EPA rejects 24 Harris County air permits

122 rejected statewide

Jon Boyd, Jul 01, 10.

On Wednesday, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Regional Director Al Armendariz rejected air permits for 122 plants throughout the state of Texas, including 24 in Harris County, and another seven in Galveston County, as reported in the Houston Chronicle. EPA has been reviewing flexible air permits for factories which had been issued by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Armendariz invalidated every air permit issued through the TCEQ flexible program.

“The ruling will affect 122 plants, many of them refineries and chemical plants, which the state grants “flexible” permits. The permits allow the plants to report only total emissions, rather than pollution from each individual unit of their facilities — a practice environmentalists have charged allows the companies to mask dangerous pollution spikes in specific areas,” writes the Texas Tribune.

The Houston Chronicle reports:

EPA Regional Administrator Al Armendariz invalidated all 122 flexible air quality permits issued by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality since the 1990s, leaving the facilities to apply for new permits. Most were issued to oil and chemical refineries.

“We’re going to transition these facilities from these flexible permits to standard permits and, by doing so, lower emissions and improve public health,” he said.

Gov. Rick Perry blasted the move.

“The EPA’s irresponsible and heavy-handed action not only undermines Texas’ successful clean air programs, but threatens thousands of Texas jobs, families, businesses and communities throughout our state,” Perry said in a statement. “It will also likely curtail energy supplies and increase gasoline prices nationwide.”

The Houston Chronicle listed Harris and Galveston County plants using flexible permits:

NIXED BY EPA

Area facilities with flexible air quality permits invalidated by the EPA:

Harris County facilities: NCI Building Systems; Exxon Mobil Baytown facility; PPG Industries La Porte fine chemicals manufacturing; Citgo Petroleum North Houston terminal; Exxon Mobil Chemical Baytown chemical plant; Shell Oil Deer Park Houston refinery; Mitsubishi Caterpillar Forklift America Inc.; Motiva Enterprises Houston marketing terminal; Innovene Polyethylene North America; Chemical Research & Licensing; CB&I Constructors; Exxon Mobil Chemical Baytown olefins plant; Chevron Phillips Pasadena plastics complex; Magellan Galena Park terminal; Tex Trude LP; Innovene Polyethylene North America; Stewart and Stevenson Teige Road facility; Oiltanking Houston terminal; Shell Oil Deer Park; Goodyear Houston chemical plant; Magellan East Houston tank farm; Univar USA Houston FM 529 facility; Valero Refining Houston refinery

Galveston County facilities: BP Texas City chemical plant B; Praxair BP refinery; Marathon Petroleum Texas City refinery; Oiltanking Texas City terminal; Valero Refining Texas City refinery; BP Products North America Texas City; Valero Texas City LP tank farm
Source: The Environmental Protection Agency

Debbie Hastings, a spokesperson for the Texas Oil and Gas Association, “suggested that in a worst-case scenario, some refineries might have to shut down completely, putting every job at risk. Uncertainty in the permitting regime could also cause facilities to put expansion or upgrade plans on hold, which would also cost jobs,” as attributed in the Texas Tribune. She went on to say that 280,000 direct and indirect jobs would be at risk.

U.S. Senator John Cornyn also expressed concern, “with this EPA overreach.”

The EPA press release suggests that it is willing to work on revising the permitting process without shutting down the plants:

To insure no disruptions for facilities, EPA has reached out to industry, the environmental community and TCEQ to discuss how to convert flexible permits into more detailed permits that comply with the Clean Air Act. One tool proposed by EPA is encouraging flexible permit holders to participate in a voluntary compliance audit program. The program will expedite efforts to identify emission limits, operating requirements and monitoring, reporting and recordkeeping data. Public comment on the proposed audit program closes on July 2, 2010.

(Phoyo credit: eflon)