A chemical plant owned by Houston-based Ascend Performance Materials emitted 33,046 metric tons of nitrous oxide in 2018. That’s equal to the annual greenhouse gas emissions of 2.1 million automobiles. Credit: Center for Land Use Interpretation Database Ten miles north of Pensacola, Florida, on the west bank of the Escambia River, an aging chemical plant, its tanks, smokestacks and stainless steel pipes sprawling across hundreds of acres, is a climate killer hiding in plain sight. The plant, owned by Houston-based Ascend Performance Materials, makes adipic acid, one of two main ingredients for nylon 6,6, a strong, durable plastic used in everything from stockings to carpeting, seat belts and air bags. The plant also emits vast quantities of an unwanted byproduct, nitrous oxide, more colloquially known as “laughing gas.” From a climate perspective, the plant’s emissions are no joke. Nitrous oxide, or N 2 O, is nearly 300 times more […]