PROTECTING AMERICANS FROM HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS—WISPIRG Advocate Meghan Purvis appeared on NOW to advocate stronger chemical security rules for oil refineries nationwide. At over 50 facilities in the country, there is enough hydroflouric acid to put one million people’s lives at risk.

In Philadelphia, Pa., the Sunoco oil refinery holds enough hazardous hydrofluoric acid to put one million of the refinery’s neighbors at risk in the event of an accident or terrorist attack.

And there are 49 more oil refi neries like this one in the country, including three in New Mexico.

So says a new report by NMPIRG Washington, D.C. Advocate Meghan Purvis entitled “Needless Risk: Oil Refineries and Hazard Reduction,” which details the risk oil refineries pose to surrounding communities in the event of an emergency.

“Oil refi neries pose a needless risk to millions of people across the country because of the hydrofl uoric acid they store on site,” said Purvis, appearing on PBS’s NOW on July 15. “We need Congress to act to prevent devastating releases of chemicals from oil refineries and other chemical companies.”

Hazardous To Public Health
Across the country, petroleum refineries, chemical plants and other industrial facilities use and store large amounts of hazardous chemicals that could be released in the event of an accident or terrorist attack.

Such releases could endanger thousands or even millions of people who live in communities in close proximity to these facilities. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 106 facilities would each endanger at least 1 million people in the event of a worst-case chemical release.

Many of these facilities, however, present an unnecessary risk to their surrounding communities—because safer alternatives exist.

Industries often have multiple options for carrying out similar processes, and some of these options are inherently safer than others.

Keith Roman emphasized the economic advantage of wind power, saying recently, “I can tell you we’re making much more off this than we did off cows. And, you don’t have to feed them, you don’t have to break the ice, and you don’t have to calve them out.”

Oil Refineries Stand Out
Petroleum refineries stand out as a stark example of the needless risk posed by such facilities in the event of an attack or accident as well as the opportunity to mitigate this risk by using safer alternatives to hydrofluoric acid. The acid is a catalyst in alkylation, the chemical process by which high-octane gasoline is made.

Of New Mexico’s three oil refineries, the two facilities in Artesia and in Jamestown both use hydrofluoric acid. In the event of an accident those plants could endanger 18,829 New Mexico citizens.

Key findings of the report include:

• Of the 148 petroleum refineries in the U.S., 50 use hydrofluoric acid in their processing or store it on-site. The remainder use safer alternatives, including modified hydrofluoric acid and sulfuric acid.

• The companies operating refineries using hydrofluoric acid with the most residents in their vulnerability zones include Sunoco, Valero Energy Corporation, Marathon Ashland Petroleum, ConocoPhillips, CITGO, and ExxonMobil, each endangering at least 2 million people.

• Many companies owning refineries using hydrofl uoric acid also operate refi neries without that technology. ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Valero Energy Corporation, and Marathon Ashland, for example, own refineries using hydrofluoric acid as well as refineries that use other technologies.

Congress is deliberating the issue of chemical security, and holding a series of hearings this summer before drafting legislation. NMPIRG has long advocated requiring chemical facilities to use safer alternatives wherever possible.