VII.C. Review of Major Legal Actions

Major Cases/Supplemental Environmental Projects

This section provides summary information about major cases that have affected this sector, and a list of Supplementary Environmental Projects (SEPs). SEPs are compliance agreements that reduce a facility's stipulated penalty in return for an environmental project that exceeds the value of the reduction. Often, these projects fund pollution prevention activities that can significantly reduce the future pollutant loadings of a facility.

VII.C.1. Review of Major Cases

Historically, OECA's Enforcement Capacity and Outreach Office does not regularly compile information related to major cases and pending litigation within an industry sector. The staff are willing to pass along such information to Agency staff as requests are made. (Office of Enforcement Capacity and Outreach 202-260-4140) In addition, summaries of completed enforcement actions are published each fiscal year in the Enforcement Accomplishments Report. To date, these summaries are not organized by industry sector. (Contact: Robert Banks, 202-260-8296)

VII.C.2. Supplementary Environmental Projects

Supplemental environmental projects (SEPs) are an enforcement option that requires the non-compliant facility to complete specific projects. Regional summaries of SEPS undertaken in the 1993 and 1994 federal fiscal years were reviewed. Eleven projects were undertaken that involved petroleum refineries, as shown in the following table.

In the petroleum refinery sector, no single statute engendered the majority of SEPS. Due to differences in regional descriptions, the specifics of the original violations are not known. Overall, Clean Air Act (CAA) violations were the most common amongst petroleum refineries; even so, only three out of the ten projects were due to CAA violations.

The SEPS in the petroleum refinery sector can be grouped into four categories:

Process change. Two SEPs involved the discontinuation of particular crude oil units that generated regulated waste streams. Costs to companies were $3,200,000 and $2,000,000, respectively, the most costly of all petroleum refinery SEPs.

Leak prevention. Facilities improved leak detection and prevention technologies in piping or tanks as the result of four projects. Original violations for these SEPS were RCRA, CAA, and the Oil Pollution Act (OPA). Cost to company ranged from $265,000 to $800,000.

Control technology improvement/installation. The three CAA related original violations all had control technology improvements or installations as projects. Sulfuric air emissions (H2S, SO2) were reduced in two cases (a reduction of 274 tons/year of SO2) and opacity monitoring was initiated in the third case. Cost to company ranged from $85,000 to $270,000.

Non-process related projects. Some SEPS involved projects that were not directly related to the petroleum refining process. In one case, PCB-containing transformers were removed as the result of a TSCA violation. Other cases involved equipment donations to Local Emergency Planning Commissions due to CERCLA non-reporting violations. Cost to company ranged from $9,000 to $19,000.

VIII. COMPLIANCE ASSURANCE ACTIVITIES AND INITIATIVES

This section highlights the activities undertaken by this industry sector and public agencies to voluntarily improve the sector's environmental performance. These activities include those independently initiated by industrial trade associations. In this section, the notebook also contains a listing and description of national and regional trade associations.

VIII.A. Sector-Related Environmental Programs and Activities

Common Sense Initiative

The EPA's Common Sense Initiative (CSI) was announced in November of 1993 to encourage pollution prevention in a few pilot industrial sectors including: iron and steel, electronics, metal plating and finishing, automobiles, printing, and petroleum refining. The program shifts regulatory focus from concentrating on individual pollutants and media, to industrywide approaches to environmental problems. An EPA team has been assigned to each industry and a strategic plan will be drawn up to identify opportunities to coordinate rulemaking and to streamline record-keeping and permitting requirements. The teams are working with industry to identify innovative approaches in pollution prevention and environmental technology. Co-chairs for the Petroleum Refining Committee are Elliot Laws, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response; and Jane Saginaw, Regional Administrator - Region VI. Starting in November of 1994, meetings of most stakeholders including EPA and other government officials, industry representatives, and environmental groups, have been held to explain the Initiative and its goals as well as to exchange ideas on how to best prevent pollution in the petroleum refining industry. (Contact: Petroleum Refining Team Leaders, Meg Kelly, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, 703-308-8800; Gerald Fontenot, Region VI - Air Branch, 214-665-7205; and OECA staff lead, Tom Ripp, 202-564-7003.)

EPA Regional Compliance and Enforcement Activities

A number of regions have focused on enforcement and compliance activities that affect the petroleum refining sector. Region V is currently carrying out a geographic enforcement initiative which includes the petroleum refining industry (Contact: Reg Pallesen, 312-886-0555). In addition, the EPCRA program of Region V conducts a minimum of six outreach training sessions annually, one in each state, which cover all industries. In Region VIII the NPDES Branch began an enforcement initiative aimed at petroleum refineries in FY94. The initiative addresses surface water and groundwater contamination by focusing on the prevention and elimination of future discharges. The RCRA branch of Region VIII is developing a program for FY95 that includes forming a Multi-Media Refinery Workgroup that will