It's been one day since the Erie Coke Corporation pleaded guilty to air pollution and violating the Clean Air Act.


Environmental advocates said while this is a great step in the right direction, the work is far from over. Dr. Sherri "Sam" Mason, the Director of

Project NePTWNE at Gannon University said, "I'm happy that they are admitting their role and their fault in regard to contaminating our local and regional environment for decades."


Environmental protectors said this is also a big win for the East side neighborhood and community by the former plant. Abigail Jones, the Vice President of Legal and Policy at Penn Future said, "We are pleased to hear that Erie Coke admitted liability at least in this one count and we hope that restitution for the local community that were effected by decades of pollution."


The Erie Coke Corporation could pay up to 700 thousand dollars, but advocates said that still doesn't make up for the damage caused to the environment and the residents. According to Dr. Mason, "That level of funding is not going to undo the damage that they have done to our community."


She said the damage to the Earth has already been done and years later, the effects are still being felt. "Lake Erie is not in isolation. Lake Erie connects to Lake Ontario which connects out to the Saint Lawrence River, which goes out to the North Atlantic Ocean, and the North Atlantic Ocean goes out to the Atlantic Ocean which connects to the Pacific Ocean, and so what happens in Erie doesn't stay in Erie", explained Dr. Mason.


A long run still lies ahead with clean up and testing. "Unfortunately it's not over for Erie and the entire community. We hope that folks like hold Erie Coke accountable and Penn Future and others will continue to ensure that the DEP and other agencies will make sure this is cleaned up to the highest standard possible", said Jones.


Advocates are hopeful for what comes next for the site, even if it takes years to get there. As Dr. Mason explained, "People in the community, I included, are excited to see what that site will turn into and the use of that water front property, but we have to curtail that excitement with the realization that it's going to take a really long time to remediate."