67% of Louisville residents live within 3 miles of high-risk facilities that are part of the EPA's “Risk Management Plan"
wfpl.org/high-risk-chemical-facilities-near-t...
wfpl.orgPosted Oct 4, 2018, 8:06 PM UTC
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Well...I had no idea they were making a documentary about my old 'hood. I grew up in Riverside Gardens & still have family back there. I just hit 30 & have several chronic illnesses, I have no idea if they'd have anything to do with spending the first 22 years of my life back there. I started having issues when I was about 25. I've never attributed them to exposure in Rubbertown but I don't know what conditions would even be linked. Honestly...the neighborhood (Riverside Gardens) in general has many issues, addiction being one of them for as many years as I can remember. Even in elementary school we joked about if a meth house blew up if it would blow up the whole city because of the rubbertown proximity, lol. The older generations there claim it's different now, that the past drug use was them just having fun on weekends and that nobody was addicted until the current generation but everyone knows it's been passed down. We all saw it in the neighborhood. The new users just leave their needles everywhere which is admittedly pretty damn rude, lol. Rumors are, over the summer, some newer residents who don't do any drugs were getting so fed up with heroin users squatting in abandoned homes that they set some of the houses on fire.
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I wish the EPA had a faster emergency line response. At my last job the landlord got away with dumping a 55 gallon barrel of used car oil down the creek behind the building. Pretty sure my ex boss lied because it was a few weeks later that they showed up and nothing ever happened.
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I may or may not be an inspector at one of those facilities. A tremendous amount of money is spent trying to keep accidental releases from happening. Even a single drop is taken very seriously. It is not at all like the old days. All the plants have continous mechanical integrity inspections going on year around.
One a positive note, some of the highest paying jobs in Louisville are at these plants. Operators make more than doctors.
Yeah. A little yellow paint gets into the storm drain and it's on the news.
This guy knows. PSM/RMP facilities are under a strict set of regulations, and have little leniency for fuck up’edness.
Not as much as doctors but pretty good. My friends brother in law is like the highest up person at a facility in Oregon and he makes around $110k. Not really sure what an operator is since I can't find salary listings for it (unless mechanical who makes more around $40k), but I doubt it's over $250k a year which is low for a lot of doctor fields.
Edit: Downvoted for what? I'm not being rude or mean. I just stated my understanding. In High School and College I was a heavy equipment operator, so that is the only operator I am familiar with.
Oregon isn't Louisville. Markets vary. Can't confirm that it's the case, but it's possible. Just something to keep in mind.
Maybe, but Portland's COL is 4x more than Louisville.
I believe you are referring to the wrong type of operator. These dudes make between 75-140k a year.
Can you link me some info? Can't find it online.
Operators can very easily bring in 150k+ if they are with the right company in this area.
What is an operator?
Like heavy equipment or something upper? Never heard of it outside construction.
But $150k is very low on doctor level income.
Operators are who run the actual equipment at plants and facilities. They make a LOT working overtime but generally aren't required to have degrees and go 250k into debt.
Sure, if they're on an oil rig and work 90 hour weeks. That income is absolutely not normal. Operators in Louisville are not easily bringing in $150k.
That's not been my experience as a field support engineer here. Can't speak for everyone.
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I need one of these jobs. Company???
Clariant is hiring. They start out mid-20s.
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Ill check them out. Thanks for the reply. I'm stuck at a $15/HR job with not much room left to advance. Its taken me 5+ years to get here
The fact that they are desperate to get people at that wage should tell you what the work is like. 60, 70, and 80 hour weeks are the norm. It's physically demanding and you spend the rest of your working life being exposed to incredibly hazardous chemicals in an incredibly hazardous environment. It's one reason I got out and I'm not looking back.