Holy fuck its bad

its really fucking bad

  • @OrnluWolfjarl
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    211 year ago

    They performed a “controlled burn” which is a stupid idea. Basically they wanted to avoid the substances leaking in the river, so they decided to turn it all into acid rain with a dose of toxicity. When vinyl chloride burns, it turns into chlorine gas (also known by its WW1 weaponization name, mustard gad). Chlorine gas, when mixed with water, turns into hydrochloric acid. Which then comes down with the rain and at these concentrations, it can utterly destroy marine ecosystems (can’t handle the pH - why all those fish were floating dead), soil structure (lowers fertility for years), and corrodes plants and trees severely. The real kicker is that vinyl chloride has a really low boiling point. So when you try to burn it, a good amount will not actually burn but it will evaporate (turn into vinyl chloride gas). This gas is heavy and will linger at high concentrations near the surface (where, you know, most living things, including humans, live and breathe). This is what makes for that low, thick, dense cloud cover over the area. This stuff is quite toxic, and people who work with it are meant to be exposed to under 1 part per million per hour to stay safe. So, you know… Great job whoever presides over this mess!

    And for the cherry on top. They later found out there were other, more toxic, chemicals in there that weren’t supposed to be burned.

    • @PorkrollPosadist
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      211 year ago

      They performed a “controlled burn” which is a stupid idea. Basically they wanted to avoid the substances leaking in the river, so they decided to turn it all into acid rain with a dose of toxicity.

      Let’s be real. They didn’t give a damn about that river either. They just wanted those mangled traincars off the track so Norfolk Southern could resume operations ASAP. The only thought which occurred to them was “what is the fastest way to get this thing out of here?” So they opted for the Florence, Oregon beached whale removal strategy.

      • @OrnluWolfjarl
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        151 year ago

        As someone else said, preventing pollution was probably just pretext. They most likely did it to clear the tracks quickly.