People from both sides of the border were invited to discuss concerns about petcoke by Michigan Department of Environmental Quality at an open house the state agency hosted Wednesday evening.
Petroleum coke raised concerns last year when Detroit Bulk Storage acquired the product from the Marathon Petroleum refinery and began storing large mounds on the banks of the Detroit River across from Windsor.
Those large piles were removed over the summer after a number of people raised concerns and protested the stockpiles. It has since moved to River Rouge.
The open house was a first step to allow Detroit Bulk Storage to apply for the permit to resume storing petcoke downriver from the former location at Rosa Parks.
A spokesperson for the MDEQ, Brad Wurfel said despite objections from some residents, petcoke is here to stay. It's not a threat to the public as long as it's not blowing in the air."
Wurfel admits the deposit of petcoke was not handled properly last year which led to the opposition.
The agency had conducted tests and Wurfel says it doesn’t pose a threat to the environment. "We look at it in a lab to see how it interacts with the environment, is there a problem in the air is there a problem in the water does it leach into the soil."
