St. John's Denka plant sued by DOJ over cancer-causing emissions

Two federal agencies sued the country’s sole neoprene plant in St. John the Baptist Parish over violations of the Clean Air Act on Tuesday in hopes of forcing the company to cut emissions of a chemical that likely causes cancer.

The lawsuit was filed by the Department of Justice in the U.S. District Court for Eastern Louisiana and alleged that chloroprene emissions from Denka Performance Elastomers present “an imminent and substantial endangerment” to the health of the surrounding communities in St. John.

“The Justice Department’s environmental justice efforts require ensuring that every community, no matter its demographics, can breathe clean air and drink clean water. Our suit aims to stop Denka’s dangerous pollution,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta.