Vantage Specialty Chemicals in Gurnee in September 2018. A federal study found that emissions of ethylene oxide from the plant were responsible for long-term cancer risks up to 20 times higher than federal guidelines. .People living near two Lake County industries could face significantly greater risks of developing certain cancers, according to a new federal study based on monitoring of ethylene oxide pollution in surrounding neighborhoods.
Air quality testing near Vantage and Medline during 2019 and 2020 detected spikes of ethylene oxide, also known as EtO, when the wind blew away from the facilities toward homes and apartments. Both companies reported emitting substantially larger quantities of the gas in previous years, suggesting the risks to long-time residents could be even higher than the study estimated.
Vantage did not respond to a request for comment. A Medline spokeswoman declined to comment until the company’s executives review the findings. By contrast, EPA officials said in 2019 that ethylene oxide pollution from the now-closed Sterigenics sterilization plant in west suburban WillowbrookFlores and other Lake County activists couldn’t help but notice other differences between the two situations.