Refinery explosions, chemical releases prompt proposed new oil industry regulations
A “landmark” set of proposed regulations aimed at improving the safety of communities surrounding oil refineries and workers is intended to make explosions like the one in Torrance last year at the former ExxonMobil plant less likely.
The stricter regulations unveiled by the state Friday were initially prompted by the serious chemical release and fire in 2012 at Chevron’s refinery in the Bay Area and reinforced by the February 2015 Torrance blast.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board, which is investigating the Torrance explosion, has said a catastrophic release of deadly hydrofluoric acid that could have killed and injured tens of thousands was only averted by happenstance in the wake of the explosion.
“The essential elements of the proposed amendments would probably have lessened the chance of the ExxonMobil event to occur,” said Paul Penn, point man for California Environmental Protection Agency on the proposal. “The two thrusts on the regulatory side are safety and prevention.
“We feel that an investment in safety and prevention will lessen the need for an emergency preparedness response,” he added.
Federal officials have blamed the blast on botched safety reviews, while state investigators said the company’s decision to deliberately fail to fix equipment it knew could cause a life-threatening explosion also played a role.
State officials put the estimated lost output from the ExxonMobil blast at $323 million. However, a RAND study estimated motorists paid at least $2.4 billion in higher pump prices in the six months following the blast, while the total economic loss was closer to $14 billion.
In contrast, the annual cost of the proposed regulations is $58 million, or about $2 a year per California resident in higher pump prices.
The two complementary regulations were announced jointly by CalEPA, the Department of Industrial Relations and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
One overhauls Cal-OSHA worker safety regulations as they apply to refineries.
The other strengthens the California Accidental Release Prevention Program, which is designed to prevent the release of hazardous materials that could harm the public and the environment.
“The proposed amendments to the California Process Safety Management program and Accidental Release Prevention Program are significant improvements that will strengthen protections for workers, communities and the environment, based on lessons learned and best practices,” CSB Chairwoman Vanessa Allen Sutherland said in a statement.
“We look forward to seeing the final regulations implemented, and we hope that they prove to be a model for refinery worker protection and public safety for the rest of the country.”
The public will have a minimum of 45 days to comment on the regulations before adoption; the deadline is Aug. 29.
No public hearing is scheduled on the Accidental Release Prevention Program, although one may be requested.
Comments should be emailed to jack.harrah@caloes.ca.gov, faxed to 916-845-8734 or mailed to Jack Harrah, California Governor’s OES, 3650 Schriever Ave., Mather, CA 95655.
Key features of the amendments, which officials said are intended to “increase the transparency of business and government” include:
• Requirements that accident investigations determine the root cause and develop interim and permanent corrective measures in response.
• Annual reporting of refinery safety metrics.
• Providing a mechanism for anonymous reporting of safety hazards and increasing employee involvement in all aspects of refinery safety, including giving refinery employees authority to shut down an unsafe unit if needed.
Michael Karlovich, vice president of corporate communication for PBF Energy, the new owners of the former ExxonMobil Torrance Refinery, said via email that the company has met with CalEPA and supports the proposals.
Some of the recommendations, such as allowing workers to shut down unsafe units, are already in place, he said.
“We also participated with industry groups that provided input on the newly proposed regulations and will remain actively involved in the regulatory review process,” Karlovich said. “We are committed to operating safely, reliably, and in an environmentally responsible manner, as well as to having a positive impact in the communities that host our facilities.”
Still, PBF suffered its first operational glitch at the refinery barely a week after taking over, forcing the shutdown of the unit that manufactures gasoline and burning off gases via its flare system, increasing air pollution.
Mary Ann McFarland, a member of grass-roots group the Torrance Refinery Action Alliance and a resident of north Torrance who lives very close to the refinery, said the latest incident again underscored the need for an improved regulatory framework.
“Stringent controls are necessary to protect the workers and the community, but judging by the problems the new owners are having with the Torrance refinery not even a month after they took over, they don’t go far enough,” she said. “I think an outright ban on HF for use at refineries in the state is the only way the communities will truly feel safer.”
The South Coast Air Quality Management District, which banned the use of HF before only to see that overturned by the courts, is studying whether a commercially viable alternative to the dangerous acid exists.
John Bailey, a government watchdog and president of the Southeast Homeowners’ Association, applauded the proposed regulations given the fires, emissions, leaks and explosions he noted are plaguing the oil and gas industry.
“The oil industry is the wealthiest, most powerful industry in the history of the world,” he said via email. “The Torrance refinery has been in ‘high priority violation’ of the federal Clean Air Act in every quarter since at least 2011. It is obvious there is much to do to make oil refineries safer. These proposed regulations are just a beginning response to the concerns of the residents of Torrance.”
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