The U.S. Steel plant where two workers were killed and 10 injured in an explosion on Monday had a history of chemical accidents — but it was one of hundreds of high-risk chemical facilities that were recently hidden from the public after demands from the chemical industry.
The Trump administration, at the behest of the powerful chemical lobby, has been working to gut oversight of so-called Risk Management Program facilities, chemical plants that are considered at the highest risk of deadly explosions. In April, two months after an explicit request from industry, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) scrubbed a tracking tool listing such facilities from its website.
Clairton Coke Works, the U.S. Steel plant near Pittsburgh that erupted in black smoke on Monday, is one such facility. Deemed high risk by environmental regulators, the plant, which manufactures materials used in steel production, is subject to various risk management requirements under the Clean Air Act aimed at preventing chemical fires.
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