Louisiana communities are left in the dark on toxic air – and industry helped keep it that way
Residents in Louisiana's industrial corridor face health risks from toxic air pollution while local laws restrict public monitoring. Investigations reveal that state monitoring stations are often poorly placed and fail to test for the most dangerous chemicals.
Why it matters
It highlights the tension between industrial economic interests and public health, specifically regarding environmental justice and regulatory transparency.
Smoke billows from a chemical plant in Louisiana. Smoke billows from a chemical plant in Louisiana. Floodlight Pollution Louisiana communities are left in the dark on toxic air – and industry helped keep it that way Lawmakers weakened community air monitoring as industry pushed back against greater scrutiny
Prefer the Guardian on Google K imbrelle Kyereh lives just a few hundred feet from the massive chemical storage tanks in St Rose, in south-eastern Louisiana . Oily fumes sometimes drift into her home, bringing headaches, nausea and insomnia. On one such night, she grabbed her son at 3am and fled to an all-night Ihop.
In 2023, after years of coping with the noxious odors, Kyereh began collecting air samples in her yard for a local environmental justice group. But soon after, Louisiana passed an industry-backed law that sharply restricted how that kind of data could be used.
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