Duwamish Valley Organizers Appeal Permit Allowing Ash Grove to Burn More Tires [by Maya Tizon]

South Seattle organizers are opposing a newly approved permit for a South End cement manufacturing plant to burn more tires for fuel.

The Duwamish River Community Coalition (DRCC), Front and Centered, and Earthjustice filed an appeal on Jan. 2 against the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency (PSCAA) and Ash Grove Cement Company, a national company with a plant on East Marginal Way. The complaint alleges the increase in burned tires will worsen the overall air quality of surrounding residential neighborhoods like South Park and Georgetown. According to a 2023 Department of Ecology report, Ash Grove was the source of the most pollution in South Seattle and South King County.