MEMPHIS, Tenn — According to a press release from the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) and Memphis Community Against Pollution (MCAP), Sterilization Services of Tennessee (SST), which has been emitting dangerous gases into nearby neighborhoods for more than four decades, will finally close its South Memphis plant.
Attorneys for Sterilization Services of Tennessee (SST) said the company plans to close its South Memphis facility by April 30, 2024, and move to a new location outside of Memphis, according to the press release.
The press release also said community members and local organizations have been pushing for months for the facility to either reduce the amount of dangerous gases it releases or move out of the neighborhood.
Sterilization Services of Tennessee has been pumping ethylene oxide into the air since the 1970s, according to MCAP and SELC.
According to the press release, the chemical plant was emitting ethylene oxide, or EtO, a "colorless and odorless gas that causes increased risks for cancers, including lymphoma, leukemia and breast cancer."
MCAP and SELC said the Environmental Protection Agency found that EtO is 60 times more toxic than previously understood and, last year, the agency listed the South Memphis plant as one of 23 facilities that carry 'elevated' cancer risks for nearby residents.
“This is the result of ‘People Power.’ When we band together, speak truth to power and fight back against industrial polluters in our communities, justice is realized,” KeShaun Pearson, President of Memphis Community Against Pollution, said. “But eight months is a long time, and neighborhoods in South Memphis shouldn’t be forced to continue to live with cancer-causing pollution. We urge local leaders to better protect communities near the Sterilization Services of Tennessee plant until its long-overdue closure.”
SELC said it asked on behalf of MCAP for the Shelby County Health Department to address SST's ethylene oxide pollution. When the Health Department refused, MCAP and SELC appealed that decision, and that appeal remains pending.
“Families living near the Sterilization Services of Tennessee plant have been exposed to toxic ethylene oxide pollution for far too long, and we are pleased that they may soon be able to breathe easier,” SELC Senior Attorney Amanda Garcia said. “But there is an air pollution emergency right now in South Memphis, and Sterilization Services of Tennessee should close and relocate as quickly as they can.”
MCAP and SELC said air pollution remains a health emergency in South Memphis, and residents may have already developed cancer from exposure to the gases emitted by the chemical plant, or they may become ill in the future.
"The Southern Environmental Law Center and Memphis Community Against Pollution will continue to push local leaders and industry to better protect Memphians from dangerous air pollution," the press release said.