Neighbors, Workers Deserve Resolution On DEQ Complaints
With workers complaining of headaches, nausea and nosebleeds, and neighbors complaining of bad odors, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality must quickly isolate the cause of what is sickening some manufacturing workers in Abingdon.
On Monday night, more than 100 people filed into Abingdon High School for a public hearing on an emissions permit for MXI, a business that recycles alcohol-based products into fuel. Speakers said exposure to a chemical used there can cause headaches, nausea and nosebleeds.
But it’s not clear that the illnesses have been caused by MXI emissions, or neighboring Hapco, which makes aluminum products like flag poles and light poles. Both industries are located at Exit 22 off Interstate 81.
Hapco employees have called DEQ and alleged emissions are coming from MXI’s cooling tower. MXI has produced operations records showing that even when its new water-recycling process is not running, Hapco employees have called DEQ to complain.
Tony Skeen, distillation manager for MXI, said processing metal can produce symptoms like those complained of by Hapco workers.
Skeen said he wasn’t pointing fingers, but, face facts – that’s exactly what both businesses are doing. Each manufacturer claims the other’s work could be the source of the odor- and illness-inducing emissions. MXI plant Operations Manager Brian Potter claims the wind blows cooling tower emissions toward his plant, not Hapco, and even then that people do not get sick.
Mike Robinson, Hapco human resources director, is tired of the runaround. He wants DEQ to root out the source of the problem that causes regular illness complaints to his office. “When I have an employee look at me in the eyes with tears streaming down his face and his nose bleeding and throwing up and I told him DEQ says it’s not harmful, I look like a fool,” Robinson said at the hearing.
That’s plainly understandable. Hapco workers started complaining this spring, when an odor wafted into their plant and some workers experienced symptoms similar to drunkenness. DEQ did cite MXI in June for exceeding its emissions limit for ethanol.
But three months later, it is still not clear what has caused the physical symptoms. DEQ air testing did not isolate any compound that would have adverse health effects.
But now MXI wants to raise its emission limit and install new equipment to keep odors from escaping. We’re not sure anyone knows conclusively what is causing the emissions problem so far, and complaints from neighbors show either or both plants are not keeping odors from reaching nearby homes.
At Monday’s hearing, DEQ officials said they believe MXI’s plan would likely address the existing odor problem and that monitoring is included in the proposed permit.
Bad odors can be an indication of a problem; they also can be a normal part of operating a manufacturing business. But who can doubt crippling headaches, vomiting, nausea and nosebleeds? This is not normal under any measure.
Allowing either company to raise its emission limits at this time would be irresponsible. DEQ must first determine what is sickening workers today.
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Reader Reactions
Scott- I have no intentions of being rude but it seems you were missing the point I was trying to make. When the strong perfume smell from MXI is present, people are getting sick. That should be enough to tell you that MXI has a problem. People from different areas are complaining about the same strong perfume smell. Enough said.
Dear NYY, I am listening teh fact that I am offering other explanations does not warrant your uppity, rude attitude. I said that MXI is teh first possibility. however, I also pointed out that complaints came to DEQ when MXI did not run their machinery. Logically that opens up the possibility that something else was involved. Perhaps you are the one that is so eager to villainize MXI that you are not open to other possible causes.
I know someone who did work on the air handlers on the roof at Hapco and when they opened it up they all had to leave bacause of the fumes. I am saying that Hapco’s process could defintiely be a contributor to the problem. All of the situations need to be evaluated by DEQ.
Scott- Apparently you are not listening or you don’t want to listen. The ONLY time people are getting sick is when that strong perfume odor from MXI was present. PERIOD. I can not be any clearer. People that live and work around MXI have no reason lie about being sick. There were at least two residents that live close to MXI that came to speak out that it was the odor from MXI causing the problem. It is apparent you do not want to acknowledge that MXI is the issue but I can only hope that DEQ wakes up and does the right thing and does not allow this permit to be issued.
Okay NYY and Robert, Here’s some “logic”. There are at least three possible explanations for the alleged increase in Hapco employees’ illnesses. The first is that MXI is at fault. Their new water evaporator could have released compunds into the atmosphere that led to sickness. However, as MXI argues, none of their employees have gotten sick. Yet this is the only explanation that Hapco has put forth. The second explanation is that aluminum welding at Hapco has caused the problem and employees have experienced illness in the past, but did not know what to associate it with. The fact that in the spring MXI’s evaporator was running scented water through its system could be simply a stimulus that employees latched onto but was not the actual cause. The fact is that complaints from Hapco continued even after DEQ shut down the evaporator until the matter could be settled. How could MXI have caused sickness at that point when they were not even running the equipment that Hapco claimed was causing the problems? The third explanation is that some other party’s emissions is at fault. DEQ found styrenes in the air samples taken at Hapco and MXI does not process styrenes. A likely culprit would be Strongwell.
The point I was making is that it is a fallacy to assert causal responsibility to MXI when DEQ found no evidence that MXI’s air emissions were non-compliant. Mr. Skeen came to the meeting armed with fats and Hapco employees came to the meeting with emotions.
Scott- try using some logic on your own. Both Hapco and Tri-tube have been around a long time with established processes that have not caused any issues before. Plus people working in offices who are not around these processes are also getting sick from the pungent perfume smell. You know as well as everyone else where the problem lies. MXI needs to take responsibilty for their processes and stop neglecting them. This permit should not be passed and hopefully DEQ will open their eyes and realize what they are doing. MXI has showed they can not operate within previous guidelines and these will be no different.
Welding Al has nothing to do with it and you all know it. Its totally unbelievable to me that you can pass the blame in such a way. The things contained in perfune can definately cause the problems people are having and then sum. You say its just perfume and the public should not be concerned. Perfume contains things like Toluene, methanol, acetone, formaldehyde, limonene, benzene derivatives, methylene chloride, formaldehyde and many others known to cause cancer, birth defects, infertility, nervous system damage, and other injuries. And to top it all off your asking to change your permit to more of it into the air!
you want to emit over 180 tons!!!!!
Dear NYY, Either you cannot read or your emotions are gettin gin the way of your ability to use logic. First of all, no one from MXI is treating this as a game nor have they mentioned playing games. The fact is that both Hapco and TriTube weld aluminum and this process causes the sypmtoms that is making people sick. It is true that there is soimetimes a perfume smell that emanates from MXI, but that is not necessarily the odor that is causing sickness. Hapco has called in odor complaints on at least three occasions as Mr. Skeen pointed out, when MXI was not processing any ethanol/alcohol/perfume. Who is playing games here? Perhaps Hapco employees? DEQ did not associate the perfume odor with sickness, therefore how can you be so sure that is what is causing the sickness as you put it? MXI’s operations officer, Brian Potter, states that they spent $100,000 to correct the filtration so that the odors will not be emitted from the cooling tower. Why not wait and see if that takes care of the odors? But do not state definitively that the odors is what caused the sickness. There is absolutley no proof to support that claim.
As a resident of the area there is only one place that emits that strong perfume smell and that would be MXI. This is the odor that is causing sickness in people who live and/or work around you facility. MXI needs to take responsibility for their processes and fix their problems and stop neglecting them. People are getting sick because of your processes. This is not a game as MXI employees think it is. These are real people trying to live and work daily and deserve to do so in a clean enviroment.
This is directly form there new permit application. These are the compounds if approved they will be allowed to discharge into the air.
Pollutant Pounds per year
Particulates 67,280
PM-10 53,620
Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) 77,260
Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) 20,000
Carbon Monoxide 12,120
Volatile Organic Compounds 1,060
Volatile Organic Compounds (b) 129,880
Hydrogen Chloride 7,800
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) 381
Chromium VI 78
Cadmium 16
TOTAL 369,400
what people fail to see and i still dont understand why is that mxi does more than just alcohol. as a previous blogger indicated this co. is one of the largest if not the largest household hazardous waste processors in the south east. they process tens of thousands of pounds of pesticides a year. many banned by the EPA for use. this includes DDT, Diazanon, and chloridane to name a few. Could this be the problem? the city of bristol and town of abingdon send all of there HHW waste here. maybe we should ask them.
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