McConway & Torley and GASP Announce Agreement to Reduce Air Emissions from Lawrenceville Steel Foundry

Pittsburgh, PA, June 29, 2011 --(PR.com)-- McConway and Torley, LLC (M&T) and the Group Against Smog and Pollution (GASP) have finalized an agreement regarding air emission reductions at M&T’s Lawrenceville steel foundry. M&T has operated its Lawrenceville foundry since the 1860s. The foundry manufactures steel castings and employs 273 individuals. GASP is a Pittsburgh-based environmental nonprofit that has worked on air quality issues in southwestern Pennsylvania for over 40 years.

In January 2011 the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) issued an air permit for the reactivation of an electric arc furnace at the Lawrenceville foundry. GASP appealed the permit based on concerns about potential emissions of heavy metals from the facility. M&T approached GASP to collaborate on a potential solution.

M&T and GASP agreed to supplemental emission controls over and above that required by the EPA or ACHD, including a more effective collection hood on the existing furnace and membrane fabric filters on the furnace baghouses. The improvements further reduce emissions of particulate matter and heavy metals from the facility. The agreement allows M&T to proceed with its planned plant modernization, simultaneously providing more manufacturing jobs and improved air quality.

“This agreement once again disproves the notion that a healthy environment and a healthy economy are incompatible,” said Rachel Filippini, GASP’s executive director.

###