Investigation into Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s carcinogen emissions

State

DEC orders Goodyear to remedy carcinogen emissions, pay penalty

Emyle Watkins

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is now requiring the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company to submit a plan to install temporary pollution control measures at their Niagara Falls chemical plant by the end of the month, and install permanent pollution control measures by October 2026.

Industrial facility with white and blue exterior, multiple smokestacks emitting smoke, yellow staircases, and barbed wire fencing in the foreground on a cloudy day.

Disabilities

Workers' union implores Goodyear to reduce Niagara Falls carcinogen emissions

Emyle Watkins

The United Steelworkers union (USW) is now urging Goodyear to reduce emissions of a bladder carcinogen being released into the air around their Niagara Falls chemical plant. USW represents about 40 workers inside the plant.

A woman dressed in a blue coat, scarf, and gloves is flipping through informational leaflets outdoors on a snowy day. Behind her is a large beige van parked in front of a white house with a snow-covered roof. The ground and surroundings are blanketed in snow, with bare trees in the background.

State

Niagara Falls residents learn of possible carcinogen exposure from Goodyear

Emyle Watkins

Advocates canvassed Niagara Falls’ LaSalle neighborhood with a plume map last weekend showing neighborhood exposure to a bladder carcinogen. They want to see the EPA intervene and stop Goodyear from releasing ortho-toluidine into the air at high rates. Residents are angry, but not surprised.

The Goodyear chemical plant is pictured. The factory has a dark wire fence surrounding it, and is white and grey. The factory has a white puff of smoke coming out of the top of it. Rust runs down the side of some of the outer walls.

Local

DEC modeling shows Goodyear plant polluting Niagara Falls neighborhood with carcinogen

Emyle Watkins

The modeling, by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, shows that levels of ortho-toluidine in some areas are seven times the state’s safety guideline.

State

A dangerous carcinogen is in Niagara Falls’ air. The state hasn’t put a stop to it.

Jim Morris

Regulators cited the Goodyear chemical plant for releasing high amounts of a bladder carcinogen last year but say they are still investigating.

The Goodyear factory has a dark wire fence surrounding it, and is white and grey. The factory has a white puff of smoke coming out of the top of it. Rust runs down the side of some of the outer walls.

Disabilities

Disabilities Beat: A local factory is releasing a cancer-causing chemical into the air

Emyle Watkins

WBFO, with our partners at Public Health Watch and Inside Climate News, released an investigation showing that the Goodyear chemical plant in Niagara Falls has been releasing a dangerous carcinogen into the air at a rate higher than what the state now considers safe to breathe. On this week’s Disabilities Beat, WBFO's Emyle Watkins shares a recent conversation they had with their report co-author, Jim Morris, about the story published today.