Refinery understated waste levels for years

December 16, 2002

By Tom Charlier
charlier@gomemphis.com
Memphis Commercial Appeal

The sprawling Williams Companies refinery in southwest Memphis for years discharged more cancer-causing benzene pollution than it reported to the government, saving millions on emissions-control requirements in the process.

The public health implications are uncertain.

Williams recently notified local and federal officials that new analyses show the refinery understated its benzene waste levels for the years 1997 through 2001.

The revised figures put annual benzene discharges for the period as much as 31 percent over a 10 metric ton threshold that triggers federal requirements for costly pollution-control measures. The refinery previously had calculated its waste slightly below the threshold.

Williams said the company had not intended to mislead regulators. "The information originally submitted was accurate to the best of our knowledge at that time," John E. Milner, a Jackson, Miss.-based attorney for Williams, said in a letter to the Health Department.

Based on the new pollution figures, the plant now is desiging emissions-control improvements that will cost more than $10 million, said Dale R. Morris, environmental manager for Williams Refining & Marketing, which operates the refinery at 543 W. Mallory.

Morris expressed regret about the inaccurate filings, which are likely to fetch Williams a multimillion-dollar penalty from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

"Yeah, it's a black eye, and I personally feel bad about it," Morris said.

Far less certain are the public health implications of Williams's revelation, which came only days before a planned EPA inspection of the refinery in late October.

Benzene, a natural component of crude oil, is a highly toxic substance that can cause leukemia, anemia, reproductive problems and other ailments.

However, much of the benzene that's classified as waste at the refinery is contained in sealed pipes and never vented to the atmosphere.

Morris estimates that the refinery emits three tons of benzene into the air annually. He said the amounts that actually drift off the 178-acre plant are too low to harm people living in nearby neighborhoods or visiting the adjoining Martin Luther King Riverside Park.

The vapors at service station gas pumps pose more of a benzene risk than the refinery emissions, Morris said.

"They've got more danger from the gas in their car than from living next to the refinery," he said.

Local regulators have no way of knowing exactly how high the benzene levels might be outside the refinery.

The Health Department, which monitors major pollutants such as ozone and carbon monoxide, does not test the air specifically for benzene, which is one of 188 hazardous air pollutants identified by EPA, said Diane L. Arnst, pollution control manager for the department.

EPA soon is expected to provide local and state governments some guidance as to which chemical pollutants to monitor, Arnst said.

Recent studies by the agency indicate that among 32 toxic air pollutants found in urban areas, benzene is one of the three compounds presenting the greatest cancer risk. Most benzene pollution comes from cars and trucks, according to EPA.

The benzene issue is surfacing locally as Williams Companies, based in Tulsa, Okla., moves to sell the refinery. Last month, Premcor Inc. announced it plans to pay up to $540 million for the refinery. The deal, which requires regulatory approval, is expected to close by March 31.

Despite the higher benzene numbers, Morris said the Williams facility long has been among the cleanest refineries in the nation and the first to embrace new pollution-control technologies. "We're a leader in lots of areas," he said.

Williams has slashed its total toxic air emissions nearly 40 percent from 1989 levels even as production capacity has been tripled.

But pollution from Williams and other facilities in the heavily industrial area near Mallory and Interstate 55 has been a concern for some residents and community leaders in the area.

"They've had one or two problems," said Rev. Ralph White, pastor of Bloomfield Baptist Church. "The emissions and the odor have been bad from time to time, so it's ongoing."

EPA conducted a "multimedia" inspection of the refinery in late October and early November, checking the plant's compliance with the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and Resource Recovery Conservation Act.

The inspection, similar to those conducted at several other refineries in recent months, was not prompted by any evidence of pollution problems, said Carl Terry, a spokesman for EPA in Atlanta.

"What we do is randomly select a number of facilities each year to determine their compliance status," he said.

EPA officials wouldn't discuss findings from the inspection because the report hasn't been issued yet.

Although Williams acknowledged the higher benzene discharges in a letter dated Oct. 16 - less than a week before EPA arrived - Morris said the timing was coincidental.

Williams had hired a consultant in January, way before the inspection was scheduled, to begin reassessing the benzene discharges, he said.

The company took the action after learning that EPA apparently was using a different interpretation of regulations dictating how discharges are calculated.

The initial benzene waste figures reported by Williams ranged from 6.82 tons in 1998 to 9.64 tons a year later. The revised figures went from a low of 10.17 tons in 1997 up to 13.1 tons last year.

Morris said earlier consultants apparently had "misled" Williams in regard to the benzene calculations. And he noted that earlier EPA inspections had not detected a problem with benzene discharges.

But the benzene issue is not the only pollution problem facing the refinery.

The Health Department has proposed a $100,000 civil penalty against Williams for discharging 6 times its monthly allotment of sulfur-dioxide air pollution during a four-day period last year.

Between Nov. 23 and Nov. 27, 2001, the refinery released 105.2 tons of sulfur dioxide, which contributes to acid rain and haze and can trigger asthma attacks and other breathing problems. The company's permit authorizes discharges of up to 16.2 tons of the pollutant per month.

The department is seeking the maximum penalty allowed under state law - $25,000 per day.

- Tom Charlier: 529-2572

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