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 The study is based on the first full year of data reported by U.S.
refineries since a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule was
implemented in 2018. The rule requires continuous monitoring of air
pollutants around plants to protect nearby communities, many of
which are disproportionately poor, black and Hispanic.
"These results highlight refineries that need to do a better job of
installing pollution controls and implementing safer workplace
practices," EIP Executive Director Eric Schaeffer said in a
statement. "Now, EPA needs to enforce these rules."
EPA officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Long-term exposure to benzene can cause blood disorders and
leukemia, according to the agency.
Monitoring for benzene is meant to be a tool that allows for "early
detection of potential problems," said Ericka Perryman, a
spokeswoman for the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers
trade group, in a statement.
But the EPA's data "is not intended as a measure of community
exposure or health risk and could inadvertently provide misleading
results to the public," she added.
According to the report, benzene levels consistently exceeded the
EPA standard of 9 micrograms per cubic meter of air at the
fencelines of 10 of the more than 100 refineries examined by EIP.
The EPA requires facilities that exceed that threshold to take
corrective action, the report said.
Philadelphia Energy Solutions' refinery in Philadelphia recorded the
highest benzene concentrations, at nearly five times the EPA
standard, the data show. HollyFrontier Corp's <HFC.N> Navajo Artesia
plant in New Mexico followed, with more than three times the federal
standard.
Philadelphia Energy shut that refinery and filed for bankruptcy in
July after a fire destroyed part of the plant.
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Texas was the hardest-hit state, with six refineries exceeding the
federal benzene standard, the report said. These are Total SA's <TOTF.PA>
Port Arthur refinery, Chevron Corp's <CVX.N> Pasadena Refinery,
Flint Hills Resources' Corpus Christi East refinery, Valero Energy
Corp's <VLO.N> Corpus Christi East, Royal Dutch Shell Plc's <RDSa.L>
Deer Park and Marathon Oil Corp's <MRO.N> Galveston Bay Texas
refinery.
Two other refineries listed are Chevron's Pascagoula in Mississippi
and PBF Energy Inc's <PBF.N> Chalmette Refining in Louisiana.
In a statement, Chevron said it had taken steps to improve
performance and added that its Pascacoula and Pasadena refineries
were in compliance with EPA requirements.
Marathon spokesman Jamal Kheiry said in an emailed statement that a
relief valve at its refinery's dock was the source of a benzene
release in March 2019. The company took steps to fix the problem, he
said.
"We are committed to comply with EPA rules," Total spokeswoman Marie
Maitre said in an email. "Our refinery employees live and have
families in this community and the Total Port Arthur Refinery works
hard at being a good neighbor."
Flint Hills spokesman Andy Saenz said the EPA's fenceline monitoring
program "is not an accurate measurement of ambient air conditions in
a community." He said benzene levels in Corpus Christi were "much
lower than this report would suggest and well within public health
standards."
Owners of the other refineries did not immediately comment on the
report.
(Reporting by Nichola Groom; editing by Richard Valdmanis and
Richard Chang)
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