From: booty > jim bell: > That sounds like nonsense to me. "The sausage-shaped ingots were then shaved into thin wafers, and polished using a number of chemicals. After that came the process of printing transistors into the chips–which required degreasers and solvents, including the sweet-smelling trichloroethylene (TCE)" I did not say that silicon wafer manufacture did not use chemicals which, if released, would cause a problem. The first article below deals with events at least as far back as the 1950's. Practices were different then. The article refers to TCE, but one major source of chlorinated solvents was dry-cleaning plants. Can people point to modern wafer-fabs as being a source of this kind of pollution? [1]https://gizmodo.com/the-secret-history-of-silicon-valley-and-the-tox ic-remn-1743622225 "The sausage-shaped ingots were then shaved into thin wafers, and polished using a number of chemicals. After that came the process of printing transistors into the chips–which required degreasers and solvents, including the sweet-smelling trichloroethylene (TCE), which was only[2] classified as a carcinogen by the EPA in 2005 and would later be found in groundwater around Silicon Valley after leaking from dozens of different manufacturing sites. TCE, which was first made in the US [3]in the 1920s, has been used at various points in history as an engine parts degreaser and as an alternative to chloroform." Notice "dozens of different manufacturing sites". Were any one of the polluting sites silicon wafer fabs? [4]http://www.ozy.com/acumen/think-chinas-pollution-is-bad-try-northern -california/71553 Air pollution. Nothing at all due to silicon wafer fabs. [5]http://baykeeper.org/articles/baykeepers-legal-action-clean-industri al-runoff-pollution I've separated out the headlines. I can't see a reference to silicon wafer fabs. Baykeeper's Legal Action to Clean Up Industrial Runoff Pollution When Congress passed the Clean Water Act, they included a citizen suit provision that allows citizens and citizen groups like Baykeeper to bring a lawsuit against a polluter in order to enforce the law when state and federal regulators do not. Congress specifically provided this tool so that citizens and citizen groups—not just regulators—would have the power to ensure that polluters follow the law. With California's enforcement agencies drastically underfunded, Baykeeper plays a critical role in enforcing the Clean Water Act to control industrial storm water pollution. Baykeeper has a long history of successful Clean Water Act litigation to reduce industrial storm water pollution in San Francisco Bay. Our staff has the legal and scientific expertise to research and identify which facilities need to be cleaned up, recommend appropriate improvements and secure legally-binding agreements to effectively reduce toxic pollution. Below are successful settlements reached in Baykeeper’s Bay-Safe Industry Campaign: Oakland Asphalt Recycler Agrees to Keep Polluted Runoff out of the Bay Redwood City Concrete Plant to Rein in Bay Contamination Rodeo Auto Dismantler Agrees to Keep Polluted Runoff Out of the Bay San Jose Debris Removal Facility Agrees to Keep Contaminated Runoff out of the Bay Berkeley Trash & Recycling Center Agrees to Protect the Bay from Toxic Runoff Santa Clara Plating Company Agrees to Keep Toxic Runoff from Polluting the Bay San Rafael Rock Quarry Agrees to Protect the Bay from Contaminated Runoff Santa Clara Waste Facility Agrees to Keep Toxic Runoff Out of the Bay South San Francisco Waste and Recycling Facility Will Protect the Bay from Toxic Runoff Marin Concrete Plant Agrees to Protect the Bay from Contaminated Runoff San Jose Concrete Plant Agrees to Keep Toxic Runoff from Polluting the Bay Marin Sanitary Service Agrees to Protect Bay from Polluted Runoff Concord Auto Dismantler Agrees to Keep Runoff from Polluting the Bay Oakland Auto Dismantler Agrees to Protect the Bay from Contaminated Runoff San Jose Auto Dismantler Will Reduce Bay Contamination Syar Napa Quarry Agrees to Protect the Bay from Contaminated Runoff Major Bulk Shipping Terminal Agrees to Stop Toxic Contamination of the Bay Benicia Recycling Facility Agrees to Protect the Bay from Toxic Runoff San Jose Metal Recycler Works with Baykeeper to Keep Runoff from Polluting the Bay Pleasanton Concrete Manufacturer Agrees to Protect Bay from Toxic Runoff Marine Express Works with Baykeeper to Keep Toxics Out of Bay Oakland Metal Coating Facility Will Protect Bay from Toxic Runoff Construction Debris Recycler to Keep Polluted Runoff Out of Bay Union City Pipe Factory Agrees to Protect Bay from Toxic Runoff Sunnyvale Waste Facility Agrees to Keep Polluted Runoff Out of the Bay Santa Clara Steel Fabricator Will Curb Pollution of Bay GreenWaste in San Jose Agrees to Clean Up Its Bay Pollution San Jose Recycler to Keep Its Polluted Runoff Out of the Bay Berkeley Steel Foundry to Stop Polluting the Bay Major Electronics Recycler Agrees to Clean Up Its Pollution Partnering With e-Recycling of California to Cut Pollution to the Bay Oakland Metal Recycler to Clean Up Its Bay Pollution Berkeley Forge & Tool Agrees to Reduce Pollution of the Bay San Jose Landfill/Recycler to Clean Up Toxic Bay Pollution BAE Shipyard Agrees to Clean Up Toxic Bay Pollution California Waste Solutions to Reduce Bay Pollution Svendsen’s Boat Works to Reduce Bay Pollution The Boatyard at Grand Marina Agrees to Curb Pollution References Visible links 1. https://gizmodo.com/the-secret-history-of-silicon-valley-and-the-toxic-remn-1743622225 2. http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/bd4379a92ceceeac8525735900400c27/b8d0e4d8489ad991852579190058d6c3!OpenDocument 3. http://www.med.navy.mil/sites/nmcphc/Documents/environmental-programs/risk-communication/posters/Tcesmlnew.pdf 4. http://www.ozy.com/acumen/think-chinas-pollution-is-bad-try-northern-california/71553 5. http://baykeeper.org/articles/baykeepers-legal-action-clean-industrial-runoff-pollution Hidden links: 7. http://baykeeper.org/articles/baykeepers-legal-action-clean-industrial-runoff-pollution