US judge dismisses emissions case against Denka 

Laplace, Louisiana – A US federal judge has dismissed a class-action lawsuit against Denka Performance Elastomer, which recently achieved an 85% reduction in chloroprene emissions at its LaPlace facility.

The achievement of this emissions goal has been certified by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, earlier this month.

Denka acquired the location from DuPont in November 2015. During the first year of plant ownership, Denka invested $35 million (€31 million) to install "several new, large pieces of equipment" and made improvements to the plant.

Denka then worked to optimise use of the new equipment and tackled additional emission reduction projects beyond its agreement with the state, the company said.

The US Environmental Protection Agency called chloroprene a likely carcinogen in 2010, according to the LDEQ. That determination led to years of legal battles regarding emissions from the facility.

One of those lawsuits, a federal class-action lawsuit filed against Denka, has been dismissed.

The civil action was brought by Juanea Butler, who has lived and worked near the facility for years. The lawsuit alleged DuPont and then Denka emitted unsafe levels of chloroprene, according to the judicial order dismissing the lawsuit in US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

Butler claims to suffer from a variety of ailments due to exposure from chloroprene emissions. Denka, however, pointed to the Louisiana Tumor Registry, a statewide population-based registry that tracks illness rates and offers guidelines for cancer prevention, saying that the parish in which the plant is located has average or below average illness numbers compared to the rest of the state.

Statistics show Denka's chloroprene emissions have decreased by 84.6% in 2019 compared to 2014. And when rounded to 85%, last year's data satisfies the administrative order, the state said.

"Our voluntary efforts in this program with LDEQ are just one example of the many ways we remain committed to our community," Plant Manager Jorge Lavastida said in a statement.

St. John the Baptist Parish, where Denka's LaPlace facility is located, is just west of New Orleans. Denka employs about 240 full-time workers, at the plant, making it the second-largest employer in the parish.

The Denka facility makes neoprene by polymerising chloroprene, a liquid monomer. Neoprene is commonly used to make wetsuits, waterproof gloves, laptop sleeves, electrical insulation, fan belts and hoses, the state said.