Image

INEOS shutdown until it deals with benzene releases says Ministry of Environment

May 1, 2024

The Ministry of the Environment has effectively shut down INEOS Styrolutions forcing it to deal with the ongoing release of benzene at the Sarnia plant.

The Ministry has pulled it’s Environmental Compliance Approval certificate which the company needs to operate.

Aamjiwnaang First Nation Chief Chris Plain first called for the plant across the road from the band office to be shut down April 17. The day before, air quality monitors near the administration office and recreation fields registered readings of benzene of 115 parts per billion. The Ontario regulation calls for no more than less than one part per billion, although Styrolutions has an agreement with the ministry allowing it to release slightly more.

Residents and employees of the band became ill because of the release. An unknown number of band members went to the hospital for treatment for the exposure.

The band shutdown its administration office and Plain called on the province and the federal government to shut the plant down. Four days later, the company announced it was shutting down for maintenance.

April 26, the band declared a state of emergency in the community to gather the resources it might need if the situation worsened.

Tuesday, company officials denied benzene levels had been exceeded at the plant. “We constantly monitor air quality, with five state-of-the-art monitors on our Sarnia site and additional monitors throughout the surrounding area. These are official monitors, carefully calibrated within a range set by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. They monitor air quality 24/7 and send alerts by email if there are any emissions outside the approved range,” the statement said.

“They continue to operate correctly. We have reviewed all data for the period concerned and we can confirm that our monitors recorded no emissions outside our prescribed limits.”

But it appears the ministry disagrees. Wednesday evening, the ministry sent out a statement which said it has suspended Ineos Styrolution’s Environmental Compliance Approval.

“Despite several previous provincial orders requiring the company to reduce benzene emissions, recent readings at this site continue to be above acceptable levels. This action will ensure the facility, currently shut down for maintenance, fully addresses the causes and sources of emissions,” the ministry says in the evening news release.

And, for the first time, the MECP is giving some indication of the scope of the problems at the plant. It outlines what Styrolutions will have to do to deal with the benzene emissions.

“The ECA has been amended to add conditions that the facility must meet including the suspension of production operations at the facility, removal of all benzene storage from the site, repair of leaky equipment and installation of full vapor control on vessels containing benzene, and a comprehensive benzene monitoring and community notification plan.”

During the last two weeks, there had not been one notification issued about the high levels of benzene in the air.

The MECP release says the company will have to submit a start-up plan to the ministry for review before Styrolutions can resume normal operations.

Share This

Image
Front Page

ICYMI: Record-breaking crowd at Alvinston Rodeo

June 20, 2025

Heather Wright/The Independent Like the movie says; if you build it, they will come. The Alvinston Pro Rodeo committee brought in larger stands hoping to accommodate visitors to the three-day event. Saturday night, those stands were filled and there were still people looking for seats according to Chairman Dan Cumming. Here’s just some of the action from the event:

Read More

Image
Front Page

Lambton Public Health issues first heat warning of the summer

June 20, 2025

FROM LAMBTON PUBLIC HEALTH With the prediction of hot and humid weather expected to start on Saturday,June 21 and continue into next week, Environment and Climate Change Canada is issuing a HeatWarning for Lambton County. Heat warnings are issued when two or more consecutive days of daytime maximum temperatures areexpected to reach 31°C or warmer and nighttime minimum temperatures are

Read More

Image
Front Page

Rural bus service starts making stops in Wyoming Monday

June 20, 2025

Heather Wright/The Independent Before there was money to bring a bus into Wyoming, Susan Mills was answering questions from residents about a new rural transit system. The Town of Plympton-Wyoming became a partner in the rural transit system called Huron Shores Area Transit earlier this spring. But service didn’t begin immediately. Lambton Shores, which runs the system, and its partners,

Read More

Image
Front Page

Why spend $20K to study a bridge to nowhere: McEwen

June 20, 2025

Heather Wright/The Independent Plympton-Wyoming Deputy Mayor Netty McEwen says it doesn’t make sense to spend $20,000 to study a bridge that goes nowhere. Paul daSilva, Director of Public Works, in a report to council June 11, suggested spending $40,000 to do Municipal Environmental Assessments on two low-traffic bridges, one on O’Brien Road, the other on Elmsley Road. “I took a

Read More