ROCHESTER, Pa. — About a dozen people from Rochester attended a town hall Tuesday seeking answers about chemical odors near the Sherwin-Williams plant in Beaver County.
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Scott Smith, who leads the nonprofit Blue Shirt Justice League, presented preliminary results from soil and air testing near the facility.
For Kristina Warnick, the uncertainty has raised concerns about her family’s health.
“It is scary to know this is what is in our soil potentially,” Warnick said. “Long term, it is kind of scary, you know, because we don’t know.”
Smith’s organization investigates pollution and its potential effects on people’s health.
It is not affiliated with the Environmental Protection Agency or the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
Smith said testing found some chemical levels exceeding EPA cancer screening levels.
His presentation labels the findings preliminary and subject to further review, with no final conclusions.
“Chemicals that people are breathing in called volatiles that go in the air and forever chemicals that are being deposited into the soil,” Smith said.
Smith believes the testing could help inform further investigation into health concerns.
“The good news here is we may be able to help explain why some of these people are reporting health symptoms so they can get the proper treatment,” he said.
Tuesday’s meeting followed a June inspection by federal and state environmental regulators.
In a statement to Channel 11, Sherwin-Williams said:
“Sherwin-Williams continues to work cooperatively with EPA, PADEP, and local authorities regarding the Rochester facility.
“Sherwin-Williams completed installation of the carbon filtration system by the August 28 deadline, and the system is operational.
“With respect to the thermal oxidizer, the equipment is currently in the start-up phase and is expected to be fully functional by the end of October. Sherwin-Williams has kept regulators informed regarding the schedule.
“Sherwin-Williams remains committed to operating responsibly, addressing regulatory questions promptly, and continuing its work with the appropriate agencies.”
For Warnick, the testing represents a step toward answers.
“It’s wonderful that people are actually putting in the effort and the time to see what is going on in our community and try to help make sense of everything,” she said.
Channel 11 contacted the EPA and DEP for comment on the third-party testing results.
Neither agency had responded by publication.
Smith said he plans to have another town hall after the next round of testing.
He added it typically takes three to five weeks.
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