WKMS: Study looking into potential health impacts from Calvert City chemical plant emissions ongoing
June 23, 2026Work is continuing on a study investigating potential health impacts stemming from elevated levels of harmful emissions in Calvert City – primarily from chemical plants operating near the far western Kentucky city.
At a community meeting last week, researchers from the University of Louisville’s Envirome Institute and Center for Integrative Environmental Health Sciences shared what data they have gathered so far, and how they want local residents to assist their efforts over the next year.
Overall, the BEACON Health Research Study is looking into how environmental contamination in Marshall County caused by chemical pollution could correlate to community health patterns. The multi-faceted project has, so far, received over $400,000 in federal grant funding from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
In 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency published results from a years-long air quality monitoring study around Calvert City’s Industrial Complex, which is home to several chemical manufacturers. It found elevated levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including ethylene dichloride – which the EPA says can pose increased cancer risks and harm the liver and kidneys over a long period of time.