Dealing with toxic waste
Regarding “Hazardous waste from East Palestine train derailment to resume shipments to Ohio, not Houston,” (Feb. 27): County Judge Lina Hidalgo and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee have made a mistake by questioning bringing the East Palestine toxic wastewater to Houston. We are better equipped to properly deal with this than almost anyone else in the country. We know a lot about vinyl chloride and have vast experience dealing with vinyl chloride waste compared to other regions. In addition, our disposal wells are arguably better constructed, better maintained and better monitored than the disposal wells in any other part of the country.
By questioning the transportation of this material to Houston, we might be all but guaranteeing that this material is disposed of less safely, potentially doing more damage to the environment. Peter H. Wilson, Houston
Hidalgo made it clear to all how little she knows about the petrochemical industry, which is so important to the economic prosperity of her constituents, when she complained that she had not been notified that contaminated water from the Ohio train derailment was being transported to and disposed of at a facility in Deer Park.
The handling of this type of waste is a part of normal business among the channel industries and does not need her interference in an operation that will likely generate good revenue and profits for a legal, permitted business in the county.
Her indignation at not being informed is a sign that Ms. Hidalgo does not understand the purpose of her leadership position in Harris County. She is interfering with a company and a process
that is doing a lot of good for the United States by transporting and disposing a very benign waste that is less hazardous than the many chemicals trucked around Harris County every day.
Hidalgo should pay more attention to the job she was elected to perform, instead of trying to expand her influence into areas in which she has little to no knowledge. I am sure that her indignation and phone calls helped result in the halting of shipments of this wastewater, which might only increase the risk to other communities in the U.S., rather than helping solve a simple problem. David Patlovany, Houston