"Chemical plant linked to air pollution and cancer risks in majority-Black region ‘exploring all options for the future’"
"A controversial chemical plant in the centre of Louisiana’s “Cancer Alley” region has indefinitely suspended all production following dire financial results, the facility’s operators announced on Tuesday.
The Denka Performance Elastomer plant in St John parish has long been associated with chronic air pollution issues and was the subject of a years-long Guardian reporting series examining the disproportionate cancer risk rates experienced by the majority-Black fence-line communities that surround the facility.
Denka, a Japanese chemicals firm, cited growing regulation during Joe Biden’s presidency and a “sustained slowdown in the global market demand” for its product, a synthetic rubber called neoprene, which is manufactured at the site. The company had not decided on permanent closure, a statement said, adding the chemicals giant was “exploring all available options for the future of the site, including sale of the facility”."
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