East Liverpool, just across the Pennsylvania border northwest of Pittsburgh, has a history of welcoming polluting businesses because people need the jobs. But some residents fault city leaders and regulators for failing to protect them.

An independent consultant’s risk assessment said someone would be more likely to die from falling down stairs than in a pipeline explosion. Yet a leak would be more likely to ignite in a densely populated area because there are more ignition sources.

A new legislative report, almost two years in the making, calls on Pennsylvania lawmakers to take steps that could prevent the early closure of two nuclear plants. Critics say bailing out struggling plants is the wrong move.