Valero must clean up refinery pollution or face Environment Texas lawsuit
The clock is ticking on Valero's violations of clean air standards at its Port Arthur refinery.
The clock is ticking on Valero’s violations of clean air standards at its Port Arthur, Texas, refinery.
On May 22, Environment Texas, a project of our national network, and its coalition partners announced intent to sue Valero Energy Corporation in federal court for violating the Clean Air Act at its Port Arthur refinery during hundreds of so-called “emission events” that have occurred since May 2014. These violations, which were disclosed in Valero’s own reports, have resulted in more than 1.8 million pounds of unauthorized—and dangerous—pollution.
“Valero’s Port Arthur Refinery has a poor compliance record even when compared to other Texas oil refineries, spewing out millions of pounds of dangerous pollution into surrounding neighborhoods,” said Environment Texas Executive Director Luke Metzger. “Port Arthur residents deserve better.”
The suit, if and when we file it in U.S. District Court in Beaumont, would be our network’s fifth case since 2008 to confront illegal air emissions along the Gulf Coast.
Photo: Environment Texas, a project of our national network, announced its intent to sue Valero Energy Corporation over Clean Air Act violations at its Port Arthur refinery. Front row, left to right: Environment Texas Executive Director Luke Metzger, Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter Clean Air Director Neil Carman, and Etta Hebert and John Beard of the Port Arthur Community Action Network. Credit: Staff
