Allegheny County Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a motion of council that endorses recent enforcement actions undertaken by the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) intended to foster compliance with existing air quality regulations for the good of public health—especially as it relates to U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works. The motion, introduced by Councilwoman Anita Prizio, “makes explicitly clear its backing of the Allegheny County Health Department’s health-based air quality regulatory actions that aim to bring U.S. Steel’s Edgar Thomson Plant and Clairton Coke Works facilities into compliance for the good of public health, as well as its mandate to oversee the reduction or outright elimination of risks to air quality.” By approving the motion, council “commits itself to supporting its residents in their fight for cleaner, healthier, and more breathable air,” the document reads. The motion of council comes in the wake of two high-profile fires at U.S. Steel’s Clairton Coke Works, both of which knocked out essential pollution-control devices. It also comes as the public awaits the finalization of a settlement agreement between U.S. Steel and ACHD addressing three enforcement orders and an administrative order from 2018-19. The proposed agreement, which was the subject of a public hearing that garnered numerous comments, calls for U.S. Steel to pay a $2.7 million fine—with 90 percent of that money benefiting a community trust. It also calls for numerous facility upgrades designed to help bring and keep the facilities into compliance with air emissions standards. By approving the measure, council echoed concerns made by not only residents and environmental organizations but also Pittsburgh City Council, which in July passed a similar will of council. GASP staff attorney Ned Mulcahy spoke at the meeting, where he asked members of council to support the motion. “This council exercises immense control over the Air Quality Program by approving the Health Department’s budget, as well as all changes made to the Air Quality Program’s regulations. I believe from the outset, it is imperative that Council understands it has the power and duty to help protect the air quality that 1.2 million residents of Allegheny County breathe…and we need your help,” he said. Mulcahy continued: “As the motion notes, Allegheny County residents are subjected to air that the American Lung Association gives failing grades across the board. Throughout the County, fine particulate matter exceeds the EPA-limit and a significant portion of the Mon Valley fails to meet EPA’s standard for sulfur dioxide levels. This is a black eye for a region as well as a legitimate public health crisis.” Following the vote, Prizio noted why she introduced the motion. “After watching how U.S. Steel has engaged in prolonged legal battles with the Allegheny County Health Department, I fear other polluters may venture down a similar path of aggressively appealing robust enforcement actions and then eventually settling,” Prizio said. “When these things happen, the region’s air quality and all who breath our air suffer. ACHD must not shirk its responsibility of enforcing clean air laws and holding the industrial polluters—which often put profit over people—accountable to their workers and to their communities.” Jay Walker, a field organizer with Clean Air Council, also spoke in favor of the motion, imploring council to “do whatever they need to do” to bring industrial polluters into compliance with clean air regulations. Rachel Filippini, executive director for the Group Against Smog and Pollution, thanked Prizio and members of council who supported the motion. “We applaud Allegheny County Council and Councilwoman Prizio for adding their voices to the chorus of people who are demanding accountability in the wake of not just months, but years of U.S. Steel being noncompliant with air pollution regulations,” Filippini said. “Pittsburgh’s come a long way from the days when smog choked our city skyline, but we still have so much work to do. GASP is hopeful that with partners like Ms. Prizio and her colleagues on council, we are moving even more quickly in the right direction.” The motion also received support from environmental organizations not in attendance Tuesday, including PennEnvironment. “Today’s motion from Allegheny County Council sends a clear message to illegal polluters: protect public health or expect real consequences,” said Zachary Barber, Field Organizer, with PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center. “Since we’ve already seen pushback from polluters over stronger enforcement efforts from the Health Department, it’s great that Councilwoman Prizio and other members of council are supporting clean air efforts.” #AnitaPrizio #cleanairlaws #JayWalker #airpollution #NedMulcahy #emissions #AlleghenyCountyHealthDepartment #EdgarThomsonPlant #ClairtonCokeWorks #airquality

Environmental Hearing Board Judge Steven C. Beckman filed an order on Monday denying Erie Coke Corp.’s petition to reopen the record to include additional evidence in the case that the Company did not bring up at the hearing. The order also grants the Department of Environmental Protection’s request to strike references to that evidence in Erie Coke’s post-hearing brief. The order can be viewed here. For more information on the EHB proceedings regarding whether or not Erie Coke Corp. will be permitted to operate while it appeals DEP’s denial of its Title V permit is now in the hands of an Environmental Hearing Board judge. Read more about that here. #ErieCoke #TitleV #TitleVPermit #DEP #EnvironmentalHearingBoard

Erie coke On the day Erie Coke Corp. and DEP were due to file their post-hearing briefs with the Environmental Hearing Board over whether or not the company should be permitted to continue operating during the appeal of its Title V operating permit denial, lawyers for the corporation also filed a petition to reopen the record so that two new reports can be considered. Erie Coke petitioned the EHB on Wednesday to accept for consideration additional evidence that “did not exist at the time of the July 10-18, 2019 hearing, because it was only generated after the hearing concluded.” Specifically, Erie Coke is asking that the EHB add a report showing opacity of its combustion stack for the month of July and an engineering assessment of the coke oven battery air shed (a hood that collects emissions when coke is pushed out of the ovens). Erie Coke insists the evidence “is highly material to Erie Coke’s petition for supersedeas (and) demonstrates Erie Coke’s positive compliance trajectory.” On Friday, the Department of Environmental Protection filed its response, asking the Board to deny the company’s request to introduce new evidence “at the 11th hour.” In doing so, DEP attorneys noted “Erie Coke does not explain why it waited until 4:00 pm on August 7, 2019, the day post-hearing briefs were due to be filed.” This last-minute submission appears all the more dubious given that “(t)he July 2019 COMS Report is generated at the Erie Coke Facility and ends July 31, 2019. The Coke Side Shed Evaluation was complete on July 31, 2019. Obviously, these reports were available to Erie Coke before the very day the briefs were due.” Attorneys for DEP laid out additional arguments for why Erie Coke’s petition should be denied. Among their concerns was that DEP did not have the opportunity to cross-examine any witnesses on the evidence presented prior to the company using the evidence in its post-hearing brief. “An Erie Coke representative should be subject to cross-examination on why (the company) believes the July 2019 COMS Report is significant before Erie Coke presents it to the board in argument,” attorneys for DEP wrote. “Similarly, the professional engineer that sealed the Coke-Side Shed Evaluation should be subject to cross-examination on his conclusions. Because the briefs are now filed with this evidence included, the department is prejudiced by reopening the record at this time.” GASP is reviewing the post-hearing briefs e-filed Wednesday evening by both DEP and Erie Coke Corp. In the meantime, you can view DEP’s 67-page filing here. Erie Coke’s 46-page filing can be viewed here. Editor’s Note: You can read Erie Coke’s Petition to Reopen the Record here. The referenced combustion stack report can be viewed here, and the engineering assessment document is here. #ErieCokeCorp #ovenbatteryairshed #petitiontoreopenrecord #DEP #PetitionforSupersedeas #EnvironmentalHearingBoard #EHB #airquality

Editor’s Note: GASP staff members took a deep dive into a federal class-action lawsuit filed in April against U.S. Steel on behalf of its investors. The complaint, which can be read in its entirety here, includes testimony from current and former U.S. Steel employees who were deposed as—and referred to in court documents—as confidential witnesses. Those confidential witnesses, one of whom worked at the Clairton Coke Works for 40 years, describe systemic maintenance and operational failures during the implementation of a program called The Carnegie Way. GASP staff then looked at U.S. Steel’s air emissions compliance during the period of time when The Carnegie Way was active by analyzing Allegheny County Health Department’s 2018 enforcement order, as well as court transcripts from the hearing related to U.S. Steel’s appeal of that order. That analysis shows that the company was struggling to comply with air emissions standards during the same period of time when the plaintiffs alleged U.S. Steel asked employees to “jury rig” machines and generally operated with a “don’t buy, get by” mentality. U.S. Steel investors in April filed a class-action complaint against the multi-billion-dollar company, alleging violations of federal securities laws. Documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania accuse company leaders of misleading investors about U.S. Steel’s financial well-being, including a “sham” implementation of what U.S. Steel called a “transformational process to make the company profitable again.” Top executives at U.S. Steel touted the program — “The Carnegie Way” — as a three-pronged initiative that would focus on employee engagement, “operational excellence,” and “reliability-centered maintenance,” which together promised “proactive improvements” to its manufacturing facilities. The complaint alleges that, in reality, The Carnegie Way prioritized just one thing: extreme cost-cutting measures that deferred facility maintenance, forcing employees to “jury rig” machines to keep them operational. Confidential witness statements described a “don’t buy, get by” approach to facility maintenance. Aside from the impact these measures could have had on investors, they might lift the veil on the company’s upward trend in air quality violations over the past several years. It seems plausible that “don’t buy, get by” had a direct impact on increased emissions from U.S. Steel facilities and thus an adverse impact on human health here in Allegheny County. As this is written, U.S. Steel faces $2.7 million in fines for decreased compliance with emissions standards and permit limits as well as two lawsuits filed in federal court stemming from a fire at its Clairton Coke Works facility in December 2018.  That fire, along with a smaller fire this past June, temporarily wiped out essential air pollution-control systems for months in total. U.S. Steel and the Allegheny County Health Department have reached a draft settlement to resolve the violations involving the $2.7 million fine. But almost to prove the hypothesis, the agreement would require significant investments to U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works facilities—improvements U.S. Steel said are designed in part to reduce energy consumption and enhance emissions controls.  In other words, U.S. Steel is now agreeing to undertake projects that a properly implemented Carnegie Way should have never ignored in the first place. U.S. Steel Unveils The Carnegie Way Program, Faces $2 Billion Loss in Market Value Confidential sources cited in the complaint said it became clear that The Carnegie Way was hyper-focused on cost-cutting measures shortly after the program was rolled out in 2015 and that as the initiative proceeded, those measures included “massive layoffs” and the deferment of “desperately needed maintenance and repairs.” Lawyers representing the plaintiffs noted that the program was implemented at a time when steel industry conditions worsened, a trend that had a “nearly disastrous effect on U.S. Steel” including “record year-over-year losses and a stunning 2015 year-end loss of $1.5 billion.” In the wake of those losses, the company shut down some operations and “abandoned” the employee engagement and proactive maintenance aspects of The Carnegie Way Program, focusing instead on “ruthlessly cutting costs in order to improve the company’s bottom line,” the suit alleges. According to the legal filing: “These measures left U.S. Steel with a skeleton crew of inexperienced plant employees who did not know how to maintain or repair the equipment, and who were required to work long hours of up to 90 hours a week. …[U.S. Steel] also decreased overall capital spending and spending for the flat-rolled segment [which includes the Mon Valley Works] in 2016 by approximately 39 percent and 60 percent respectively.” It continued: “[U.S. Steel executives] were admittedly aware back in August 2016 that [the company] would need to undertake a ‘large,’ multi-year ‘asset-revitalization’ in order to fix the company’s problems – a known fact that was not disclosed to investors until (April 25, 2017).” Meanwhile, as market conditions improved in 2017, company leaders told investors the worst was over and that the company was “positioned for success in a market recovery.” Then, on April 27, 2017, after the market had closed, U.S. Steel announced its first quarter results: A “surprise” net loss of $108 million, according to the complaint. Lawyers for the plaintiffs wrote, “(then U.S. Steel Chief Executive Officer) Longhi and (Chief Operating Officer) Burritt sold more than half their personal holdings of U.S. Steel common stock at a time when they could take advantage of improving market conditions, but, as a result of their decision to slash maintenance and capital spending, U.S. Steel could not.” That news, lawyers noted, prompted a stock price decline that equated to $2 billion in market value – what they said was the steepest decline since 1991. Less than a month later, U.S. Steel would announce that Longhi would retire, and that Burritt would replace him as CEO. The suit notes that “despite failures” Longhi still received a more than $4 million bonus – his largest ever. Confidential Witnesses: Cost-Cutting Led to Injury, Death, Machine Failures & Unplanned Outages at Mon Valley Works and Beyond The complaint includes information from depositions of several confidential witnesses, one of whom was a former mechanical repairman and team leader who worked at the Clairton Coke facility at U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works facility for nearly 40 years. The complaint further notes that this employee retired from the company in January 2017. The employee, who is referred to as Confidential Witness #6 in the court filing, was responsible for running “the shop” there, overseeing all repairs to coke oven doors and also procuring parts for them. The complaint notes that one of his job responsibilities was working with the company’s vendors to obtain parts. Lawyers for the plaintiffs explain that the former Clairton Coke Works employee “recounted that the company abandoned job training and filled positions with inexperienced employees that did not know how to operate the equipment and machinery.” The complaint goes on to say: “(Confidential Witness #6) stated that during 2015 and 2016, U.S. Steel allowed the steel making machinery and equipment to run until it broke, rather than providing preventative maintenance and timely repairs. Moreover, according to CW#6, U.S. Steel abandoned any training in order to save money. Thus, the employees operating the coke ovens were ‘busting parts left and right’ during 2015 and 2016 due to lack of proper training, causing more frequently needed repairs. CW#6 believed that many of the unplanned outages in 2015 and 2016 were the direct result of the company’s failure to properly maintain and repair its equipment because U.S. Steel let ‘things go a little too far.’” Other confidential witnesses quoted in the legal document were employed in various U.S. Steel facilities across the country and their statements described how maintenance efforts “fell by the wayside.” According to the document: “According to confidential witnesses, U.S. Steel repeatedly canceled purchase orders for parts needed to keep facilities running and used cheaper, less durable materials to operate machinery. Rather than invest in its equipment, U.S. Steel plant managers would deny maintenance requests and tell employees to ‘jury rig’ the machines and operate by the motto, ‘Don’t Buy, Get By.’ U.S. Steel also repeatedly deferred maintenance projects and once the company’s machines inevitably broke, the company suffered millions in losses as a result.” One witness quoted in the legal document said the company began deferring projects, “some of which included structural integrity issues that absolutely needed to be done or it would cost a lot of money.” The complaint goes on to say: “(One confidential witness) understood that machines had to be replaced sooner than they otherwise would have had the proper repair and maintenance occurred. Rather than perform maintenance, however, (the witness) reported that the company, instead, ‘put a patch’ on the issue. (The witness) stated one example related to the Mon Valley plant, which had two electrical generators that were over 70 years old. During 2015, the first machine kept breaking and after employing ‘every band-aid’ and ‘bubble gum-aide’ possible, was decided that the generator had to be replaced.” According to the complaint, “this turned out to be extremely costly, as it took nine months to obtain a new generator and it cost the company $1 million per month to obtain electricity from another source.” The lawsuit also noted how the cost-cutting measures allegedly impacted operations at U.S. Steel’s Edgar Thomson facility. Lawyers for the plaintiffs wrote: “(One confidential witness) stated that ‘everybody knows that’ the company was underinvesting. It was ‘common knowledge’ within U.S. Steel. According to (the witness), one example of defendants’ cut of the capital budget involved the Edgar Thomas plant. (The witness) explained that the Edgar plant was allocated money for capital improvement projects each year. However, invariably when the capital improvement projects were presented for approval, the same response was always received – the capital improvement money was being cut and allocated elsewhere, usually because something had broken that needed immediate attention. (The witness) informed the manager at Edgar Thomson of all the issues concerning under-investing but U.S. Steel kept running its equipment ‘into the ground.’” The complaint continued: “According to (one witness), the Edgar Thomson ‘melt shop’ contained cooling towers that had not been maintained in ‘years.’ At some point during 2015, a new tower was put in. However, according to (the witness), the new tower was not maintained correctly and, in late 2016, all of the ‘cooling media’ ended up melting. ‘(The witness) estimated that this error resulted in significant costs of as much as $500,000-$750,000. The cooling tower was eventually repaired in the first quarter of 2017 by (the witness’s) current employer.” Lawyers for the plaintiffs noted that “mass layoffs” took a human toll: After U.S. Steel furloughed nearly 25 percent of its Gary, Indiana, workforce, an employee there was electrocuted in 2015. According to the complaint, a second death occurred in 2016. Understanding U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works Compliance Issues During The Carnegie Way Program Critical to understanding the relationship between facility maintenance and pollution emissions are the physical demands of coke-making. U.S Steel produced 5.2 million tons of coke in 2018, which required thousands of ovens to bake coal in an oxygen-free environment for up to 20 hours at approximately 1700° Fahrenheit. All the while, the toxic gasses produced by this process required extensive treatment to extract byproducts or reduce the overall emissions when ultimately burned as fuel.  Suffice it to say, the operating conditions for this equipment are extreme and regular maintenance is an absolute necessity. The first hint maintenance had deteriorated came in 2016 when U.S. Steel entered into a consent decree with the Allegheny County Health Department to address emissions standards for the coke oven battery combustion smokestacks at the company’s Clairton Coke Works plant.  This, of course, coincides with the time period during which the alleged under-investments in maintenance took place. U.S. Steel later became the subject of an ACHD enforcement action in 2018 that cited emissions problems with other parts of the plant, such as the coke ovens and their doors, and that stemmed from a “comprehensive review of U.S. Steel’s compliance” with air pollution regulations, the 2016 Consent Decree, and the facility’s operating permit. That 2018 enforcement order, which was the result of more than 300 violations, detailed decreased compliance with emissions standards. According to the document: Battery B had a compliance rate of 100 percent in 2013. That rate dropped to 61 percent in 2017, during which there were 16 violations. Battery 13 had a compliance rate of 100 percent in 2013 to 70 percent in 2017. As of April 2018, its compliance was just 50 percent. Battery 3’s emissions performance declined from 100 percent compliance in 2015 to 81 percent in 2016. From 2015-2017, Battery C failed to achieve an observed compliance percentage greater than 83 percent. While emissions issues increased across the board, the number of high opacity door violations increased dramatically – from just 33 in 2014 to 295 in 2017. Since 2014, quenching and soaking emissions compliance had “deteriorated.” The ACHD enforcement order also referenced pollution-control equipment – air curtains – at Clairton Coke Works that had allegedly gone missing and were never replaced. In a Feb. 15, 2019 ACHD brief in support of that enforcement order, attorneys for the department wrote: “(ACHD) had info that the shed had air curtains that reduced the occurrence of visible emissions leaving the sides of the shed but that the curtains subsequently disappeared and were never replaced.” It should also be noted that during U.S. Steel’s enforcement order appeal hearing, ACHD Deputy Director of Environmental Health shared concerns over the company’s plan maintenance efforts. “You know it is our understanding that U.S. Steel wasn’t taking care of their batteries,” he stated Dec. 4, 2018, on the first day of the four-day hearing. “I think we’re in this situation because our inspectors have observed a lack of maintenance in maintaining your batteries.” Another member of ACHD’s staff, 20-year health department veteran Angela Crowley, also mentioned a lack of maintenance at the facility during her day-three testimony—specifically noting a lack of timely fixes to known coke-oven door issues. More Legal Woes for U.S. Steel The class-action lawsuit filed against U.S. Steel by its investors isn’t the only legal battle being waged against the company. In April, two environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the company in the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Pennsylvania for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act resulting from the December 2018 fire at the Clairton Coke facility. In June, ACHD successfully moved to intervene in the case. On April 9, lawyers filed a class-action lawsuit against U.S. Steel, claiming the company was grossly negligent/reckless in handling a Dec. 24 fire at its Clairton plant and its aftermath. That suit made myriad allegations against U.S. Steel. Lawyers representing the plaintiffs alleged that the company failed to develop and implement an adequate mechanical integrity program necessary to prevent such fires. So, What’s the Impact? If these allegations of intentionally avoiding maintenance are true and only investors were harmed, we could simply hope that the courts find an equitable sum of money that repairs the damage. “But if these allegations are true, far greater harm will have been inflicted in Allegheny County and – most likely – communities around the globe where U.S. Steel does business,” GASP Executive Director Rachel Filippini noted. “Actual, living, breathing people will have been harmed by poor air quality, poor health, and the knowledge that their powerful local employer put the profits of a few ahead of the well-being of a community. No court can find an equitable sum to repair those damages.” #DavidBurritt #SEC #USSteel #MarioLonghi #TheCarnegieWay #settlementagreement #RachelFilippini #ACHD #ClairtonCokeWorks #airquality #MonValleyWorks

Save the date: The Allegheny County Board of Health (ACHD) will hold a public hearing at 10 a.m Aug. 26 to take testimony on proposed modifications to Allegheny County Health Department Article XXI, which will revise several sections related to air quality installation and operating permit fees. Here’s the official meeting notice. Here is the ACHD document outlining the proposed changes. By way of background: ACHD Air Program Director Jayme Graham told the Allegheny County Board of Health at its July meeting that the department would be changing its permit fees/structure for major and minor emissions sources. Proposed changes to the fee structure are being made, she said, to bring it in line with those of the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which are being amended. “We are bringing in less than what we need to operate,” Graham told the board before it voted to authorize the proposal to amend fee types and names for public comment. Here’s what you need to know if you want to attend—and provide public comment at—the hearing: Oral testimony must be pre-scheduled by calling 412-578-8120 no less than 24 hours in advance of the public hearing. Speakers will be limited to five minutes and should bring a written copy of their comments. Can’t attend but want to provide testimony? Written testimony will also be accepted through 11:59 p.m. Aug. 26. Testimony can be mailed to ACHD at 301 39th Street, Building #7, Pittsburgh PA 15201-1811. Comments can also be emailed to aqcomments@alleghenycounty.us or faxed to 412-578-8144. Hope to see you there! Editor’s Note: GASP staff is reviewing the proposed changes and will provide public comment closer to the hearing date. #publichearing #JaymeGraham #permitfees #DEP #ACHD #airquality

Your pals at GASP wanted to wish all who celebrate: HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

For Immediate Release: July 18, 2017 Contacts: John Baillie, Senior Attorney, GASP, 412-924-0604 ext. 201, john@gasp-pgh.org GASP Files Notice of Intent to Sue Armstrong Cement and Supply Corporation for Violations of Their Air Quality Permit Earlier this month, the Group Against Smog and Pollution (GASP) provided notice that it intends to file a citizen suit under the federal Clean Air Act and Pennsylvania Air Pollution Control Act against Armstrong Cement & Supply, Inc., for violations of the Title V Operating Permit for its cement manufacturing facility located in Cabot, Pennsylvania. GASP believes that Armstrong Cement has not been operating continuous emission monitors for sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, as it is legally required to, since at least mid-December of 2015. The last submitted report by Armstrong Cement regarding the results of its continuous monitoring of these air pollutants occurred in November 2015. This report indicated Armstrong was violating limits on sulfur dioxide emissions from its kiln exhaust stacks frequently. In a January 2016 monitoring report submitted to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Armstrong stated that its kilns were not operated in late 2015 so that new air pollution controls required by federal regulations could be installed. Armstrong apparently installed those air pollution controls but neglected to re-install the continuous emission monitors for sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides that its operating permit requires. Because no monitoring reports have been submitted since November 2015, it is impossible to know whether Armstrong is complying. Sulfur dioxide is a gas with a pungent, offensive odor. It reacts easily with other substances to form harmful compounds such as sulfuric acid, sulfurous acid, and sulfate particles. Nitrogen oxides include the gases nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). Nitrogen oxides react with other chemicals in the air to form particulate matter and ozone (both of which are also harmful when inhaled). Longer exposures to elevated levels of NO2 may contribute to the development of asthma and increase susceptibility to respiratory infections. Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxides irritate the nose, throat, and airways, causing coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath. Those at greater risk of developing problems if exposed to these types of air pollution are people with asthma or other respiratory conditions, as well as children and the elderly. “Without the emission monitors required by Armstrong’s operating permit, it is impossible to know whether Armstrong is complying with limitations on its emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides,” said John Baillie, an attorney for GASP. The notice of intent to sue is the first step in initiating a citizen lawsuit to enforce emissions standards under the Clean Air Act. If the violations remain unresolved 60 days after giving notice, the citizen suit can proceed in federal district court. #NO2 #airpollution #sulfurdioxide #TitleV #JohnBaillie #NoticeofIntent #emissions #CleanAirAct #DEP #airquality

Allegheny County officials announced in a press release Thursday afternoon that the Board of Health has formed a search committee to lead the work to hire a new director for the Allegheny County Health Department. Co-chaired by Board of Health member Edith Shapira, M.D. and Heinz Endowments President Grant Oliphant, the nine-member committee will work with Krauthamer & Associates, Inc., a national executive search firm to identify appropriate candidates. “The Allegheny County Health Department has made great strides under Dr. Hacker’s leadership. We achieved national accreditation, deepened staff expertise, pursued more robust enforcement in multiple areas, and developed an ambitious strategic plan,” said Shapira. “We are optimistic that we can recruit a new leader who will build on these accomplishments and ultimately further improve the health of the county.” In addition to Shapira and Oliphant, the search committee includes three other Board of Health members and four community members: Lee Harrison, M.D., Donald Burke, M.D. Joylette Portlock, Ph.D. Marc Cherna Michelle Naccarati-Chapkis Yvonne Cook A. Everette James, III, JD, MBA. The committee is seeking a driven, highly competitive professional eager to play a key role and have a large impact within a dynamic community. Their projected timeline to selection of a candidate is six months. During the transition period, Ronald A. Sugar, Esq., Deputy Director of Administration, will serve as interim director of the Health Department. Ron has worked for the Health Department since 2014 and is responsible for its day to day operations. His appointment has been approved by the state Department of Health. The position description for the director, as well as information regarding the application process, can be found online at: https://www.alleghenycounty.us/careers/index.aspx. GASP Executive Director Rachel Filippini said she hoped the county would prioritize environmental health when selecting ACHD’s new leader. “One additional way the county can show they are serious about improving air quality is to ensure the next health director will be a champion of clean air and not allow polluting companies to call the shots,” she said. #ACHD #airquality #AlleghenyCountyHealthDepartment #GrantOliphant

The Group Against Smog and Pollution will join local residents and fellow environmental groups at noon Thursday at the U.S. Steel building downtown to send a message to the company that #EnoughIsEnough. U.S. Steel must stop unlawful levels of air pollution at the Clairton Coke Works. U.S. Steel must also commit to reinvesting in the Clairton Coke Works and repair its reputation as a chronic polluter. GASP Executive Director Rachel Filippini is slated to speak at the press event, which will be held at the corner of 6th Avenue and Grant Street, and which will address the lack of response from U.S. Steel and public health concerns of many in the region following a second fire at the company that knocked desulfurization units offline Monday. #airpollution #USSteel #desulfurization #AlleghenyCountyHealthDepartment #ACHD #airquality

The Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) announced in a press release Tuesday afternoon that its motion to intervene in the citizens’ lawsuit (Clean Air Council and PennEnvironment) filed against U.S. Steel has been granted. The suit is regarding air quality violations related to the Dec. 24, 2018 fire at the Clairton Coke Works facility. As a result, all remedies and civil penalties related to the Dec. 24 fire will be sought through the federal judicial system. The Health Department will not be issuing any unilateral administrative orders or civil penalties related to the incident. “This joint action ensures the strongest case possible is brought against U.S. Steel, increases the resources available to the Department and allows for the best possible outcome for public health and impacted residents,” department officials said in the release. ACHD will not have any further comment as this is an ongoing legal action. You can read the order here. #USSteel #citizenssuit #AlleghenyCountyHealthDepartment #ACHD #airquality