EPA lists Nevada's top toxic polluters

Two Clark County industries ranked at the top of a toxics list for Nevada companies released Thursday by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

Nevada ranked 45th in the country for releasing 4 million pounds of toxic chemicals from 48 facilities. The state has been in that same berth since the 1994 inventory. About two-thirds of the chemicals were released to the land and a third to the air, the EPA report said. Nothing was released to Nevada water sources.

Kerr-McGee Chemical Corp., operating near Henderson, put 2.3 million pounds of the metal manganese into the ground around the plant in 1996. It's been the Nevada company releasing the most toxic chemicals since 1994. Kerr-McGee makes ammonium perchlorate, a chemical that boosts oxygen in rocket and space shuttle fuel. The silver metal manganese is found naturally in the earth's crust and in people, but is toxic if inhaled or eaten in large amounts.

Tomkins Industrial, Inc., of Moapa Valley, about 40 miles northeast of Las Vegas, came in second for releasing 408,483 pounds of styrene, a plastics building block in the air. The chemical is used to manufacture bathtubs and showers for housing markets in Nevada, Utah, California, New Mexico and Arizona. The product is sold as Lasco Bathware.

Universal Urethane Inc., of North Las Vegas, released 93,751 pounds of gases from plastics, known as volatile organic compounds. These toxic gases can cause illnesses ranging from eye, throat and nose irritation to fatigue and dizziness.

The top four Nevada companies released 82 percent of the state's total pollutants. They are Kerr-McGee, Tomkins, R.R. Donnelley & Sons of Reno, and Coastal Chemical Inc., Battle Mountain.

Since 1988 industries have been required to report toxic releases to air, water and land. Chemical releases have dropped 46 percent since then, according to the latest EPA Toxic Release Inventory.

Titanium Metals Corp., near Henderson produced 53,100 pounds of airborne pollution. The company makes titanium metal and alloys that are used in aircraft, medical equipment and machinery around the world.

Other companies with pollution releases that are located in northwestern Nevada include Nevada Refinery of Kennametal, Smithers-Oasis USA, O'Sullivan Plastics Corp., and H.C. Industries, Inc.

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