Groups Allege Millions of Pounds of Illegal Pollution Over Five-Year Period
Benzene, Butadiene, Sulfur Dioxide, Nitrogen Oxides, Carbon Monoxide Among Pollutants at Issue in Case
HOUSTON
– Sierra Club and Environment Texas filed a lawsuit today in federal
district court against Shell Oil Company and several affiliates. The
suit – the first case in Texas in which citizen groups are suing to
stop illegal air emissions arising from so-called “upset” events –
claims that Shell has repeatedly violated the Clean Air Act at its Deer
Park, Texas, oil refinery and chemical plant, resulting in the release
of millions of pounds of excess air pollutants over the past five
years, including toxic chemicals such as benzene and 1,3-butadiene.
Shell’s
Deer Park facility is a 1,500-acre complex located on the Houston Ship
Channel in Harris County, about 20 miles east of downtown Houston. It
is the nation’s eighth-largest oil refinery and one of the world’s
largest producers of petrochemicals. The facility is also the second
largest source of air pollution in Harris County, which ranks among the
worst in the nation in several measures of air quality.
“I
live and work downwind from Shell, in Channelview. My family and my
employees simply can’t afford to breathe in any more air pollution,”
said Sierra Club member and small business owner Karla Land. “We have
laws to protect air quality for a reason. Shell is breaking those laws
and they need to be made to stop.”
“On average of
more than once a week for at least the past five years, Shell has
reported that it violated its own permit limits by spewing a wide range
of harmful pollutants into the air around the Deer Park plant,” said
Luke Metzger, Director of Environment Texas. “Because the state of
Texas and the U.S. EPA have both failed to put a stop to these blatant
violations, ordinary citizens are stepping up to enforce the law
themselves.”
The Clean Air Act contains a “citizen
suit” provision that allows private citizens affected by violations of
the law to bring an enforcement suit in federal court if state and
federal regulators do not. Shell’s permits contain both hourly and
yearly limits on the amounts of pollutants it can emit into the
atmosphere. The lawsuit alleges that equipment breakdowns,
malfunctions, and other non-routine incidents at the Deer Park complex
result in the release of millions of pounds of pollutants into the
surrounding air, frequently in violation of legal limits.
A
single such “upset” or “emission event” can result in the release of
thousands of pounds of air pollutants in a matter of minutes or hours.
Some emission events at Shell Deer Park have involved pollutant
releases in the hundreds of thousands of pounds. According to the
groups’ analysis of Shell’s own reports to the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality, air pollutants released during upsets at Deer
Park since 2003 include:
· Over 2 million pounds of sulfur dioxide;
· Over 1 million pounds of volatile organic compounds (VOCs);
· Over 600,000 pounds of carbon monoxide;
· Over 250,000 pounds of nitrogen oxides;
· Over 90,000 pounds of benzene and 60,000 pounds of 1,3-butadiene.
Nitrogen
oxides and VOCs contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone,
which, according to EPA, can trigger a variety of health problems
including chest pain, coughing, throat irritation, and congestion. Air
quality in Harris County regularly violates standards for ground-level
ozone set by EPA. Sulfur dioxide contributes to respiratory illness,
particularly in children and the elderly, and aggravates existing heart
and lung diseases. Sulfur dioxide also contributes to the formation of
acid rain. Benzene and 1,3-butadiene are carcinogens.
The
lawsuit seeks a court order requiring Shell to end its Clean Air Act
violations. In addition, Shell faces civil penalties of up to $32,500
per day for each violation of the Clean Air Act. Shell Oil Company is
an affiliate of Royal Dutch Shell, ranked by Fortune as the third
largest company in the world.
Shell-Complaint.pdf