EPA Orders States To Stop Blocking Toxic Waste Shipments From Ohio

EPA Administrator Michael Regan ordered state authorities to stop blocking toxic chemical shipments from the site of the Norfolk Southern train derailment in Ohio.Local and state authorities previously evacuated all citizens within one mile of the February 3 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, and started a controlled burn of chemicals on the vehicle to decrease the risk of an explosion. Vinyl chloride, a known human carcinogen used to manufacture PVC, was emitted during the burn from five train cars in the form of massive plumes of black smoke visible throughout eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania.Officials from the EPA previously attempted to move the toxic waste to facilities throughout the nation, including a landfill in Roachdale, Indiana, and a waste management facility in Waynoka, Oklahoma, according to local media reports. The former site is more than 400 miles away from East Palestine, while the latter is nearly 1,200 miles away from the rust belt community.Governor Eric Holcomb (R‑IN) said last month he learned “third-hand” that toxic materi …