BP Products Refinery Sued for Violating Texas Environmental Laws

BP Products North America Inc. has been sued by the top law enforcer in Texas for allegedly repeatedly violating the state’s anti-pollution laws.

BP operates an oil refinery in Texas City, which is located near the coast of the Gulf of Mexico between Houston and Galveston. According to Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, the company repeatedly broke state laws by releasing toxic emissions from the plant between 2002 and 2007. The state has alleged 46 separate incidents of the company releasing unlawful pollutants into the environment.

The most serious incident occurred at the BP refinery on March 23, 2005, when a massive explosion at the plant killed 15 people and injured nearly 200 more.

“BP Products is charged with polluting our environment, concealing information from authorities and harming Texans,” Abbott said in a statement about the newly filed charges. “This enforcement action holds BP accountable for failing to comply with environmental, health and safety laws that are intended to protect Texans from harm.”

Sloppy maintenance of the facility and substandard operating practices are blamed for allowing the illegal emissions at the center of the charges. In addition to the lawsuit filed by Barrett, BP also faces 15 enforcement orders from the state’s Commission on Environmental Quality, officials said.

A BP spokesman said the company hopes to “resolve this matter and address the state’s concerns.”

According to Barrett’s suit, BP failed to report the illegal emissions to state leaders during the roughly five year period of infractions. The state’s lawsuit seeks an injunction requiring BP to make improvements to the refinery and financial penalties in excess of $100 million. A court hearing on the injunction is set for June 19, officials said.

BP recently was put on probation for three years and ordered to pay a $50 million fine in connection with the deadly 2005 explosion. As part of the probation, ordered by a federal judge, the company must follow federal and state safety standards put in place after the incident.

So far, BP has paid victims of the explosion about $1 billion and also forked over a $21.4 million fine to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

No related posts.