Kids still use the playground at the shuttered Hitchens Elementary School, which closed in 2005. (Garrett Hubbard/USA Today)
CINCINNATI -- "An elementary school has been shut for 4 years because of carcinogenic fumes from a nearby plastics plant, and the lost classroom space is crowding other schools. The Three Rivers Board of Education says Ineos ABS and Lanxess Corp. polluted the air at Meredith Hitchens Elementary School so badly the Ohio EPA told the superintendent that rooftop monitors 'revealed that two chemicals from the plastics plant across the street were drifting over the school at levels that made the risk of cancer 50 times higher than what the state considers acceptable,'" Melissa Thomas, Courthouse News Service.
ADDYSTON -- Plastics plant sued over shuttered school west of Cincinnati, Associated Press. Published November 29.
ADDYSTON -- Three Rivers sues over pollution, Denise Smith Amos, Cincinnati Enquirer. Published November 27.
COLUMBUS -- "Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray last week joined the U.S. Department of Justice in filing a Consent Decree, including a $3.1 million settlement, with INEOS ABS (USA) and the former Lanxess Corp., operators of a plastic resins manufacturing facility located in the village of Addyston near Cincinnati. The joint state/federal air pollution enforcement action, taken on behalf of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. EPA, spells out specific pollution control and monitoring the company must implement and specifies penalties for potential future violations.
'The people of Addyston have watched and listened for years, as concerns were raised about toxins from this plant polluting the air they breathe,' said Attorney General Cordray. 'The financial penalty helps us to enforce state and federal laws, but the pollution control and monitoring called for in the settlement are more important because they will protect against further harm to the community,'" Toledo Legal News. 
NEWTON CENTER, MA -- "Every year, to mark the anniversary of the March 18, 1937 Texas School Explosion, I name a Healthy Schools Hero who demonstrates extraordinary responsibility and inspirational leadership for safety in schools.
The 2009 Healthy Schools Hero Award winner is Ruth Breech, Program Director at Global Community Monitor in El Cerrito, CA. Ruth Breech was nominated by Peter Fugazzotto, Director of Oceans and Communities, for her work to protect school children in Addyston, Ohio from the hazards of toxic industrial pollution.
Described in the media as a 'tenacious, high-energy community activist,' Breech is motivated to 'tell the untold story' of the people who suffer in silence in 'fenceline' communities such as Addyston, Ohio," Ellie Goldberg for Healthy Kids. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., asks about EPA's handling of toxic industrial emissions near schools. |
WASHINGTON, DC-- "President-elect Barack Obama's choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency promised Wednesday that she would deploy federal regulators to check air quality around schools in response to a USA TODAY investigation that identified hundreds of schools that appeared to be in toxic hot spots... USA TODAY identified 435 schools in locations where the air outside appeared more dangerous than at an Ohio elementary school shut down three years ago. That school, Meredith Hitchens Elementary, was closed after Ohio officials found carcinogens outside at 50 times what the state considers acceptable," Brad Heath and Blake Morrison, USA TODAY.
Jan 2, 2009: Possible air hazards rarely considered in plans for schools
SPRINGDALE, AR -- "USA TODAY spent eight months examining the impact of industrial pollution on schools across the nation and used a government computer simulation to identify schools in potential toxic hot spots, a task the EPA has never undertaken. The newspaper identified 435 schools in locations where the air outside appeared more dangerous than at an Ohio elementary school that was shut down three years ago after officials found the air there saturated with carcinogens 50 times higher than what the state considers acceptable. At least 43 of the 435 schools — or about 10% — opened in the past decade," Brad Heath, Blake Morrison and Dan Reed, USA TODAY, published December 29.
Dec 8, 2008: Health risks stack up for students near industrial plants
 Matt Becker's 7-inch scar came from exploratory surgery after doctors thought they saw another tumor in the 17-year-old. |
Dec 8: 'Weird' smell set off probe at Ohio school
ADDYSTON -- "The toxic chemicals that led to the closure of Meredith Hitchens Elementary School here became impossible to ignore in 2004, during the annual Oktoberfest celebration at the school. The air outside the building, never pristine, 'smelled weird and everyone noticed it' that Saturday, recalls Ruth Breech, a community activist. Ohio Citizen Action, an advocacy group for whom Breech worked, had begun a public awareness campaign aimed at curbing emissions at Lanxess Corp., which ran a plastics plant across the street from the school," Blake Morrison, USA Today.
ADDYSTON -- "Folks around Addyston are getting set for yet another big change. The company that was Monsanto, then Bayer, then Lanxess – and now Lustran Polymers – is about to change one more time. But what isn't changing is the business inside: making plastics from chemicals... The new name is INEOS. And this isn't just a name change; it's new ownership. That has some neighbors concerned. 'It's a British-owned company. They don't live around here. Are they going to deal with the community?,'" WCPO. COLUMBUS -- "For example, an Ohio EPA study around the Lanxess Corp. plastics plant in Addyston, about 20 miles west of Cincinnati, found high levels of toxic chemicals. The agency concluded in 2005 that the cancer risk for residents was 50 times greater because of two chemicals emitted into the air from the plant. Lanxess disputed the findings. Until the state EPA brought in monitors, no machines were nearby that could have detected the chemicals. In 1999, the state EPA issued a report documenting dangerously high levels of benzene emissions from the New Boston Coke coal processing plant in Scioto County. The agency found that that one in 500 nearby resident had a higher-than-normal risk of developing cancer from airborne benzene. Those examples show that more monitors are needed, said Teresa Mills, director of the Buckeye Environmental Network, an Ohio advocacy group," Associated Press, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Emissions high on some days
CINCINNATI -- "Lanxess is making progress in reducing emissions of acrylonitrile and 1,3-butadiene, two chemicals linked to cancer in humans. Because of that, the state has agreed not to pursue litigation against the company, said Heather Lauer, EPA spokeswoman. 'We've said all along that the company is a nuisance, but we've agreed not to deal with that now, but just to focus on getting the (emissions) numbers down to where they're supposed to be without any spikes,' she said," Peggy O'Farrell, Cincinnati Enquirer.
CINCINNATI -- "Lanxess Corp. will conduct studies this month to determine what is causing air violations at its Addyston plant, the result of an agreement with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and Hamilton County Department of Environmental Services, the Ohio EPA said Tuesday. Under the agreement, Lanxess will submit evaluations and control measures for lowering its emissions of 1,3 butadiene and acrylonitrile by March 31," Cincinnati Business Courier.
County health agency gives study results
 Epidemiologist Cynthia Yund discusses her review of cancer cases in Addyston. |
ADDYSTON -- "A case assessment study by the Hamilton County Health Department identified a number of risk factors - including smoking and diet - shared by village cancer victims, and none of those risk factors involve the Lanxess Corp. plant. The study results were detailed Monday at a meeting of the Addyston Environmental Task Force, which was formed after residents expressed concerns about emissions coming from Lanxess," William A Weathers,
Cincinnati Enquirer
.
Neighbors of Lanxess Plastics and Ohio Citizen Action toured Lanxess' improvement projects on November 2, 2006. Lanxess highlighted improvements made to their butadiene flare, the thermal oxidizer and waste water treatment process. Lanxess has had one year of aggressive improvements and will continue in 2007 at the same pace focusing on reductions of acrylontrile, styrene and odors.
ADDYSTON -- "The state again has ordered a plastics factory across from a school outside Cincinnati to reduce emissions of suspected carcinogens. Yesterday, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency ordered Pittsburgh-based Lanxess to reduce emissions of acrylonitrile, butadiene and other chemicals from its plant in Addyston," Mike Lafferty, Columbus Dispatch.
ADDYSTON -- "State officials announced Thursday that certain chemical emissions from the Lanxess Corp. plant have been reduced and meet public health standards. For residents here, the announcement was good news - and a matter of life and death," Quan Truong, Cincinnati Enquirer.
ADDYSTON -- Reduced emissions, Hagit Limor, WCPO
ADDYSTON -- "Ohio Citizen Action, an environmental watchdog organization with 100,000 dues-paying members, targeted Addyston and the Lanxess plant for a citizen anti-pollution and good neighbor campaign because there was an unusually high incidence of asthma and cancer in the community right across the street from a plastics plant that was emitting large quantities of cancer-causing chemicals, Breech explains. Lanxess was also the source of more accidental releases than other companies its size and was one of the top five plants in the county in terms of the toxicity of the chemicals it used and the proximity of the residents to the plant," Steve Lerner, Commonweal. Chemical company denies it is the cause of high incidence
Sandy Marshall attempts to answer neighbors' questions at a community meeting Wednesday, September 14, 2005.
ADDYSTON -- "In December, the Ohio EPA released an air quality study stating that people who breathed fumes from the plant over a period of decades had a 50 percent higher risk of developing cancer than people who hadn't. Sandy Marshall, Lanxess's Addyston plant manager, called that report 'flawed and premature...' Marshall's points include: The cancers observed most frequently in Addyston correspond to those seen most often nationally and statewide, he said. The state study does not implicate Lanxess, he said, and the report points out that many risk factors, including smoking, diet and physical activity, combine to cause cancer," Peggy O'Farrell, Cincinnati Enquirer.
ADDYSTON
-- "The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has cited plastics maker
Lanxess Corp. for air contamination at its Addyston plant. But company officials
say they've already taken steps to address two of the issues mentioned by
the EPA... (Mike Kramer, of the county's Department of Environmental Services)
and Ruth Breech, southern Ohio program director for environmental group
Ohio Citizen Action, questioned the EPA's timing. 'It's a little
after the fact,' Breech said," Peggy O'Farrell, Cincinnati Enquirer.ADDYSTON -- Lanxess cited by EPA, Until now, Lanxess has faced complaints from neighbors and an environmental group called Ohio Citizen Action, Hagit Limor, WCPO.
 The Lanxess plant in Addyston. Photo by Mike Munden, Columbus Dispatch. |
Jun 6: Another
Lanxess accident
Plastics plant releases 151 lbs of Acrylonitrile,
321 lbs of Styrene, 6 lbs of Butadiene, 35 lbs other compounds into air
ADDYSTON -- "Lanxess Plastics had another round of accidents on May
31 and June 1, 2006, releasing over 500 pounds of chemicals into the air,
including 157 pounds of cancer-causing chemicals. According to plant manager
Sandy Marshall, the accidents were caused by problems in the electrical
systems. Marshall says Lanxess is installing a secondary electrical system
to prevent another problem in the system," Ruth Breech, Ohio Citizen
Action. 20 Kb doc.
Lanxess Public Advisory Group will be meeting at
5 pm on Wednesday June 15, 2006 at the Miami Township Hall, 112 S. Miami
Rd, Cleves.
Previous 2006 Accidents
Jun 5: Addyston
cancers studied
Incidence rate is higher than normal, and county
wants to know why
ADDYSTON -- "The detective
work is starting as Hamilton County health officials try to determine
why so many people in Addyston have cancer. A May 25 report from the Ohio
Department of Health shows the incidence of cancer in Addyston, a village
of about 1,000 people, is 76 percent higher than expected in the general
population. Residents such as Sue Lloyd, a breast cancer survivor, have
long been concerned about emissions from the plastics plant in town, which
has been operating since the 1950s, Peggy O'Farrell, Cincinnati Enquirer.
Alarming cancer rate found in village
ADDYSTON -- "State health and environmental officials found an unusually high number of cancer cases in an Ohio River village where a plastics plant leaked toxic chemicals into the air. While the Ohio Department of Health won’t link the cancers to the Lanxess plant, an Ohio Environmental Protection Agency investigator said residents of Addyston should not rule it out. Addyston is about 12 miles west of Cincinnati. A Health Department study found 55 cancer cases in a town that should have had 31," Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch.
State study shows cases are 76% over the expected rate
ADDYSTON -- "Cancer incidence
in this village, where a plastics plant has released chemicals for decades,
is considerably higher than the expected rate, an Ohio Department of Health
study shows. Health officials say they don't have enough information to
say why those cases are occurring. Staff from the Hamilton County General
Health District will conduct a follow-up study to get more information,
health commissioner Tim Ingram said. That study should be complete by October,"
Peggy O'Farrell, Cincinnati Enquirer.ADDYSTON -- Study shows increased cancer rate near plastics plant, Akron Beacon Journal.
ADDYSTON -- Ruth Breech/Ohio Citizen Action, on tape: "Here you have a community that has a higher incidence of cancer and a chemical plant that puts out cancer-causing chemicals. I mean, you can make the connection," Hagit Lamor, WCPO.
ADDYSTON -- "Addyston residents will hear the results of a report on cancer incidence in their community tonight at 7... In 2005, Ohio EPA officials said residents near the Lanxess plant have a 50 percent greater chance than the general public of developing cancer if they breathed fumes released by the plant for decades. Lanxess officials protested that finding, and since 2004, the company has spent more than $3 million to address the unintentional release of chemicals into the air, company officials have said," Peggy O'Farrell, Cincinnati Enquirer.
Carol Bowman
1934-2006 Carol Bowman (nee Wickman). Beloved wife of Bernard "Buzz'' Bowman Jr. Devoted mother of Lynn Carol Bowman. Dear sister of Mary Belle Hawk, Phyllis Stiles, Robert and the late William, James, Carl, Donald and John Wickman, Myla Bowman and Laura Breining. Also survived by nieces and nephews. May 19, 2006. Age 72. Visitation Monday 6-9 P.M. at the Dennis George Funeral Home, 44 S. Miami, Cleves. Funeral Tuesday 10 A.M. at St. Luke Episcopal Church, 7350 Kirkwood Ln., Cincinnati 45233 (Fernbank). Memorials to St. Luke Episcopal Church. Carol was a rock in the Westside Action Group on the Lanxess Good Neighbor Campaign -she even passed around petitions at church. She was an incredible woman who always spoke up for what was right. |
ADDYSTON -- "State and county officials plan to install extremely sensitive monitoring equipment to measure the quality of air around Lanxess Corp., a plastic manufacturer with a history of releasing toxic gases. Last year, in a response to community concerns about recent releases of chemicals into the air by Lanxess, an air-quality monitor was installed atop Meredith Hitchens Elementary School - across the street from the plant - to collect a 24-hour air sample once every six days," Kimball Perry, Cincinnati Enquirer.
2006 Community Complaints
2006 Accidents
ADDYSTON -- "The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency will set up new air quality monitors in Addyston around the Lanxess chemical plant because of neighbors' concerns. The agency will set a monitor designed to detect a spike in pollutants on the roof of Hitchens Elementary School.The EPA will have agents collect samples at four other nearby sites, and will set up a monitor inside the Addyston municipal building," WCPO.
ADDYSTON -- "The
Ohio EPA is planning to stop air quality testing at an elementary school
located across from a plant that may be producing dangerous emissions...
The EPA had kept monitoring sites at the Meredith Hitchens Elementary School
across from the Lanxess plant. But because school officials moved students
and faculty to another facility, the agency says it was no longer needed,"
WCPO.Remains committed to lowering emissions
ADDYSTON-- "Lanxess
Corporation has filed an appeal to an order issued by the Ohio Environmental
Protection Agency in early December... 'We want to be very clear,' says
Plant Manager Sandy Marshall. 'Our
decision to appeal is not designed to avoid our committment to reduce emissions.
While we are currently in compliance with all applicable air emission limits,
we are committed to reducing emissions even further, and have been working
hard to achieve lower levels." Lanxess Public Advisory Group.
126KB pdf.Polluter hires ex-EPA director
ADDYSTON -- "Planning to take on the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency? It might help to hire someone who used to work there. Faced with a state order to cut toxic chemicals that leaked from its Addyston plastics plant, Lanxess Corp. of Pittsburgh has hired Chris Jones, who directed the Ohio EPA for six years before he stepped down in January 2005... Jones’ tenure was marked by complaints from environmental advocates who said the EPA worked too closely with big business and ignored pollution. Jones, an attorney, works for a Columbus firm. 'This is exactly what we thought would happen,' said Sandy Buchanan, director of Ohio Citizen Action, which with several Lanxess neighbors began a campaign to draw attention to the plant in July 2004, about six months before Jones left office," Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch. Acces fee; no link.
Pollution problem sealed Three Rivers' decision
NORTH BEND -- "The Three Rivers School Board voted Monday to permanently close Meredith Hitchens Elementary School in Addyston because of findings of higher than normal levels of certain air pollutants. Hitchens closed for the school year in December after the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency found higher than acceptable levels of certain chemicals released into the air, presumably by plastics maker Lanxess Corp. across the street. The agency said the pollution posed an elevated risk of cancer and other health problems," Denise Smith Amos, Cincinnati Enquirer.
Union hopes talks with new ownership will change things
CINCINNATI -- "Out on the picket line for almost a year now, United Steel workers local 14340 have kept up with what they call environmental and industrial violations. The allegations are enough to get the attention of Ruth Breech and the Cleveland based Ohio Citizen Action group. For months they've investigated and analyzed the Lanxess plant in Addyston and now Cognis is on their watch list. Ohio Citizen Action believes the 2005 strike of the more than 200 steel workers has had a negative community and environmental impact compared to the year before," WXIX.
Awaiting attorneys' reports before picking building to shutter
CLEVES -- "The Three Rivers Local School District Board of Education is awaiting reports from environmental attorneys before deciding which elementary school to close... Making an already difficult decision even more complicated, in early December the district was forced to temporarily close Hitchens for the rest of this school year after the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency ordered the Lanxess Corp., located across the street from Hitchens, to lower emissions of potentially cancer-causing chemicals," Kurt Bachscheider, Community Press.
News from 2005 ,2004