DEAR EDITOR:

I’m not interested in my taxpayer dollars funding more pollution in our state. Are you?

The U.S. Department of Energy recently announced $182 million in conditional taxpayer-funded loans for an Erie, Pa., plant that would turn plastic waste into pellets to be used in blast furnaces for steel mills. The city of Youngstown is threatened by this unproven technology. After all, we are a city made from steel. However, this nonsensical decision won’t help our steel production; it worsens the plastic pollution crisis and threatens our health and safety, once again.

Burning plastic to fuel steel mills doesn’t solve the plastic pollution problem; it merely substitutes one fossil fuel for another, creating more pollution in the process. Plastics are made from fracked gas, oil and even coal. The carbon footprint of fracking is immense. We cannot waste taxpayer money allocated for climate solutions from the Inflation Reduction Act to incinerate plastic and harm our communities.

This decision by the DOE puts steel-producing communities like Youngstown at greater risk. Burning plastic releases toxic waste, such as dioxins and other chemicals that have been shown to cause cancer. Why is the Department of Energy not considering our health and safety? Have they accepted us as a sacrifice zone?

U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm must immediately revoke this loan. I urge my fellow Ohioans to oppose this public health threat by reaching out to Secretary Granholm and say you do not consent. Taxpayer dollars should be used to pay for sustainable, local projects that repair and grow communities in ways that are healthy and welcomed.

JESS CONARD

Appalachia Director,

Beyond Plastics

East Palestine

CHRISTINA DiGIULIO

Environmental Chemist, Physicians for Social Responsibility

Downington, Pa.