the State considers health harms and cumulative impacts before gas permits are issued. There should not be any new or expanded gas facilities until health protections are properly adopted.”
State Senator Katie Muth also offered her support, sharing the following statement:
“The fossil fuel industry has long been looting and polluting our Commonwealth— and through the expansion of the petrochemical industry, carbon capture projects, and hydrogen hubs, the leaders in this Commonwealth continue to perpetuate the influence and ability of corporate polluters to make billions off of our natural resources. Pennsylvanians deserve better than to be beholden to the oil and gas industry — and I am so proud to stand alongside these environmental changemakers to call on our leaders to take climate change seriously and to begin to prioritize green, renewable energy sources.”
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About Environmental Health Project: The Environmental Health Project (EHP) is a nonprofit public health organization that defends public health in the face of shale gas development. EHP provides frontline communities with timely monitoring, interpretation, and guidance while engaging diverse stakeholders: health professionals, researchers, community organizers, policy makers, and others. For more information, please visit: www.environmentalhealthproject.org.
About Clean Air Council: The Clean Air Council is a member-supported, non-profit environmental organization dedicated to protecting everyone’s right to a healthy environment. The Council is headquartered in Philadelphia and works through public education, community advocacy, and government oversight to ensure enforcement of environmental laws. For more information, please visit www.cleanair.org.