"Air pollution is one of
the unseen dangers of the storm."
As the catastrophic
flooding brought about by Hurricane Harvey continues to devastate Texas,
reports of "unbearable"
smells are beginning to emerge from the state, sparking growing concerns of the
long-term health effects that could result from toxic waste and fumes being
spewed from temporarily closed oil refineries.
"At least 10 refineries
on the Texas coast have shut down," notes the Huffington
Post's Ryan Grenoble. "And whenever a refinery has to be closed or
restarted, especially in emergency situations, its emissions far exceed what's
typically allowed."
Environment Texas, a
citizen-based environmental advocacy project of Environment America, said in a statement
on Monday that Houston oil industry is likely "releasing more than 1
million pounds of harmful pollution into the air, according to its initial
reports to Texas regulators."
"Air pollution is one of
the unseen dangers of the storm," Dr. Elena Craft, senior health scientist
at Environmental Defense Fund, told Environment Texas. "Poor air quality
puts the most vulnerable among us, like children and seniors, at risk for
asthma, heart attacks, strokes, and other health problems.”
Long before Harvey made
landfall, environmental groups and scientists had been warning
of the disastrous effects that could result from a massive storm like
Harvey hitting Texas, the heart of the U.S. petrochemical industry. Now,
judging by first-hand reports from the state, some of these concerns are coming
to fruition.
As The New Republic's Emily
Atkin noted
on Monday, "residents of Houston's industrial fence-line communities are reporting strong gas- and
chemical-like smells coming from the many refineries and chemical plants
nearby." On several occasions, as reports late Monday indicated,
Texans have been ordered to "shelter in place" amid reports of
chemical leaks.
One resident—Bryan Parras, an
activist with the environmental justice group TEJAS—told Atkin that he has been
smelling the fumes "all night," and that some Texans are already
experiencing symptoms: "headaches, sore throat, scratchy throat, and itchy
eyes."
In an interview
on Democracy Now! Monday, Parras added that you could see "the black
smoke" emitted by the refineries as "excess chemicals" were
being burnt off.
"Unfortunately,"
Parras concluded, "that adds thousands of pounds of cancer-causing
chemicals to the air."
Houston, the so-called
"energy capital" of the U.S., has been the source of the more
worrying anecdotes.
Nayeli Olmos, a Houston
resident, told
the local Houston Press that she first began noticing the smell Saturday night,
around 24 hours after Hurricane Harvey made landfall. She initially thought the
stench "would go away on its own, but this morning it was still here, and
it feels like whenever it rains the odor gets stronger."
"Our neighbors were all
talking about it and then I saw people from different neighborhoods talking
about it on social media," Olmos added. "That's when I realized it's
not just us this time. It's all over East Houston."
Public Citizen's Stephanie
Thomas corroborated Olmos's experience, describing the "powerful" smell
as "like burnt rubber with a hint of something metallic thrown in."
These reports have been met
with serious alarm by scientists and environmentalists, who have concluded that
the pollution resulting from Hurrican Harvey will have lasting effects.
"This pollution will hurt
public health in Houston," said
Bakeyah Nelson, executive director of Air Alliance Houston. "When petrochemical
plants prepare for storms, they release thousands of pounds of pollutants into
the air...It is a stark reminder of the dangers of living near industry. We
urge everyone to stay safe."
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