Virtual Screening + Q&A of Small Town Explosion: What Really Happened in East Palestine?

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC | Join Beyond Plastics and our friends at The YEARS Project, Unity Council, and OnlyOne for a free virtual screening of the short, eye-opening new documentary film, Small Town Explosion: What Really Happened in East Palestine? followed by a Zoom Q&A on Tuesday, November 14 at 7:00 PM ET with the filmmaker, Maya Lily; our Appalachia Director, Jess Conard; and Hilary Flint of Unity Council that will be moderated by Judith Enck, Beyond Plastics president and former US EPA regional administrator. 

Created by our friends at The YEARS Project, Small Town Explosion shines a light on what happened when the small town of East Palestine, Ohio was shaken awake by a massive chemical train derailment last winter. Five of the Norfolk Southern train cars that derailed were carrying the chemical vinyl chloride, a known human carcinogen that's used to manufacture polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic. Officials made the unfortunate decision to drain the vinyl chloride into a ditch and set it on fire, resulting in an enormous black plume of smoke. Shortly afterwards, residents began to feel sick and experience health problems that are ongoing, despite being told two days later that it was safe for them to come home.

The film was recently released and is a rallying point for our movement as we work to convince the US EPA to ban vinyl chloride. We need all hands on deck this fall to let the EPA know that Americans everywhere want this known human carcinogen banned ASAP before any more harm is done to communities like East Palestine or those where this toxic chemical is produced.

Our post-screening Zoom Q&A will give you an opportunity to get answers to any questions that may pop up for you while you're watching the film as well as give you the tools you need to help convince the EPA to take the critical first step in banning vinyl chloride.

Register

Register now for the panel with the filmmaker and East Palestine residents advocating for action on vinyl chloride.

See the Facebook event for more details.