An ill wind doth blow: hopefully in your direction and not mine (I am glad I don't live in Hialeah). Air pollution particles fall on the ground and in our water so Turkey Point and the rock mines really trouble me.
Here are the Top Ten Air Polluters in Miami-Dade County (according to Planet Hazard's data from EPA) all amounts are in pounds per year:
1 Florida Power & Light - Turkey Point
annual emissions: 35,883,503.15 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 54 sources: 195

2 Miami Dade RRF (Resources Recycling Facility - Incinerator I believe)
annual emissions: 16,887,851.53 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 14 sources: 66

3 Tarmac America LLC (Rock Mining)
annual emissions: 5,991,685.29 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 14 sources: 57

4 Rinker Materials Corporation (Rock Mining)
annual emissions: 5,460,179.29 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 17 sources: 191

5 Homestead City Utilities
annual emissions: 1,820,000.00 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 4 sources: 29

6 U S Foundry Manufacturing Corp.
annual emissions: 894,433.58 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 16 sources: 27

7 Waste Management Inc. of Florida
annual emissions: 874,631.97 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 4 sources: 6

8 Miami-Dade Water & Sewer Dept.
annual emissions: 868,751.94 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 6 sources: 43

9 Florida Power & Light (Pcu)
annual emissions: 797,601.18 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 39 sources: 79

10 Miami Dade Solid Waste Mgmt/
annual emissions: 616,861.99 Pounds per year.
pollutants: 5 sources: 5
More details (Trust Me, You Want To See This, Especially No. 1):
(Same - Pounds per year)
No. 1
Total Emissions 35,883,503.15
Sulfur Dioxide 18,269,200.00
Nitrogen Oxides 12,526,400.00
Carbon Monoxide 1,730,449.73
Primary PM, Filterable Portion Only 1,469,636.71
Primary PM10, Filterable Portion Only 1,469,468.37
Ammonia 192,567.20
Volatile Organic Compounds 129,679.49
Hydrochloric Acid 38,362.59
Hexane 24,208.93
Nickel 9,980.98
Nickel & Compounds 9,371.28
Formaldehyde 4,697.72
Hydrogen Fluoride 4,123.70
Phosphorus 1,045.85
Toluene 731.36
Cobalt 666.86
Acetaldehyde 637.06
Antimony 580.58
Manganese 353.46
Lead 182.47
Lead & Compounds 173.93
Arsenic 158.62
Arsenic & Compounds (Inorganic Including Arsine) 148.73
Naphthalene 133.17
Chromium 118.36
Chromium & Compounds 113.01
Selenium 81.60
Cadmium 61.24
Cadmium & Compounds 59.39
Benzene 53.13
Chromium (VI) 27.43
o-Xylene 12.05
Ethyl Benzene 7.03
Beryllium 3.48
Acenaphthene 2.36
Phenanthrene 1.16
Fluoranthene 0.58
Pyrene 0.54
Fluorene 0.53
Benz[a]Anthracene 0.47
2-Methylnaphthalene 0.32
Chrysene 0.29
Benzo[g,h,i,]Perylene 0.27
Indeno[1,2,3-c,d]Pyrene 0.26
7,12-Dimethylbenz[a]Anthracene 0.22
Dibenzo[a,h]Anthracene 0.20
Anthracene 0.17
Benzo[b+k]Fluoranthene 0.16
Acenaphthylene 0.05
Benzo[k]Fluoranthene 0.02
Benzo[b]Fluoranthene 0.02
3-Methylcholanthrene 0.02
Benzo[a]Pyrene 0.02
No. 2
Total Emissions 16,887,851.53
Nitrogen Oxides 10,021,397.95
Carbon Monoxide 6,212,185.18
Sulfur Dioxide 462,116.30
Hydrochloric Acid 110,630.54
Volatile Organic Compounds 47,400.19
Primary PM, Filterable Portion Only 17,047.32
Primary PM10, Filterable Portion Only 17,047.32
Lead & Compounds 12.02
Arsenic & Compounds (Inorganic Including Arsine) 10.12
Cadmium & Compounds 3.55
Beryllium & Compounds 1.02
Dibenzofuran 0.01
No. 3
Total Emissions 5,991,685.29
Nitrogen Oxides 4,938,859.99
Primary PM, Filterable Portion Only 478,800.00
Primary PM10, Filterable Portion Only 397,200.00
Carbon Monoxide 101,460.00
Sulfur Dioxide 40,660.00
Volatile Organic Compounds 26,500.00
Hydrochloric Acid 6,142.00
Hydrogen Fluoride 886.00
Manganese 689.00
Chromium & Compounds 228.00
Nickel & Compounds 110.00
Lead & Compounds 105.80
Mercury 44.50
No. 4
Total Emissions 5,460,179.29
Nitrogen Oxides 2,632,916.65
Carbon Monoxide 1,990,734.74
Primary PM, Filterable Portion Only 315,799.51
Primary PM10, Filterable Portion Only 237,310.72
Hydrochloric Acid 126,336.14
Volatile Organic Compounds 108,457.99
Sulfur Dioxide 33,950.55
Benzene 14,441.00
Lead & Compounds 227.72
Mercury & Compounds 4.03
PAH, total 0.13
Beryllium & Compounds 0.11
No. 5
Total Emissions 1,820,000.00
Nitrogen Oxides 1,310,399.99
Carbon Monoxide 412,400.01
Volatile Organic Compounds 81,600.00
Sulfur Dioxide 15,600.00
No. 6
Total Emissions 894,433.58
Carbon Monoxide 768,924.01
Primary PM, Filterable Portion Only 51,215.68
Primary PM10, Filterable Portion Only 35,747.38
Sulfur Dioxide 17,415.80
Volatile Organic Compounds 12,486.80
Nitrogen Oxides 6,572.0
Ammonia 906.94
Lead & Compounds 473.18
PAH, total 306.60
Manganese & Compounds 197.16
Formaldehyde 118.30
Nickel & Compounds 25.63
Mercury & Compounds 19.72
Chromium & Compounds 19.72
Selenium & Compounds 4.67
No. 7
Total Emissions 874,631.97
Carbon Monoxide 431,799.99
Sulfur Dioxide 259,019.99
Volatile Organic Compounds 160,732.00
Nitrogen Oxides 23,080.00
No. 8
Total Emissions 868,751.94
Nitrogen Oxides 377,893.79
Carbon Monoxide 337,514.72
Primary PM10, Filterable Portion Only 72,746.85
Volatile Organic Compounds 38,796.44
Primary PM, Filterable Portion Only 33,881.25
Sulfur Dioxide 7,918.89
No. 9
otal Emissions 797,601.18
Nitrogen Oxides 355,600.00
Carbon Monoxide 328,356.00
Primary PM, Filterable Portion Only 29,708.40
Primary PM10, Filterable Portion Only 29,708.40
Ammonia 29,179.40
Volatile Organic Compounds 15,508.80
Hexane 6,785.94
Sulfur Dioxide 2,400.00
Formaldehyde 293.18
Acetaldehyde 15.83
Toluene 12.82
Benzene 7.92
Nickel 7.92
Chromium 5.28
Cadmium 4.15
Naphthalene 2.30
Lead & Compounds 1.96
Manganese 1.43
Arsenic 0.75
Cobalt 0.32
2-Methylnaphthalene 0.09
Selenium 0.09
7,12-Dimethylbenz[a]Anthracene 0.06
Beryllium 0.05
Pyrene 0.02
Fluoranthene 0.01
Fluorene 0.01
Anthracene 0.01
Acenaphthene 0.01
Benzo[b]Fluoranthene 0.01
Benzo[k]Fluoranthene 0.01
Acenaphthylene 0.01
Chrysene 0.01
Indeno[1,2,3-c,d]Pyrene 0.01
3-Methylcholanthrene 0.01
Benz[a]Anthracene 0.01
No. 10
Total Emissions 616,861.99
Carbon Monoxide 548,981.99
Nitrogen Oxides 29,736.00
Volatile Organic Compounds 13,440.00
Primary PM, Filterable Portion Only 12,352.00
Primary PM10, Filterable Portion Only 12,352.00
22 comments:
Two comments:
1. Some of the most powerful politically connected companies like FPL, material companies, and garbage are the worst polluters.
2. The government is a major contributor, using our tax money to pollute the air we breathe.
And the Homestead mayor at a meeting about approval of two more nuclear power plants, said Florida Power & Light is a good neighbors.
The County is polluting the county?
OMG! FPL is letting pyrene into the atmosphere???
Look, even though something ought to be done to further curb the release of pollutants into the air and water, these numbers have to be considered in context.
Why the surprise that the biggest polluters in the area are the largest industrial processors? On scale of operation alone, how could they not be?
We should be worrying about whether they are complying with regulations, and whether those regulations are sufficient, not that they are polluters at all.
What are the chances that the Florida Department of Health has done epidemiological studies (means, statistics) of cancer rates in the wind path of these large polluters, compared to average values in the rest of the county?
Call FPL and ask what they know about it. In both cases, I bet its "zero". And as far as its new planned nuclear reactors that will only use air cooling and not the thermal canals, how much more poison are they going to be throwing into the air we breathe?
And as far as its new planned nuclear reactors that will only use air cooling and not the thermal canals, how much more poison are they going to be throwing into the air we breathe?
Anon, clearly you are familiar with nuclear reactors. How do I know this? Because you know that nuclear reactors use combustion to create steam. That would explain the giant smokestacks, too.
We need more people like you, making well-informed coments.
Pyrene is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) consisting of four fused benzene rings, resulting in a large, flat aromatic system. It is the smallest peri-fused polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon - one where the rings are fused through more than one face. It forms during incomplete combustion of organic material and therefore can be isolated from coal tar along with a broad range of related compounds. As a peri-fused PAH, pyrene is much more resonance stabilized than its five-member-ring containing isomer fluoranthene. Thus, it is produced in a wider range of combustion conditions. Pyrene is a colorless solid. Animal studies have shown pyrene is toxic to the kidneys and the liver.
eye on the ball...
I just throw information out there, it is yours to accept, ignore or do something about. I am a pitcher. I throw the ball...do you think this is a curve ball?
Even with all these polluters Miami has the cleanest air in the country, breathing in Hialeah is no different than breathing in Kendall. The atmosphere here plus the being on the coast helps out alot.
Eye on the ball -- I didn't insult you...you can disagree but I am tired of being insulted....so I deleted you. yes I took the definition of pyrene from wikipedia...big deal. Anyone with half a brain knows I didn't write it. I was curious when you pointed it out, to find out what it was and I shared it with our readers. When you can be civil and disagree --- that is, disagree without being nasty to the blogger, write again.
The oil-fired side of Turkey Point, not the nuclear, is what's emitting the listed pollutants. The nukes have their own real and major concerns associated with them, most of which have been described in this blog many times. Eye on the ball makes a good point in that we should be concerned about whether FPL is complying with the regs concerning emissions from its oil-fired plant and whether those regs are adequate to protect the public health and environment and whether the agencies responsible for ensuring that FPL complies with the regs are doing their jobs. My guess is that FPL isn't, and the regs and the agencies aren't. Just one look at the smoke belching out of the Turkey Point stacks is cause enough for cynicism (go have a look at around dusk or dawn on any given day.) I wonder if the EPA data is anywhere close to what is actually being emitted by these polluters. I suspect it's probably on the low side.
Shut em all down - tear down every buidling in the County - restore everything to the Everglades - and lets all move - this site provides me so much comedy
GoD, all I did was call BS on your spin. In that sense I was disagreeing with you. I didn't call you a liar, or a criminal. I read this blog every day, and I agree with many of your points. I also disagree with you sometimes.
The pyrene bit was a joke. I forgot this is serious business. All I did was remind you to cite your sources. That way us half-brains don't go around thinking you know anything about anything.
But you were spinning. If you can't handle being called on it, then stop doing it. If you can't see that you were doing it, then take a deep breath before you post something that undermines the very real valid points you make from time to time.
Eye on the Ball:
I disagree that I am spinning but thank you for being less annoying this time. I am not a scientist, a writer, a reporter etc. I am an average joe. If I look at information and it seems like we could be doing a better job at keeping our citizen safe -- I will print it. And, as you can see our readers gave us some good advice on the next steps that could be taken. I just don't have time to follow up with the EPA etc. and I am hoping someone does. Further:
1. I am not being paid.
2. It took me hours to put all that stuff together in the form of a post. I spend time to insert all the numbers on the graphic...I use my skills at photoshop which took me years to master.
3. If I make a mistake and leave out a source and you think you know it, put it in/suggest for me as a public service for our readers and a help to me.
4. It was not in my post it was a comment. I do comments very quickly. This blog takes way too much of my time.
5. If you think those numbers are meaningless, it would help for you to tell us why. Educate us. Your comments did not.
Disagree, don't be disagreeable.
1. If you were being paid, this blog wouldn't be as good. There is passion in your work.
2. You are better than me. I wouldn't have the patience. See 1 above.
3. Again, get a sense of humor.
4. Agreed. See 3 above.
5. The numbers themselves are not meaningless. The way you used them as an indictment of the polluters was disingenous. Those on the list would be the top polluters under the most stringent of standards. Empirically, every other person or business in this county pollutes less, merely from the standpoint of scale (nevermind process), which pushes the usual suspects to the top of the list. It will always be thus.
If you were being intellectually honest, your gripe would have been with the sheer amount of pollution, and whether the regulations need to be stricter. To have that discussion, you would have to assume compliance with the regulations, inadequate as they may be. To assume otherwise without some proof would be irresponsible, and reduce your comments to mere unsubstantiated opinion. This did not seem to be your intent, since you painstakingly compiled objective data to support your position.
The data you used was meaningless for its purpose. I've read your blog for some time now, as I mentioned before. You have come at these "bad guys" before, with much better stuff. Don't cheapen that work with unnecessary bias.
No comments on the Miami Herald “South Florida called 'greenest' section of state” article saying that “South Florida generates less greenhouse gases per person than other Florida cities, according to a new national report.” This may put the above information more in context. There will always be a “top 10” polluters, no matter how big or how small a polluter they are. The real issues are as said by previous bloggers, are they within current legal limits. Also how do we compare with other areas.
Read it at//www.miamiherald.com/top_stories/story/551703.html
So, Let's get this straight: I arrange information directly from another website...as it was presented by them in a list of top 10...not my top 10 mind you...and I say I don't want to live in Hialeah where the most concentration of air polluters are ---and somehow from this you decide I I am manipulating information. So what if Turkey Point is the top polluter, I don't live near it, I don't care particulary if the people living near it don't. I am just presenting information that I found. Maybe someone living over there by Turkey Point will care. Why is putting the information out there biased?
Are we cleaner because there is less emissions here or because we are on a coast and the pollution dissapates faster as a reader above said. I think some of you writers are nuts. Really. Because there are worse areas does not make me feel any better. Should we believe that because there are places where the air is really dirty that ours is great because it is less dirty. EPA standards are not protecting anyone anymore they have watered down every standard. So again, nuts. I appreciate the information.
People in Homestead care especially with a prevailing easterly wind. The Homestead area also has a saltwater issue with respect to the Biscayne Aquifer due to a contractor exceeding the permitted depth. Get this by thirty five feet!!!
So we now have a groundwater and air pollution problem, not to mention sleeping guards, holes drilled in pipes, no ammo in guns, rising sea levels and the potential nuclear issues. The homestead blog has been keeping the residents who read their blog informed on these potential major environmental issues. Never any real repercussions to those who offend all of us though.
Here are some comparisons for you I picked 3 populated areas at random from major population centers:
Boston:
Top Ten Polluters in Boston, Massachusetts
1 Medical Area Total Energy
annual emissions: 3,749,870.00
pollutants: 9 sources: 362
2 Trigen Boston Energy
annual emissions: 3,223,500.00
pollutants: 8 sources: 157
3 Exelon New Boston Llc
annual emissions: 1,282,876.92
pollutants: 39 sources: 239
4 Bay State Paper Co
annual emissions: 774,739.07
pollutants: 10 sources: 188
5 Gillette Company The
annual emissions: 748,140.00
pollutants: 9 sources: 156
6 Boston University Physical Plant
annual emissions: 437,239.00
pollutants: 8 sources: 502
7 United States Gypsum
annual emissions: 165,765.00
pollutants: 8 sources: 296
8 Barry Controls
annual emissions: 142,434.00
pollutants: 9 sources: 226
9 Faulkner Hospital
annual emissions: 132,004.00
pollutants: 8 sources: 87
10 St Elizabeths Medical Center
annual emissions: 89,423.00
pollutants: 6 sources: 196
--------
Top Ten Polluters in Queens County, New York
1 Ravenswood Generating Station
annual emissions: 11,335,507.60
pollutants: 48 sources: 613
2 Astoria Tunnel Headhouse / Pcb Storage
annual emissions: 10,079,717.15
pollutants: 51 sources: 352
3 Poletti Power Project
annual emissions: 8,272,212.96
pollutants: 44 sources: 94
4 Astoria Gas Turbine Power
annual emissions: 1,998,884.40
pollutants: 28 sources: 62
5 Ravenswood Steam Plant
annual emissions: 1,750,062.72
pollutants: 43 sources: 159
6 N Shore Towers Apt Total Energy Plant
annual emissions: 877,992.56
pollutants: 39 sources: 89
7 Big Six Towers Inc
annual emissions: 543,599.74
pollutants: 38 sources: 75
8 Nyc-Dep Tallman Island Wpcp
annual emissions: 499,654.07
pollutants: 46 sources: 126
9 Keyspan Generation-Far Rockaway Station
annual emissions: 499,056.25
pollutants: 38 sources: 71
10 Hugo Neu Schnitzer East-Queens Yard
annual emissions: 421,925.40
pollutants: 26 sources: 28
-----------
Top Ten Polluters in Marin County, California
1 Redwood Landfill Inc
annual emissions: 1,016,477.18
pollutants: 27 sources: 81
2 Wincup Holdings, Lp
annual emissions: 158,133.69
pollutants: 9 sources: 32
3 L P Mcnear Brick Co Inc
annual emissions: 134,139.50
pollutants: 19 sources: 19
4 Central Marin Sanitation Agenc
annual emissions: 80,984.10
pollutants: 17 sources: 52
5 Marin Sanitary Service
annual emissions: 80,208.66
pollutants: 2 sources: 6
6 Dutra Materials/San Rafael Roc
annual emissions: 73,958.65
pollutants: 7 sources: 44
7 Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary D
annual emissions: 21,388.71
pollutants: 22 sources: 32
8 San Quentin State Prison
annual emissions: 19,622.57
pollutants: 13 sources: 40
9 Dutra Materials
annual emissions: 17,423.52
pollutants: 16 sources: 16
10 Kaiser Permanente San Rafael M
annual emissions: 17,073.47
pollutants: 10 sources: 30
I am sure there are many that has more and many that has less.
The poor people of Homestead... why can't you just get rid of the pestilent crew that controls politics down there?
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