Neighbors protest the opening of a new Daimler Trucks North America headquarters building on Swan Island in North Portland.
Cassandra Profita/EarthFix
Neighbors of the Daimler Trucks manufacturing plant on Swan Island say the company needs to do more to control its paint odors.
They protested the opening of Daimler’s new corporate headquarters in Portland on Tuesday.
Daimler says it has taken steps to reduce air pollution from its Swan Island plant.
But neighbors say they're still suffering from fumes coming from the company's truck painting operations.
Neighbors of the Daimler Trucks manufacturing facility on Swan Island in Portland hold protest signs outside the company's new headquarters building.
Cassandra Profita/EarthFix
Dennis Poklikuha has lived nearby for 23 years. He says the company has refused to install additional pollution controls to reduce the paint odors, and he's worried there may be harmful chemicals in the air he's breathing.
He and many of his neighbors held signs outside Daimler's new headquarters while the company held a press event to recognize the new building.
"It's a very, very strong paint smell. You can taste it on certain days," Poklikuha said. "If they can build a building like this, they can put a filter on a smoke stack."
Daimler says it's in compliance with air pollution rules. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality completed a nuisance odor investigation last year and confirmed paint smells coming from the Swan Island facility.
The agency said the odors aren't bad enough to issue a nuisance violation, but it recently agreed to re-evaluate that conclusion in response to criticism and a request from Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek.