At Community Roundtable, Peters Calls for GAO to Identify Best Practices for Storing & Handling Pet Coke

Press Release

At a roundtable discussion on the petroleum coke piles along the Detroit waterfront, U.S. Representative Gary Peters emphasized Michigan residents' concerns with the open air storage of pet coke. These concerns could soon grow to be a problem facing cities all across the country. Thanks to the community efforts and pressure, the remaining storage site along the Detroit River is expected to be clear of pet coke by Fall, but the piles will be transplanted to other port sites in the Great Lakes region and even later return to Michigan.

"Pet coke must be stored properly whether it's here in Michigan or wherever these piles are being moved in the Great Lakes region," Peters said. "Your efforts as small business owners, neighbors, and the community at large to raise concerns over the pet coke's impact on public health and safety cannot stop now."

After Peters met with residents, local business owners, environmental leaders, and policy experts to raise concern about the contamination risks from the pet coke piles in May, Koch Carbon announced that it would be moving the pet coke piles from Michigan to storage facilities in Ohio.

New MDEQ and news reports continue to reveal problems from the open-air storage of the pet coke piles. For months, an open drain near the site had been emptying pet coke into the Great Lakes watershed before being filled in. Dust from the piles has blowing into homes and businesses and was most recently caught on video as a cloud over Detroit during a thunderstorm.

Peters encouraged the roundtable participants to continue their efforts since pet coke dust contamination remains a problem in Detroit and will pose problems for communities in the region and across the country.

Peters continued, "When it comes to these pet coke piles and the risk of public health and contamination of the Great Lakes watershed, out of sight is not out of mind. Pet coke should not be blowing into people's homes and businesses or draining into the Great Lakes watershed. I will be calling on the Government Accountability Office to identify best practices for storing and handling pet coke to improve protecting public health and our Great Lakes."

Peters has been leading the fight for developing a comprehensive solution on how to properly store pet coke and study into the long-term health and safety implications of pet coke. Peters' Petroleum Coke Transparency and Public Health Study Act that calls for a federal study on public health and environmental impacts of the byproduct. Peters' proposal earned support from Michigan U.S. Representatives John Conyers Jr., John Dingell, Sander Levin, and Dan Kildee, and its Senate companion was introduced last week by Senators Levin, Stabenow, Durbin and Brown.

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