Inversion Documentary

#ICYMI: What’s going on at @ussteel.bsky.social’s Edgar Thomson facility? @inversion-doc.bsky.social has flagged myriad emissions events like this one from yesterday:

PurpleAir map showing graph of particles spiking at monitor site between 9am and 9:30am.

Here you can see the spike on the Kennywood Hills B monitor. Anybody in that area encounter this in real-time?

This morning there was a massive plume emitted from Nippon/US Steel's Edgar Thomson Mill in the greater Pittsburgh area. There was a massive spike in particles across the river about that time. The Allegheny County Health Dept needs to investigate. @breathe-project.bsky.social @gasp-pgh.bsky.social

‼️#Stinkburgh Alert! Strong inversion predicted for tomorrow morning in Pittsburgh. Looks like it might get worse over the weekend. Submit #SmellPGH complaints and @HealthAllegheny complaints as you encounter stench! @GASPPgh @BreatheProject @cmucreatelab

It reeeeeaaaalllyyyy stinks like rotten eggs at my house in #Pittsburgh right now. #H2S #Stinkburgh 🏠🤢💩🏭

Map of Pittsburgh with red and orange triangles across much of the eastern end of the city.

PurpleAir nap of air pollution showing elevated levels moving up the Mon Valley int Pittsburgh.

‼️#Stinkburgh Alert! Stench is widely reported across the Pittsburgh region today. VOC and particle levels elevated in certain areas. I decided against my morning walk because of the stench. 💩

Meant to say that "BREATHECAM footage thanks to @BreatheProject and @cmucreatelab." :-)

AirNow.gov monitor graph showing a spike to orange last night in Rankin, PA.

And a monitor a little further away (this was a PurpleAir monitor - not an EPA monitor - but is on the EPA map) shows even higher levels.

AirNow.gov monitor graph showing a spike to orange last night in Braddock, PA.

Even the local EPA regulatory monitor showed a notable spike last night.

PurpleAir graph showing emissions starting to rise a little before 2am, spiking high around 3am and gradually ramping down into the morning.

Here are local PurpleAir monitors near the plant showing significant particle pollution around that time. Winds were very slow.

What in the world happened at Nippon/US Steel's Edgar Thomson facility last night? #AirQuality Footage thanks to @breathe-project.bsky.social and CMU CREATELab. It went on for about 3 HOURS. Local air monitors seem to correlate. @gasp-pgh.bsky.social also reported high H2S last night. 🤬 🧵

HEADS UP: Mon Valley waking up to *another* day of stench and H2S values that exceed the PA 24-hr avg standard.

Smell it? Make reports to ACHD & via SmellPGH. 👀😷

🚨#Stinkburgh Alert! It’s not looking good for stench overnight and into the morning. Plus an ozone alert for the afternoon. Stay careful out there! 😶‍🌫️

And here is some BreatheCam footage from US Steel's Edgar Thomson Mill between about 8am and 8:30am. Not sure if it has any relation to the smells, but something was emitted from that plant about an hour before the levels spiked. (Footage thx to @breathe-project.bsky.social and CMU CREAT Lab)

Extended spike of VOC's on Awair sensor reading screenshot.

VOC's are still spiking.

Awair sensor reading showing spiking VOC’s

Now VOC’s are spiking:

SmellPGH map showing a few triangles in Squirrel Hill South and Swissvale.

Wind readings from a Tempest weather station showing wind direction lately floating north.

🚨#Stinkburgh Alert! Suffocating burnt plastic smell in Squirrel Hill South right now. Winds coming from the south per my new little Tempest weather station. Not sure what it is. Ugh. SmellPGH shows I’m not the only one smelling it.

Allegheny County Health Department dispersion report and forecast for tomorrow. Strong inversion this AM. Another strong inversion for tomorrow morning. Tomorrow will see moderate PM2.5 at 58 AQI in Pittsburgh, 55 in Liberty-Clairton area.

SmellPGH image showing triangles clustered near Dormont but also widely spread across the region.

Awair readings showing a peak last night and this morning into red/orange territory, before dropping down to green levels by later in the morning.

🚨#Stinkburgh Alert! Last night and much of today was pretty stinky. My house saw high VOC's, too. How about for you? Report smells to the SmellPGH app and ACHD website. Tonight isn't looking much better. Ugh. 🤢 #airquality

Hard to tell. I didn’t see anything notable on the BreatheCam.

SmellPGH image showing many dark red triangles across the eastern end of Pittsburgh.

🚨#Stinkburgh Alert! Lots of stench reported last night. How are you doing?

Super-compelling new report just released by @envirointegrity.bsky.social about emissions from the steel industry across the country. The report includes details about benzene at US Steel's Clairton Coke Works. Take a look. 🏭 👀

Quick reminder: I'll be presenting a few clips from Inversion at next week's Lunch & Learn webinar hosted by @protectpt.bsky.social! Hope to see you there (these will be the same clips I've shared at other events this year, so no need to stop by if you already saw them). #airquality

Ambulance driving towards scene. News truck in foreground. Crowd gathered in distance for what appears to be a press conference at Clairton Coke Works.

Man wearing safety vest walking past ambulance in front of a building roof that shows the US Steel logo (USS in circle) and "Clairton Works" painted on it.

White plumes emerging from two smokestacks at Clairton Coke Works.

Press camera, newswoman, and multiple ambulances at Clairton Coke Works. "Clairton Plant" is painted on the roof of a building in the distance.

I visited the area near US Steel's Clairton Coke Works today after the #explosion. Lots of emergency vehicles and press all over the place. Not to mention haze above the plant and what appeared to be semi-opaque emissions coming out of a couple of stacks. www.flickr.com/photos/96025...

Explosion reported at Clairton Coke Works today. See the #BreatheCam footage below (footage courtesy of the CMU CREATE Lab and Breathe Project
@breathe-project.bsky.social). #AirQuality #safety

August Lunch & Learn Webinar: 20 Minute Preview of Inversion: The Unfinished Business of Pittsburgh’s Air. Hosted by Mark Dixon. Presented by ProtectPT. Kyle Zboran, Project Coordinator, Protect PT. Join us for a 20 minute preview of Mark Dixon's upcoming film: Inversion: The Unfinished Business of Pittsburgh's Air. Tuesday, August 26 at 12:00 PM.

Another Inversion Doc pre screening event! I'll be showing clips I've shared at other pre-screening events this year. Protect PT is hosting this Lunch & Learn event on August 26 at noon on Zoom. See you there! secure.everyaction.com/6v-EYfEhh0Gu...

Just saw this on my drive home today. When will US Steel/Nippon Steel be forced to stop doing this?
😢🏭 #airquality Video credit to BreatheCam by the CREATE Lab at CMU and @breathe-project.bsky.social

Pittsburgh Environmental Action Day 2025 is coming Saturday, July 12 from 9 a.m. to noon! Hope to see you there for a rally, march and concert!!! www.eventbrite.com/e/pittsburgh...

Environmental groups demand Nippon Steel work to cut emissions after buying U.S. Steel With U.S. Steel’s $14.9 billion sale to Nippon Steel made official last week, environmental advocates say it’s time for corporate leadership to take make real strides toward limiting pollu...

Nippon/US Steel really needs to clean up its Mon Valley Works -- address community health and climate concerns all in one. We really can't wait.
triblive.com/local/region...

Purple air map of the Pittsburgh region showing elevated pollution from Clairton to Braddock.

Smell Pgh map of the Pittsburgh region showing triangles indicating stench around the eastern side of the city.

🚨#Stinkburgh Alert! Elevated particles and stench today. And it’ll be extremely hot later today with elevated ozone. Be careful out there!

Great reporting from GASP...