Environmental Integrity Project Director Jen Duggan Criticizes DOJ and EPA Plans to Drop Case Against Denka Performance Elastomer
Washington, D.C. – The Environmental Integrity Project issued the following statement about the Trump Administration’s decision to drop a 2023 federal lawsuit against a Louisiana chemical manufacturer, Denka Performance Elastomer, for releasing a carcinogen, chloroprene, into the predominantly Black community of LaPlace, La.
On Wednesday, March 5, the Department of Justice told the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana that the government plans to dismiss the lawsuit against Denka Performance Elastomer.
“The American people did not vote to let corporate polluters get away with violating the law and making the air unsafe to breathe,” said Jen Duggan, Executive Director of the Environmental Integrity Project. “The Denka plant releases dangerous levels of a carcinogen that children at an elementary school less than 500 feet away are exposed to, and the case was scheduled to go to trial next month. The Trump Administration’s plan to dismiss this case should raise alarm bells for communities across the country and is a clear signal that the administration is not serious about enforcing the laws on the books that ensure we have access to clean and safe air and water.”
The plant, located beside the Mississippi River about 15 miles west of New Orleans, manufactures neoprene, a synthetic rubber that is used in wetsuits, sportswear, hoses, automotive parts and other products.
On February 28, 2023, the Department of Justice and EPA filed a lawsuit against Denka under the Clean Air Act, demanding that the company significantly reduce its emissions of chloroprene because the carcinogen represented “an imminent and substantial endangerment to public health.” The Biden Administration had made a priority of taking long overdue action against polluters in lower income neighborhoods and communities of color like LaPlace, which have historically suffered disproportionate amounts of pollution.
The Trump Administration has threatened to cut EPA’s budget by two thirds and eliminate important pollution control regulations. During Trump’s last term, EPA inspections, penalties, and the enforcement of environmental laws all fell significantly, according to an EIP analysis of EPA data.
The Environmental Integrity Project is America’s environmental watchdog. We hold polluters and governments accountable to protect public health and the environment.
Media contact: Ari Phillips, (443) 263-4456 or aphillips@environmentalintegrity.org
Photo credit: iStock/donvictorio
