Owned by the family of West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, the plant closed in 2021 after years of environmental violations.
Dennis Jett, 63, views exhaust plumes expelled by a coke plant in Birmingham, Alabama, on January 8, 2019.ProPublicaThe ultrawealthy family of West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice is looking to reopen a shuttered industrial plant that for decades emitted chemicals that have harmed historically Black neighborhoods in Birmingham, Alabama.
The proposal seeks to reduce the disproportionate amounts of coke plant pollution released in Black communities from Alabama to Indiana. For decades before Bluestone acquired the plant in 2019, nearby residents were exposed to some of the nation’s highest levels of contaminants in the air and soil. The air pollution had discolored the sides of houses, decimated property values and sickened residents.
Jane Williams, chair of the National Clean Air Team for the Sierra Club, said that the EPA’s proposal could “force facilities to manage leaks differently” and further protect people living near coke plants.The proposed regulation also comes as Bluestone is facing consequences over millions of dollars in unpaid debts. A judge recently ordered that Bluestone refrain from “engaging in the conduct of business” in Birmingham until the company has paid the city more than $1 million in back taxes.
The EPA will accept public comments on the proposed changes to its regulation through Oct. 2. Powell, the EPA spokesperson, said that after public comment ends, the EPA plans to finalize the rule before the court-ordered deadline in May 2024.’s past reporting on Bluestone — agency officials wrote that the price of complying with the rule changes was estimated to be lower for the Justice family than all but one of the other plant owners.
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