The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed changes to refinery rules for hazardous air pollutants (HAPs, known as the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants – NESHAP). However, these changes are modest or result in no HAP reductions. People get sick or die sooner due to exposure to HAPs. You can push EPA to reduce dangerous HAPs (like benzene, butadiene, toluene, xylene, and ethyl benzene).

Contact EPA by December 27, 2007:

By Letter: NESHAP Petroleum Refineries: Residual Risk Standards Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460;

By Fax: 202-566-9744

By Email: a-and-r-docket@epa.gov 

Mention Docket No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2003-0146 in your response.

Tell EPA:

1) You oppose Option 1, which does not reduce HAPs.

2) People who live in refinery fence-line communities deserve as much protection as those who live farther away. These communities have more exposure to HAPs and fewer resources to avoid exposure. EPA has admitted that estimates of HAPs are inaccurate and that greater amounts of HAPs are emitted than reported by industry. You support that EPA’s risk assessment must fully analyze how refinery fence-line communities are affected by HAPs.

3) You support an Option 3. Tell EPA that you support the implementation of the modest HAP reductions found in Option 2 (for storage tanks, cooling towers, and wastewater) within 18 months (not 3 years); fence-line monitoring for benzene and other HAPs ; control of upset, start-up, shutdown, and maintenance HAP air pollution; and adoption of California refinery controls to reduce HAP flaring, address HAP air emissions from storage tank landings, and implement tighter standards for HAP leaks.

For more information contact Brandt Mannchen at 713-664-5962 or brandtshnfbt@juno.com  

December 2007

Last updated:  11/29/2007.   Content © 1999-2007 by the Sierra Club.