On today’s episode of The Confluence:Norfolk Southern has hired a company to conduct testing of air in residents’ homes near the derailment of the company’s train in East Palestine, Ohio. A ProPublica investigation finds the testing may not be capturing the whole picture of the health and environmental impact from the derailment. Reporter Sharon Lerner tells us what concerns experts and residents still have. (0:00-8:20)The historians at Rivers of Steel, which supports heritage and tourism at the Carrie Blast Furnaces National Historic Landmark, have long known the furnaces’ namesake was likely a family member, but it wasn’t until recently they confirmed Carrie’s identity. Ron Baraff, director of historic resources and facilities at Rivers of Steel, gives us the backstory. (8:20-17:28)As part of our Good Question, Kid! Series, we answer the question: Where do primary colors come from? Clayton Merrell, a professor of art at Carnegie Mellon University tells us about red, yello
When Bruce Spiegel was a child, he would look out his Greenfield window at the heart of American industry nearby: the U.S. Steel Homestead Works. “I would look out into the night and watch the Homestead furnaces blowing blue flames,” Spiegel said. “I thought steel-making was never going to end.”
Described as “generational changing,” recently awarded investments in rails-to-trails will help connect more than 100 miles of recreational trails in Western Pennsylvania, opening previously unrealized pathways to communities poised to benefit economically. Murrysville to Rankin. O’Hara to East Deer. Aspinwall to Homewood. Plans are underway to grow and connect mostly