DuPont plant in Louisiana fined $480,000 for releasing a cancer-causing chemical

A chemical manufacturing plant west of New Orleans has agreed to pay a $480,000 federal fine and install equipment to stop the release of a cancer-causing chemical from a storage tank and pipe.

The consent agreement and final order outlining the settlement between DuPont and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was filed Sept. 25, about 2½ years after an unannounced inspection found several releases of benzene at levels greater than federal rules allowed, The Advocate reported.

The plant is located roughly a half-mile (0.8 kilometer) from an elementary school in Reserve, Louisiana, and is within an 85-mile (137-kilometer) stretch of the state known officially as the Mississippi River Chemical Corridor. Colloquially it is called Cancer Alley.

Daniel Turner, a spokesperson for DuPont Specialty Products, said the release of the chemicals had caused “no impacts to site personnel or to the community.”

“We are pleased to resolve this matter with the US EPA,” Turner said. “From the time the on-site inspection occurred, we have disputed the instrument readings captured by EPA from those of our contractors. However, we have taken immediate corrective actions to resolve the issues identified in the inspection process.”

Job openings falls to a 3 1/2-year low

U.S. job openings tumbled last month to their lowest level since January 2021, a sign that the labor market is losing some momentum. Still, posted vacancies remain well above pre-pandemic levels.

The Labor Department reported Tuesday that the number of job openings dropped to 7.4 million in September from 7.9 million in August. Economists had expected the level of openings to be virtually unchanged. Job openings fell in particular at healthcare companies and at government agencies at the federal, state and local levels.

The number of layoffs also rose. And the number of Americans who quit their jobs fell below 3.1 million, the fewest since August 2020.

Though job openings have fallen sharply since peaking at 12.2 million in 2022, they remain higher than they were before the pandemic paralyzed the American economy in early 2020. When the economy roared back with unexpected strength from the COVID-19 recession, companies scrambled to find enough workers to keep up with customer orders.

Netflix adding Universal’s live-action films in expanded streaming deal

Netflix is expanding a deal with Comcast’s NBCUniversal, adding rights to stream live-action films to an agreement for animated pictures from the studio’s DreamWorks Animation and Illumination divisions.

Starting in 2027, the live-action films from Universal Pictures and Focus Features, which include franchises such as “Fast & Furious” and “Jurassic Park,” will appear on the Netflix streaming platform “no later than eight months following theatrical release,” the companies said in a statement Tuesday. After a home debut on Comcast’s Peacock streaming service, the company’s movies will be exclusively available on Netflix for 10 months before returning to Peacock.

As part of the deal, Netflix also has the option to license older titles from Universal’s library.

Previously, Universal’s live-action films were exclusively licensed to Amazon.com’s Prime Video service in the U.S. after first appearing on Peacock as part of an agreement the companies struck in 2021.

Compiled from Associated Press and Bloomberg reports.