Lawyers challenge giant manufacturing plant that could likely cause more deaths than jobs created: 'Flying under the radar'

An international environmental law firm filed suit against Europe's largest plastic manufacturer, The Guardian reported, alleging a facility under construction could kill hundreds.

What's happening?

Over time, it has become objectively clear that plastic — a byproduct of petroleum — represents a massive threat to the environment, wildlife, and human health.

Multinational British petrochemical conglomerate Ineos is in the process of constructing a new, €4 billion ($4.62 billion) petrochemical plant in Antwerp, Belgium, one that the firm says will create 300 new jobs.

On Nov. 6, international law firm ClientEarth issued a press release announcing it was "heading to court to stop Europe's biggest plastics facility," citing "new and alarming estimations of the scale of its projected harms."

The facility, Project One, would, in the words of The Guardian, "turbocharge European plastic production." As the outlet added, facilities like it "emit particulate matter" while operating.

Ineos issued an assessment of Project One's projected environmental impact, but ClientEarth claimed the findings were a vast underestimate. 

ClientEarth attorney Tatiana Luján asserted that European officials were "bending over backwards to enable the biggest plastics facility on the continent yet," and asserted that Ineos was concealing concerning elements of its past and future from the public.

"Project One has a shiny image, but its story is founded on fossil fuels. The gas supply chain is riddled with injustice and huge emissions, and this is currently flying under the radar," Luján began. 

"Meanwhile, experts have detailed a projected local impact that people in Belgium are not being made aware of," she warned.

Why is this important?

Putting aside the gargantuan problem of emissions from fossil fuels that fund and power Ineos's operations, plastic is environmentally catastrophic in entirely distinct and devastating ways.

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For starters, plastic can take up to 500 years to decompose, which is the core of the microplastics crisis.

Microplastics went largely unnoticed for decades, entering the scientific literature only in 2004. Since they were first identified, research into their impact on the environment and living things has been ongoing — and findings have been consistently worrisome.

In addition to being quite literally everywhere on Earth, microplastics have been found in all forms of wildlife and throughout the human body.

Microplastics have been linked to a range of serious adverse health outcomes, including links to some cancers.

ClientEarth cited an estimate that the new Ineos facility would cause "410 deaths attributable to emissions of toxic particles."

What's being done about it?

ClientEarth's lawsuit is the fifth of its type challenging the new facility, and the firm is resolute.

Concerned citizens who want to help can contact their lawmakers to voice opposition to the new plant.

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