Feb. 7, 2003
As Part of Environmental Justice
Initiatives
Southland air quality
officials today approved an enforceable agreement with the Valero oil refinery
in Wilmington to phase out the facility’s use of the toxic chemical hydrogen
fluoride by 2006.
“Once this refinery
stops using concentrated hydrogen fluoride, we will have virtually eliminated
the potential for a catastrophic accidental release of this compound in our
region,” said Barry Wallerstein, executive officer of the South Coast Air
Quality Management District.
“We commend Valero for
voluntarily phasing out this chemical, which will significantly increase the
safety of thousands of residents living near this refinery,” he said.
The agreement fulfils
one of the
23
Environmental Justice goals adopted by AQMD’s Governing Board last fall.
Hydrogen fluoride (HF)
is a pungent, highly corrosive acid used at oil refineries in a process called
alkylation that boosts gasoline octane. HF also is used at chemical plants to
manufacture compounds including refrigerants.
The chemical poses a
risk to nearby residents and businesses because in the event of an accidental
release, it can form a dense, fuming cloud capable of etching glass and causing
severe damage to human skin and lung tissue.
In 1987, an accidental
release of HF resulted from an explosion at the Mobil refinery in Torrance. The
same year, there was an accidental HF release at the Marathon Oil refinery in
Texas City, Texas.
Under terms of the
agreement, the Valero facility, also known as the Ultramar refinery, will:
- Replace its use of HF by Dec. 31, 2005, with modified HF, which
contains additives that significantly reduce the chemical’s ability to form a
vapor cloud in the event of an accidental release;
- Enhance its existing safety systems to minimize the impact of an
accidental HF release; and
- Pay a penalty of $1 million if it fails to meet the deadline for
phasing out HF, barring unforeseen circumstances.
In addition, if for any
reason Valero does not phase out its use of HF, AQMD will seek to expeditiously
adopt a rule requiring them to do so.
The Valero facility will
undergo significant construction to switch to modified HF. AQMD has pledged to
expedite the processing of air quality permits needed for the construction.
Switching to modified HF
will minimize the possibility of a catastrophic accidental release not only at
the refinery, but along Southland transportation corridors, as the additive is
added to the chemical before shipping.
HF History
In the late 1980s, four
oil refineries and one chemical plant in the Southland used HF. Following the
1987 accidental release of HF in Torrance, AQMD formed a task force and the
agency’s Governing Board adopted Rule 1410 in 1991 to phase out the use of HF by
1998. The rule was challenged in court by industry and a Superior Court judge
suspended the rule on a technicality in 1992.
Since then, two of the
refineries using HF have shut down, one has voluntarily switched to modified HF
and the chemical plant has phased out its HF use, leaving the Valero refinery as
the only facility in the region still using the hazardous chemical.
AQMD is the air
pollution control agency for Orange County and major portions of Los Angeles,
San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
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