The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has opened investigations into a pair of incidents at the Norlite facility in Cohoes.
DEC is looking into complaints of odor and smoke it received Sunday morning, on top of investigating a fuel leak that happened on Thursday. DEC Regional Director Anthony Luisi says it “should not have occurred."
"Early on the morning of Sunday, February 5 DEC spill responders received and immediately responded to a complaint of an odor coming from the Norlite facility in Cohoes," Luisi said. "After reporting to the facility, our responders confirmed a strong burning odor and a smoky haze in the residential area immediately to the north of the facility, and observed smoke from one of the stacks at the facility being blown to the impacted area. DEC staff inspected the facility for the source of the odor and determined the odor was coming from the stack emissions of one of the two rotary kilns. The kiln was shut down and shortly thereafter, the odor dissipated. The specific causes of the odor are still being investigated, but the facility has reported to us that there was an excessive accumulation of solids in the vent system that may have caused or contributed to the odor. We are working to determine why solids accumulated in the facility's vent system in the first place. We will have more to report after our investigation is complete.”
The DEC has been moving to shutter the plant for months, a year ago threatening to close it down after an agency report linked fugitive dust from the facility with dust impacting neighboring properties. By August 2022 the Cohoes Housing Authority Staff and Board of Commissioners received approval from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to relocate residents of Saratoga Sites and demolish the complex.
"We've been critical of Norlite operations for the past three plus years," Cohoes Mayor Bill Keeler said. "And the end of last week, there was the 200 gallon fuel oil spill on the site that was contained pretty quickly. But I mean, it was hazardous material. DEC Spill Response was there. And that investigation is ongoing. And then Saturday night into Sunday morning, the fire department was called twice the area, because of the report of smell in the area. On both occasions, the fire department could not smell anything, they had a meter that wasn't showing anything, it was a hazmat reader. Nothing, you know, no carbon monoxide was showing. But they did contact DEC at about 7am. DEC was on the site by eight o'clock and confirmed that there was a smell north of the plant that appeared to be coming from this stack. There was a cloud detectable from the stack. So DEC ordered that the kiln be shut down. And an investigation revealed that the smoke was attributed to combustion from an accumulation of solids in the event. So, you know, the DEC investigation on that second incident remains ongoing. And I've been in contact with DEC regarding both incidents."
Dave Publow with "Lights Out Norlite" tells WAMC he spoke with a resident of Saratoga Sites who was startled by the smell.
"Sunday, just around noon, or a little bit before, she experienced, there was a smell of burning tires," Publow said. "And she at first actually thought it was within her apartment. So she was worried that something was on fire. She was scrambling around looking for it until she realized eventually that it was coming from Norlite. That type of experience for the people over at Saratoga Sites and surrounding neighborhoods is commonplace. A lot of times it happens late at night. But it could happen any time of day because of all the different things that they burn over at Norlite."
Norlite responded to a request for comment by email, saying it “shut down operations as a result of the extreme cold. During re-starting operations this morning, using only natural gas fuel, Norlite was informed that an odor was detected by neighbors. The DEC was notified and visited the facility.”
The Norlite email to WAMC also addressed the earlier investigation:
“There was an oil leak on the property of the facility. The leak is over, has been contained to a small area on-site, and has not affected any other area at the facility and has had no affect outside the Norlite property. NYS DEC Spill officials have inspected the event and Norlite is cooperating with regulators at this time.”
Luisi says the DEC is looking into any possible connection between the two incidents.
Activists have long maintained that respiratory cancers have been linked to dust emanating from the embattled Norlite plant in Cohoes. The company has staunchly disputed the claims.
Keeler says two thirds of the apartments at Saratoga Sites are now vacant, and the remaining residents will probably be moved in the next few months.
“So it'll be totally unoccupied shortly," Keeler said. "You know, at that point, we'll raise the buildings and you know, we'll clear the land for future industrial use. But in the meantime, you know, I'm in constant contact with DEC. DEC has brought the Attorney General's Office on board. So it's a closely regulated industry, and they're really under the microscope, and they have been for the last three years. So it's hard to say what exactly is going to happen and there's no magic switch behind my desk to you know, close Norlite down.”
