PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - Rhode Island neighborhood groups have called on the state’s Department of Environmental Management to reject a permit renewal for a Shell Oil terminal they say is located too close to residents.
The Providence Journal reports that the groups recently submitted a letter to the agency calling for a hearing on the permit renewal.
They say nearly 30,000 residents, who are mostly people of color, live within a mile of the sprawling terminal on the Providence River’s west bank, putting them at greater risk in the event of facility accidents or climate-change related storm surges.
A department spokesman said in an email the agency is considering the letter, but by law the hearing can only focus on the facility’s permit application, not the facility’s location.
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