A chemical processing company wants to have a new production facility online next door to the BioUrja plant in south Peoria by the end of next year.
Viridis Chemical produces ethyl acetate, a common and flammable solvent used to produce paints, lacquers, varnishes, and other products. The chemical is colorless and has a fruity odor.
BioUrja asked the city's Planning and Zoning Commission to approve rezoning a patch of land formerly home to a railroad spur for general industrial use. They also requested a special use for the property.
The new chemical processing plant would be the first new project developed within the Distillery TIF District that also includes the BioUrja ethanol distillery. Language crafted during the creation of that TIF District was meant to specifically address environmental justice concerns in the area, spurred in part by BioUrja's explorations of carbon capture and sequestration.
Eric Lawrence is a project manager for Viridis Chemical, which is headquartered in Columbus, Neb. He said the current production process uses natural gas and oil, but his company has patented a method to utilize ethanol for the same end result.
Building a facility directly next door to BioUrja gives the company ready access to the ethanol they need for their process, Lawrence said.
"It's a very safe process. We've never had a fire in our facility," Lawrence said.
He said the facility would be highly regulated for safety and environmental considerations by the state and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. He said the company monitors to ensure pollutants aren't escaping into the air or water. He said water streams would be treated on the BioUrja property and wouldn't flow directly into the Illinois River.
Ethyl acetate vapors can prove explosive when they mix with air, but Lawrence said pumping gasoline into a vehicle is actually more dangerous than their process. He said the chemicals never actually comes into contact with air from the time the ethanol enters into the facility to when it's loaded onto a rail car for transport.
"It will be great for a community, great tax revenue, bringing jobs into it. And we are looking to expand," he said.
The rezoning request that came before the Peoria Planning and Zoning Commission on Thursday came from BioUrja, but Lawrence distanced Viridis from the ethanol company, noting that they are separate businesses.
Long-time Peoria environmental advocate Joyce Harant said the project needs more vetting.
"I'm glad to see that they do seem to be a very progressive, environmentally progressive company, but the production of ethyl acetate would still bring more pollution to an already burdened community, and it is highly flammable," said Harant.
Fires burned at BioUrja for days in 2022 after a grain bin explosion. The tract of Peoria where BioUrja is based is considered an environmental justice community by the U.S. EPA. That designation is based upon factors like health disparities, disproportionately high populations of people of color and low income, and pollution.
Harant said she isn't opposed to Viridis Chemical coming to Peoria, but she does want some guardrails in place.
"I want for us to be able to add reasonable and important environmental protections, as well as community benefit considerations that would apply to both Viridis and BioUrja so that we may minimize any negative impact on an already burdened South Side community," she said.
Some members of the Planning and Zoning Commission said they weren't aware the proposed project was located within a TIF District and could be eligible for TIF funds, but also said those factors are outside the board's purview, which is determining if the project is eligible for rezoning and a special use permit.
The commission ultimately approved the requests, with commissioner Ed Barry as the sole "no" vote. It now goes to the Peoria City Council on Dec. 10.
