Rebecca Quigley's favorite spot in her house is a wraparound deck with a sweeping view of her hometown, Vanport, Pa., along the banks of the Ohio River.
But in recent years, the view has changed. Just across the river, the oil and gas company Shell built a huge industrial plant to make plastics. Called an 'ethane cracker,' the plant turns ethane, a component of natural gas, into tiny plastic pellets used to make products from plastic packaging to medical devices. Quigley calls it "Gotham City" because of the way it lights up the night sky.
