Allegheny County Health Department

Some Pennsylvania environmental groups are dissatisfied with an agreement that the Allegheny County Health Department and U.S. Steel finalized earlier this week. The settlement addresses emissions violations at the manufacturing giant's Clairton Coke Works.

The Allegheny County Health Department has reached a final settlement agreement and order with U.S. Steel over air pollution violations at the Clairton Coke Works, part of the larger Mon Valley Works system. The settlement was issued in June of 2019 to address ongoing emissions problems at the plant.

The Allegheny County Health Department has announced a new effort to fight weather-related air pollution events. The move follows six consecutive December days of small particle pollution exceedances downwind of U.S. Steel's Clairton Coke Works, which were linked to temperature inversions in the Mon Valley.

Western Pennsylvania is seeing more flu cases than what’s usually seen at this point during the season, according to state Department of Health data.

So far, Allegheny County is reporting that 1,223 people have gotten the flu. In comparison, only 137 people in the more populous Philidelphia County have reported coming down with the virus.

Hepatitis A is on the rise, but the Allegheny County Health Department says it could be worse.

There have been 22 cases of the disease since January 2018, the highest number in over a decade.  Hepatitis A is a highly contagious liver disease that causes inflammation. 

An asthma registry for children secured $300,000 in funding from the Allegheny County Board of Health on Wednesday. The registry could illuminate why certain areas of the county have higher rates of the chronic respiratory condition. 

A damaged pipeline has prompted the Environmental Protection Agency to temporarily waive a requirement for a special, cleaner blend of gasoline in Allegheny County during summer months.

Allegheny County’s top health official will leave at the end of July.

The Allegheny County Health Department administered 44 doses of the measles vaccine at a free clinic held Wednesday at the Homewood-Brushton YMCA. 

The Allegheny County Health Department has formally requested to join a federal lawsuit against U.S. Steel. 

There are four more cases of measles in Pittsburgh. The Allegheny County Health Department said the new cases are within one family and that two adults and two children are infected. One of the adults and both children are visiting from overseas and are not residents of the county. The other infected adult is a county resident and is not vaccinated.

Allegheny County Council has given preliminary approval to a waste management plan that will serve the county through 2028. This is a regular 10-year update of the plan, but this time around recycling is taking center stage.

A pair of environmental groups say they plan to sue U.S. Steel following the December fire at Clairton Coke Works that damaged pollution control equipment.

Steelworkers and residents of the Mon Valley packed the Clairton Municipal Building Thursday afternoon for a lengthy hearing convened by Democratic state lawmakers over recent air quality problems stemming from the December fire at Clairton Coke Works.

The Black Cat Market in Lawrenceville opened at the end of August, the passion project of owners Olivia Ciotoli and Indigo Baloch. 

The percentage of school students in Allegheny County who have received all their required vaccinations has dropped by about a percent since 2010.

There have been six cases of West Nile Virus in Allegheny County so far this year, the highest in more than a decade.

A clean needle exchange that provides free syringes to drug users could soon open in the Carrick neighborhood, making it the first needle exchange in the southern part of the city.

US Steel says it will replace equipment, hire more staff, improve training and increase monitoring at its Clairton Coke Works plant.

The Environmental Protection Agency has announced rule changes allowing the manufacture of new products containing asbestos after they undergo EPA review.

The Allegheny County Health Department will spray select areas with pesticide Thursday evening, following recent samples of mosquitos that tested positive for West Nile Virus.

The Allegheny County Health Department says a groundhog brought to one of its facilities after a dog killed it in Mount Lebanon has tested positive for rabies.

Officials say this is the ninth rabid animal reported in the county so far this year. The others were four raccoons and four bats.

County residents are being warned to avoid stray animals and wildlife, even if the animals appear healthy. They should also have their pets vaccinated and watch for unusual behavior.

The Allegheny County Health Department hit US Steel with a $1 million fine for chronic air pollution from the company’s Clairton Coke Works.

The fine was the largest the department has leveled against Clairton Coke Works in the past 10 years, and the second largest to any facility in that time period, said spokesman Ryan Scarpino.

Bed bugs are equal opportunity infesters. They don’t discriminate who they’ll bite based on any socioeconomic or demographic factors. With students returning home from college and tenants moving to new apartments, bed bug incidents in Pittsburgh are likely to increase.

The Allegheny County Health Department reports the highest concentration of overdose deaths in the Pittsburgh region from 2008 to 2016 is an area covering parts of Mt. Oliver and neighborhoods on the southern side of Pittsburgh, like Allentown and Knoxville.