The state of Michigan hit the new Jeep plant in Detroit with a third air quality violation this week after inspectors observed “moderate to strong” odors coming from the Mack Assembly Plant that affected neighbors.
It’s the third violation in as many months from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy as the Stellantis NV plant churns out three-row Grand Cherokee L SUVs and soon, the next-generation of its two-row sibling. The city and company had sought to expand two former engine plants into an assembly site without removing residents from the east-side neighborhood. But residents say odors from the new paint have them worried about the impact of emissions on their health and wish they had been given a chance to move.
During an investigation on Oct. 28, staff from the EGLE’s Air Quality Division observed persistent and objectionable paint or solvent odors of “moderate to strong intensity” rated at a “level 3 and 4” on a 5-level scale that affected a downwind residential area.
State rules and the automaker’s permit to install emission units state the operating of equipment on the site should not result in the emission of an air contaminant that “causes unreasonable interference with the comfortable enjoyment of life and property.”
Stellantis did not immediately respond to request for comment. It has until Nov. 24 to provide a written response to the state as to why the violation occurred and what steps it’s taking to address it.
The automaker received a similar violation for moderate to strong odors in September. Stellantis said it was having a third-party investigate the matter, was improving emission controls and was taking measures to monitor conditions, including setting up a community hotline.
An EGLE inspection last month, however, found Stellantis wasn’t ducting properly paint emissions through a regenerative thermal oxidizer, a system that destroys volatile organic compounds that become the toxic gas ozone when combined with the atmosphere. The automaker has until Nov. 10 to respond to that violation.
Stellantis has said the new plant is one of its most efficient and sustainable manufacturing operations and that updates to its Warren Truck Assembly Plant are reducing VOC emissions by 30% in the seven-county region of southeast Michigan that already is above Environmental Protection Agency limits on ozone. Mack Assembly has the lowest VOC emissions rate of any U.S. assembly plant, according to the company.
bnoble@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @BreanaCNoble