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US Steel Reports Discoloration In Local Waterway

U.S. Steel’s Midwest Plant in Portage, Indiana.
U.S. Steel’s Midwest Plant in Portage, Indiana.

For the second time in two weeks a Northwest Indiana steel company has dumped toxins into a Lake Michigan tributary.

U.S. Steel has reported a discharge of oil Tuesday into the Burns Waterway.  According to the "Times," U.S. Steel reported the discharge after it discovered discoloration in an outfall in the waterway Tuesday morning.  The company said it immediately took samples and contacted local authorities.

The company is currently working to find the source of the discharge and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management is investigating.

Just last week ArcelorMittal took responsibility for the release of cyanide and ammonia, into the Little Calumet River at higher-than-permitted levels.  It caused the death of thousands of fish, closures of some of the beaches at Indiana Dunes National Park and precautions at a water facility.  

Emma Atkinson is a reporter for WTIU and WFIU News and the anchor of regional newscasts for All Things Considered. She's originally from Champaign, Ill. and graduated from IU with a Bachelor's degree in journalism in 2019. Emma has previously worked as a reporter in Kampala, Uganda and Ketchikan, Alaska.