Milwhite Inc. agrees to shut down operations after residents complain of dust in neighborhood

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A mineral-making company that left a Brownsville neighborhood covered in dust has agreed to shut down operations later this year.

In February, the City of Brownsville filed a lawsuit against Milwhite Inc. after residents on Rey Jaime Street complained about the dust from the plant covering the neighborhood and making them sick.

Shortly afterwards, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality also filed suit against the company for violations of the Texas Clean Air Act. In June, an injunction was filed asking Milwhite Inc. to stop operations.

Now, it appears that Milwhite Inc. will do just that.

Over the weekend, the company and the victims went into mediation, where they agreed that no money will be exchanged on the condition that Milwhite Inc. stopped operating.

Milwhite Inc. agreed, and can operate for only limited hours at their facility on Highway 48 until the shutdown is complete on Nov. 27.

Adhlemy Sanchez, a Brownsville resident who was affected by the dust, said the settlement agreement came on Saturday.

"As far as neighbors are concerned, we weren't all 100% satisfied with the results," Sanchez said.

When ValleyCentral spoke with Sanchez in February, she described some of the effects from the dust.

“Our property is being affected,” she said. “We have damages to our roofs, and that’s not cheap to replace. Our cars are being affected, our property, our plants, our ecosystem. Everything is being affected.”