Report: Plastic manufacturing companies in Texas, Harris County, receive over $1.6 billion in tax breaks since 2013
Loren Elliott/REUTERSThe LyondellBasell refinery, located near the Houston Ship Channel, is seen in Houston, Texas, U.S., May 5, 2019.A new report from the Environmental Integrity Project shows various companies in Texas and Greater Houston have received over $1.6 billion total in subsidies since 2013 while violating air pollution control permits. The Environmental Integrity Project is a non-partisan, non-profit watchdog organization that advocates for effective enforcement of environmental laws. Their report shows compliance and enforcement information from 2020 to 2023. Many plastic manufacturing plants have been cited for releasing known carcinogens, or cancer-causing substances, particularly in Latino and Black communities. Alexandra Shaykevich is a co-author of the report and a research manager at the Environmental Integrity Project. She said plastics plants pay relatively small amounts of money in penalties for violating air pollution regulation laws. “What we’re advocating for is that in the future, taxpayer subsidies be tied to environmental compliance,” Shaykevich said. “If companies cannot obey the law, they should not be rewarded with taxpayer subsidies. And if companies can’t comply, they should be forced to reimburse taxpayers.” Brandy Deason is a Climate Justice Coordinator for Air Alliance Houston. She said one plant in Channelview alone has had to pay over $500,000 in penalties but has received over $11 million in subsidies since 2016. “This plastic production plant had six Clean Air Act enforcement actions taken against them, and paid what would amount to pocket change relative to their earnings,” Deason said. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Clean Air Act authorizes them to regulate emissions of hazardous air pollutants. The report shows the plant in Channelview has been non-compliant for three fiscal quarters, while other plants in the area have been non-compliant for up to 12 fiscal quarters. The report researched 50 plastic manufacturing plants across six states. Some of the parent companies the report compiled information from include Chevron Phillips, ExxonMobil, and LyondellBasell. Other Houston-area counties in the report include Brazoria, Jefferson, and Chambers counties. In the past, microplastics have been found in the air, in water, and in human bodies. University of New Mexico researchers have even found microplastics in human placentas. Judith Enck is the President of Beyond Plastics, a Vermont-based project trying to end plastic pollution. She is also a former EPA regional administrator during the Obama administration. “Plastic is in all of our food and beverage packaging. But there’s a lot that policymakers can do,” Enck said. “… the solutions are there. This report injects a sense of urgency. Let’s not subsidize poisoning hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people in these communities where these facilities exist.”
Advocates are calling for companies that release known carcinogens, or cancer-causing substances, to be more severely punished if they are not in compliance with air pollution regulation laws.
Loren Elliott/REUTERS
A new report from the Environmental Integrity Project shows various companies in Texas and Greater Houston have received over $1.6 billion total in subsidies since 2013 while violating air pollution control permits.
The Environmental Integrity Project is a non-partisan, non-profit watchdog organization that advocates for effective enforcement of environmental laws. Their report shows compliance and enforcement information from 2020 to 2023.
Many plastic manufacturing plants have been cited for releasing known carcinogens, or cancer-causing substances, particularly in Latino and Black communities. Alexandra Shaykevich is a co-author of the report and a research manager at the Environmental Integrity Project. She said plastics plants pay relatively small amounts of money in penalties for violating air pollution regulation laws.
“What we’re advocating for is that in the future, taxpayer subsidies be tied to environmental compliance,” Shaykevich said. “If companies cannot obey the law, they should not be rewarded with taxpayer subsidies. And if companies can’t comply, they should be forced to reimburse taxpayers.”
Brandy Deason is a Climate Justice Coordinator for Air Alliance Houston. She said one plant in Channelview alone has had to pay over $500,000 in penalties but has received over $11 million in subsidies since 2016.
“This plastic production plant had six Clean Air Act enforcement actions taken against them, and paid what would amount to pocket change relative to their earnings,” Deason said.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Clean Air Act authorizes them to regulate emissions of hazardous air pollutants. The report shows the plant in Channelview has been non-compliant for three fiscal quarters, while other plants in the area have been non-compliant for up to 12 fiscal quarters.
The report researched 50 plastic manufacturing plants across six states. Some of the parent companies the report compiled information from include Chevron Phillips, ExxonMobil, and LyondellBasell. Other Houston-area counties in the report include Brazoria, Jefferson, and Chambers counties.
In the past, microplastics have been found in the air, in water, and in human bodies. University of New Mexico researchers have even found microplastics in human placentas.
Judith Enck is the President of Beyond Plastics, a Vermont-based project trying to end plastic pollution. She is also a former EPA regional administrator during the Obama administration.
“Plastic is in all of our food and beverage packaging. But there’s a lot that policymakers can do,” Enck said. “… the solutions are there. This report injects a sense of urgency. Let’s not subsidize poisoning hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people in these communities where these facilities exist.”