Residents: Milwhite will close its Brownsville plant later this year

BROWNSVILLE, Texas – The pleas of a group of citizens who have expressed concerns over a company accused of inundating their neighborhood with a whitish looking dust has apparently paid off.

The company – Milwhite Inc. – has been in business for more than 90 years but it wasn’t until recently that people have been expressing dissatisfaction over the dust it creates from grinding rocks and processing other materials.

The company has been attacked, sued and taken to court for allegedly violating environmental regulations even by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

In the latest twist, Milwhite is to cease operations this coming November, according to local residents, but still faces a lawsuit from the City of Brownsville.

The deal was apparently agreed to over the weekend and has been applauded by some people who have been impacted and by some city officials.

Adhelmy Sanchez, a concerned citizen with Valley Interfaith, said she is happy for how the situation has evolved.

She said, however, Milwhite will stay in business for another four months.

“We have been working on this case for more than two years,” she said. “Fortunately, we are now in a better situation. We had mediation on Saturday and it was agreed to allow them to continue operations and prepare for closure.”

She said some residents who live near the plant off Texas Highway 48 have been putting up with the dust for some 20 years.

She said Milwhite will close at 4 p.m. on Nov. 27 but she wished this could have happened a lot sooner.

Brownsville City Manager Helen Ramirez declined to comment, citing  pending litigation.

But Dr. Rose Gowen, mayor pro tem with the City of Brownsville, said Milwhite is not closing immediately but later on.

“There has been a lot of concerns from the community,” she said. “I am glad this has happened.”

No one at Milwhite or attorney Denis Sanchez responded to telephone calls.

Sanchez has been defending the company in the 444^th State District Court.

Milwhite has been billing itself as an industry leader in high tech specialty minerals and products for animals; health products, oil and gas exploration and other things.

The company has been employing about 30 people at its plant along South Padre Highway.

The post Residents: Milwhite will close its Brownsville plant later this year appeared first on Rio Grande Guardian.