Liberty-Clairton Area AGAIN Tops List for Worst Air Quality, 2 More H2S Exceedances Noted
 

The Liberty-Clairton area had the distinction Sunday and Monday of being among the areas in the country with the worst air quality, according to AirNow.gov, a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency website that tracks the Air Quality Index (AQI) throughout the United States. Today, it was in the top three.

In fact the air quality was poor enough that the 24-hour average Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) level at the Liberty monitor exceeded the state limit Sunday—finishing the day at 0.008 ppm according to initial data from the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD). The limit is 0.005 ppm. Another exceedance was noted Monday.

That means that the H2S standard has been exceeded 11 times so far in 2020.

Check out our blog for more charts and graphs.

U.S. Steel Fined $13K for Emissions Violation at Clairton Coke Works Facility


 

The Allegheny County Health Department last month fined U.S. Steel $13,200 for a failed stack test at the Clairton Coke Works. According to ACHD, one of the company’s batteries emitted nearly four times as much particulate matter than permitted over a three-day period earlier this year.

The Feb. 21 enforcement order, which was posted to the Allegheny County Health Department website Friday, indicates that U.S. Steel failed its emissions tests conducted on Oct. 8-11 and on Oct. 14, 2019 for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) at Clairton Coke Works C Battery.

According to the order, U.S. Steel was pumping out 12.3 pounds of PM2.5 an hour on average during that period in October. Its installation permit limits the company from emitting more than 3.4 pounds per hour of the air pollutant.

On one of those days—Oct. 14, 2019—the Liberty-Clairton area residents endured some of the worst air quality in the nation, with AQI spiking to 163 that day.

You can read the entire enforcement order here.

U.S. Steel was also fined for emissions issues at its Clairton Coke Works in January for which they were assessed a $743,000 fine.

U.S. Steel was just one of several businesses that ACHD issued fines or letters of violation to. Read our blog to read about the department's other enforcement actions.