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1 Environmental Protection Agency 

2

3

4

5

6 Public Hearing on 

7 Proposed Petroleum Refineries 

8 Sector Risk & Technology Review and 

9 New Source Performance Standards 

10

11

12

13 9:04 a.m. to 7:58 p.m. 

14 Tuesday, August 5, 2014 

15

16 Alvin D. Baggett Recreation Building 

17 1302 Keene Street 

18 Galena Park, Texas 77547 

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1 EPA PANEL: 

2 FRED THOMPSON, Associate Division Director, 

3 Sector Policies and Programs Division 

4 Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, 

5 EPA, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 

6 PENNY LASSITER, Group Leader, 

7 Refining and Chemicals Group, 

8 Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, 

9 EPA, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 

10 RUBEN CASSO, EPA Region 6, Dallas, Texas 

11 BRENDA SHINE, Technical Lead, 

12 Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, 

13 EPA, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 

14

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19 

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1 C O N T E N T S 

2 PAGE 

3 GENE GREEN, 

4 Member of U.S. Congress representing 

5 29th Congressional District of Texas 16 

6 DAVID FRIEDMAN. 

7 Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, 

8 American Fuel and Petrochemical 

9 Manufacturers 21 

10 MATTHEW TODD, Senior Policy Advisor, 

11 American Petroleum Institute 26 

12 ALEX CUCLIS, Houston Advance Research Center 33 

13 LUKE METZGER, Director, Environment Texas 39 

14 BRANDT MANNCHEN, 

15 Concerned Citizen from Houston, Texas 44 

16 JOHN SULLIVAN, 

17 Concerned Citizen from Houston, Texas 48 

18 JIM LEFTON, 

19 United Steelworkers International Union 54 

20 ADRIAN SHELLEY, Executive Director, 

21 Air Alliance Houston 61 

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1 C O N T E N T S (continued) 

2 PAGE 

3 THERESA LANDRUM, 

4 Concerned Citizen from Detroit, Michigan 66 

5 SCOTT ELDER, 

6 Concerned Citizen from Houston, Texas 71 

7 JAMES QUE, Louisiana Democracy Project 73 

8 JUAN PARRAS, Executive Director, 

9 Texas Environmental Justice 

10 Advocacy Services 79 

11 ILAN LEVIN, Associate Director, 

12 Environmental Integrity Project 85 

13 YUDITH NIETO, 

14 Concerned Citizen from Texas 93 

15 MONIQUE HARDEN, Co-Director and Attorney, 

16 Advocates for Environmental Human Rights 97 

17 LYRIC TURNER, Youth Director, 

18 Zion Travelers Cooperative Center 104 

19 DOROTHY FELIX, President, 

20 Mossville Environmental Action Now 108 

21 MARGIE E. RICHARD, Truth Community Outreach 111 

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1 C O N T E N T S (continued) 

2 PAGE 

3 STEPHANIE ANTHONY, Founding Director, 

4 Louisiana Democracy Project 117 

5 KELLY HARAGAN, Director, Environmental Clinic, 

6 University of Texas Law School 123 

7 PATTY WHITNEY, Community Advocate, 

8 Bayou Interfaith Shared Community 

9 Organizing 131 

10 PETE OLSON, Member in U.S. Congress 

11 representing 22nd District of Texas 137 

12 DARRYL MALEK-WILEY, 

13 Senior Organizing Representative 

14 Environmental Justice and Community 

15 Partnership, New Orleans 141 

16 MARY WILLIAMS, Assistant Director, 

17 Community Relations, Deep South Center for 

18 Environmental Justice, New Orleans 146 

19 DR. ROBERT BULLARD, Dean of the 

20 Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of 

21 Public Affairs, Texas Southern University 148 

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1 C O N T E N T S (continued) 

2 PAGE 

3 ERICUA THOMAS, Louisiana Democracy Project and 

4 Pray for Our Air 153 

5 WILLIAM A. FONTENOT, Conservation Chair, 

6 Sierra Club Delta Chapter 155 

7 LESLIE WILLIAMS, Director, Environmental 

8 Justice and Community Partnerships Program, 

9 Sierra Club, Washington, D.C. 161 

10 RYAN KNAPICK, Staff Attorney, 

11 Clean Air Council 168 

12 STEPHEN PAVEL, 

13 Concerned Citizen from Kingwood, Texas 174 

14 SALEEM CHAPMAN, Director, 

15 Environmental Justice for Clean Air Council 180 

16 CEIL PRICE, Senior Assistant City Attorney, 

17 City of Houston 185 

18 PAUL SARAHAN, Texas Oil and Gas Association 190 

19 JESSE MARQUEZ, 

20 Concerned Citizen from California 195 

21 BILLY PLACKER, Concerned Citizen from 

22 Corpus Christi, Texas 199 
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1 C O N T E N T S (continued) 

2 PAGE 

3 DR. BRETT PERKISON, Assistant Professor, 

4 Family Community Medicine, 

5 Baylor College of Medicine 209 

6 DR. REBECCA BRUHL, Associate Director, 

7 Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine; and 

8 Associate Director of Baylor's 

9 Environmental Health Service 211 

10 ANDY ZELLINGER, Monitor and Coordinator, 

11 Louisiana Bucket Brigade 216 

12 DR. BEVERLY WRIGHT, Director, 

13 Dillard University Detox Center for 

14 Environmental Justice 223 

15 KATIE MOORE, Louisiana Bucket Brigade 228 

16 CRAIG BESKID, Executive Director, 

17 East Harris County Manufacturers 

18 Association 233 

19 MARCELO NORSWORTHY, Research Analyst, 

20 Environmental Defense Fund 239 

21 MAKELA ELVY, Intern, Air Alliance Houston 243 

22 ERIC MOLL, Journalist 247 
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1 C O N T E N T S (continued) 

2 PAGE 

3 CINDY SPOON, Concerned Citizen 252 

4 ARTURO BLANCO, 

5 National Association of Clean Air Agencies 256 

6 HILLARY CORGEY, Researcher, Public Citizen 262 

7 NEIL CARMAN, Clean Air Program Director, 

8 Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club 268 

9 YING T. GAO, Science Director, Camsco; and 

10 Concerned Citizen from Houston, Texas 274 

11 SPARSH KHANDESHI, 

12 Environmental Integrity Project 277 

13 RON SEIFERT, Tar Sands Blockade 283 

14 KATY ROWE, Texas Campaign for the Environment 286 

15 CHRIS GOETZMAN, Concerned Citizen 287 

16 HILTON KELLEY, Concerned Citizen from Texas 291 

17 BRIAN BUTLER, Air Alliance Houston and 

18 Healthy Port Communities Coalition 300 

19 PAIGE POWELL, Administrative Assistant, 

20 Air Alliance Houston 304 

21 SARA ZARATE, Concerned Citizen from Texas 308 

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1 C O N T E N T S (continued) 

2 PAGE 

3 FRANK BORREGO, 

4 Concerned Citizen from Texas 315 

5 JANETTE SEXTON, 

6 Concerned Citizen from Texas 324 

7 MARIA ROSARIO MARTINEZ [via interpreter] 

8 Texas Organizing Project 330 

9 STEVEN HALVORSON, Board Member, 

10 Texas Organizing Project 332 

11 PATRICIA GONZALEZ, Board Member, 

12 Texas Organizing Project; and President of 

13 Pasadena Texas Organizing Project 340 

14 TIFFANY HOGUE, 

15 Statewide Healthcare Campaign Coordinator, 

16 Texas Organizing Project 351 

17 JUANITA TORRES, Concerned Citizen of Texas 357 

18 DAUGHTER OF MANUELA GARCIA, 

19 Concerned Citizen from Texas 361 

20 CLARA VELASCO, 

21 Concerned Citizen from Galena Park, Texas 362 

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1 C O N T E N T S (continued) 

2 PAGE 

3 CYNTHIA VELASCO, 

4 Concerned Citizen from Texas 363 

5 MARIA ROSARIO MARTINEZ [via interpreter] 

6 Texas Organizing Project 368 

7 JUAN VELASCO, Concerned Citizen from Texas 374 

8 BANNER ROYAL STANLEY [ph], 

9 Concerned Citizen from Texas 381 

10 JEFF STEAR, 

11 Concerned Citizen from Houston, Texas 390 

12 LISA GOSSETT, 

13 Concerned Citizen from Texas 396 

14 MARGARITA ARANTES LIGRAN [ph] 

15 Concerned Citizen 400 

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1 P R O C E E D I N G S 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Well, let me start by just 

3 saying good morning to everyone, and thank you 

4 for attending this public hearing. 

5 My name is Fred Thompson, and I am the 

6 Associate Division Director of the Sector 

7 Policies and Programs Division in EPA's Office of 

8 Air Quality Planning and Standards, and I will be 

9 chairing today's hearing. 

10 Joining me on the panel to my left are 

11 Penny Lassiter and Brenda Shine, and to my right, 

12 Ruben Casso from EPA's Region 6 office. 

13 We are here today to listen to your 

14 comments on EPA's Proposed Petroleum Refinery 

15 Sector Risk and Technology Review and New Source 

16 Performance Standards. EPA published the 

17 proposed standards in the Federal Register on 

18 June 30th, 2014. 

19 This proposed rule is based on the risk 

20 and technology review of two emission standards 

21 already in place at refineries. The National 

22 Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants 
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1 from Petroleum Refineries, also referred to as 

2 Refinery MACT 1, and the National Emission 

3 Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for 

4 Petroleum Refineries that covers catalytic 

5 cracking units, catalytic reforming units, and 

6 sulfur reforming units, also referred to as 

7 Refinery MACT 2. 

8 The EPA is proposing additional emission 

9 control requirements for storage tanks, flares, 

10 and coking units at petroleum refineries. The 

11 EPA is also proposing to require monitoring of 

12 air concentrations at the fence line of refinery 

13 facilities to ensure proposed standards are being 

14 met and that neighboring communities are not 

15 being exposed to unintended emissions. 

16 When fully implemented, the provisions in 

17 the rule will result in a reduction of 5,600 tons 

18 per year of toxic air pollutants and 52,000 tons 

19 per year of volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. 

20 Today, we will be accepting oral comments 

21 on all aspects of our proposal, and we will 

22 prepare a written transcript of the hearing. The 
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1 transcript will be available as part of the 

2 official record for the rule and will be placed 

3 in the regulatory docket. 

4 We are also accepting written comments on 

5 the proposed rule until August 29th, 2014, and I 

6 would like to repeat that. We are also accepting 

7 written comments on the proposed rule until 

8 August the 29th, 2014. 

9 At the registration area, which is 

10 located in the lobby, there are handouts with 

11 details information outlining how to submit 

12 written comments by mail, facts, or 

13 electronically. EPA will consider your comments 

14 as we move forward to complete a final rule. 

15 Written statements and supporting information 

16 submitted during the comment period will be 

17 considered with the same weight as any oral 

18 comments and supporting information presented at 

19 today's hearing. 

20 Now let me describe the logistics for 

21 today's hearing. I will call the scheduled 

22 speakers to the table in pairs. When it is your 
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1 turn to speak, please state your name and your 

2 affiliation before you begin your testimony. It 

3 would help our court reporter if you also spell 

4 out your name. 

5 In order to be fair to everyone, we will 

6 limit your testimony to 5 minutes each and ask 

7 that you remain at the table until both speakers 

8 have completed his or her testimony. After you 

9 finish your testimony, members of the panel may 

10 ask clarifying questions. 

11 If you would like to provide us with a 

12 written copy of your testimony, please give that 

13 to the staff at the registration desk in the 

14 lobby before you leave today. 

15 We have a timekeeping system that is 

16 located here on the table consisting of green, 

17 yellow, and red lights to help you keep track of 

18 your 5 minutes to speak. When you begin 

19 speaking, the green light will come on. The 

20 yellow light will signal that you have 1 minute 

21 left to speak. When the red light comes on, 5 

22 minutes has passed, and I will ask you to please 
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1 complete your testimony. 

2 Today's hearing is scheduled from 9 a.m. 

3 and will continue until 8 p.m. or later, if 

4 necessary, depending on the number of speakers. 

5 The hearing will go on recess during the 

6 scheduled lunch break from 12 p.m. until 1 p.m. 

7 and a dinner break from 5 p.m. until 6 p.m. We 

8 will reconvene promptly at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m., 

9 respectively. If you would like to testify but 

10 have not yet registered to do so, please sign up 

11 at the registration table in the lobby. 

12 For those who have already registered to 

13 speak, we have tried to accommodate your request 

14 for specific time slots. We ask for your 

15 patience as we proceed through the list of 

16 speakers, as we may need to make some adjustments 

17 as the day progresses. 

18 If any questions arise throughout the 

19 day, please see a staff member at the 

20 registration table for assistance. 

21 Thank you all again for participating 

22 today, and with that, let's get started. At this 
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1 time, I would like to invite Congressman Gene 

2 Green and David Friedman to the podium for 

3 testimony. 

4 [Pause.] 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, gentlemen. 

6 We would like to begin with Congressman 

7 Green. 

8 REP. GREEN: Good morning. 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. 

10 REP. GREEN: First of all, thank you for 

11 having a hearing in Galena Park. I have been a 

12 Member of Congress for a number of years and 

13 before that a State Senator, and I've represented 

14 the community of Galena Park since 1985. 

15 I would like to start today by expressing 

16 my disappointment. I have represented the area, 

17 like I said, since 1985 and proudly in the United 

18 States Congress. Now, I am concerned because the 

19 Environmental Protection Agency set this hearing, 

20 but I only received notice of it last Thursday, 

21 and I apologize for not staying longer today. 

22 I am on the Energy and Commerce 
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1 Committee, on the Energy and Power Subcommittee, 

2 and work with EPA literally on a daily basis, and 

3 I would hope that this is just an oversight. I 

4 know another Member of Congress, Congressman 

5 Olson, will be here this afternoon. But 

6 typically, when you have hearings in 

7 congressional districts, you make sure that the 

8 Members who represent that area have adequate 

9 notice. Obviously, I know this hearing was not 

10 set last Thursday. 

11 The Risk and Technology Review of the 

12 Refineries Sector and the New Source Performance 

13 Standards have significant impacts on my 

14 constituents. The industries that I represent, I 

15 represent typically half of the Port of Houston, 

16 and our constituents who live and work in these 

17 plants may be adversely impacted by the proposed 

18 rule. This is my job to be their voice and make 

19 sure it is heard. 

20 Rather than you contacting our offices 

21 ensuring we were provided ample notice, EPA 

22 prepared this hearing with an Environmental 
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1 Justice Training Workshop and failed to provide 

2 adequate notification. 

3 The proposed rule would significantly 

4 change the current requirements for refinery 

5 emissions rules by further lowering limits, 

6 including ending startup, shutdown, and 

7 malfunction exemptions, and for the first time 

8 introduce fence-line monitoring. Many of our 

9 refineries in our chemical plants already have -- 

10 currently internally monitor their fence lines. 

11 The industries in our districts have 

12 invested millions of dollars to meet the 

13 requirements set forth in Refinery MACT 1 and 

14 MACT 2. For almost a decade, the refinery 

15 industry has worked to lower emissions and with 

16 tangible results. 

17 Both the Bush and Obama administrations 

18 recognized that the public is adequately 

19 protected under the previous rules. The EPA has 

20 openly acknowledged that stricter requirements 

21 are not necessary; however, due to recent consent 

22 decrees, the EPA is being forced to act where 
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1 little or no action is needed. 

2 The fence-line communities, refineries, 

3 the other key stakeholders are all in regular 

4 communications to discuss environmental impacts 

5 associated with operation of these facilities. 

6 The EPA asserts that monitoring won't reach 

7 levels that will necessitate corrective action. 

8 So why is the agency spending tax dollars to 

9 engage in another rulemaking with little or 

10 justifiable results? 

11 This actually seems duplicative. The 

12 agency recognizes new rules and proposed 

13 regulations that already exist under previous 

14 initiatives. Unfortunately, it would seem that 

15 all this rule does is limit the operational 

16 flexibility that these refiners possess and 

17 duplicate the amount of reporting requirements. 

18 I would request EPA to reconsider the 

19 imposition of this package and refocus their 

20 efforts on more effective environmental rules, 

21 and that's my prepared statement. 

22 But like I said, our office works every 
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1 day with EPA. I represent the industrial side of 

2 Houston, and our concern is the environment. We 

3 want that products being produced as safely and 

4 as clean as we can, but we also know those 

5 refineries don't make products that somebody 

6 doesn't need, because we have to buy them. And 

7 if we don't make them in our community clean, 

8 then someone else will make them and maybe in 

9 countries that are not as environmentally 

10 sensitive as we are. 

11 So, with that, I appreciate the 

12 opportunity to be here, and hopefully, when EPA 

13 comes to our district again, we will know a 

14 little bit more at an earlier time. 

15 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Congressman. 

16 REP. GREEN: Thank you. 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you very much for 

18 testifying. 

19 MR. FRIEDMAN: Good morning. My name is 

20 David Friedman. I am Vice President of 

21 Regulatory Affairs for the American Fuel and 

22 Petrochemical Manufacturers. We appreciate the 
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1 opportunity today to discuss our views on EPA's 

2 proposed refinery, risk, and technology review 

3 rule. 

4 AFPM is a national trade association of 

5 more than 400 companies, including virtually all 

6 U.S. refineries and petrochemical manufacturers. 

7 Our members operate 122 U.S. refineries, 

8 comprising approximately 98 percent of U.S. 

9 refining capacity. 

10 Air quality has improved significantly in 

11 the U.S. over the past three decades, and the 

12 industry has been a significant contributor to 

13 this improvement. Since 1990, our industry has 

14 invested $137 billion to reduce emissions from 

15 our plants and make cleaner fuels. 

16 On the air toxics side, we have also made 

17 great strides in reducing emissions. Total HAPs, 

18 hazardous air pollutants, from the refining 

19 sector have been reduced by nearly two-thirds 

20 since 1990, while fugitive HAPs have been reduced 

21 by 79 percent and point-source HAP emissions have 

22 been reduced by nearly 40 percent. 
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1 The results in Texas as just as 

2 encouraging. According to TCEQ, nitrogen oxide 

3 levels have been reduced by 63 percent and sulfur 

4 dioxide levels have been reduced by 50 percent 

5 from stationary sources from 2000 to 2012. 

6 Furthermore, 91 percent of benzene ambient 

7 monitors that were in operation from 2000 through 

8 2012 have shown decreases overall. 

9 We are faced with a rule with significant 

10 costs but with little or no health or 

11 environmental benefits. EPA estimates that this 

12 rule will cost $240 million, but our members 

13 estimate that it will cost well in excess of a 

14 billion dollars. Of even greater concern is that 

15 the health benefit gains are insignificant by any 

16 measure, meaning this rule will have financial 

17 impacts to the economy with essentially no 

18 measureable benefits. 

19 Every refinery will be required to 

20 install fence-line monitors at significant 

21 ongoing cost, yet many of these refineries have 

22 very low or almost no levels of risk. We don't 
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1 understand how imposing this one-size-fits-all 

2 approach to every refinery will improve public 

3 health, particularly when according to EPA 

4 analysis, a number of these refineries pose no 

5 health risk to the surrounding communities. 

6 The EPA rule imposes a rolling average 

7 benzene concentration action level of 2.8 parts 

8 per billion at the refinery fence line, measured 

9 every 2 weeks from 20 to 30 samples collected 

10 around the refinery fence-line perimeter. 

11 Exceeding this "threshold" would trigger a 

12 root-cause analysis and corrective action and 

13 could be deemed a violation by EPA. 

14 However, the threshold value is not an 

15 indicator of risk. The stated purpose of this 

16 monitoring is to check EPA's modeling of fugitive 

17 emissions. We fail to see how it can achieve 

18 this goal. 

19 We have concerns with the flaring 

20 provisions in this rule. Any proposed flare 

21 combustion efficiency standard should (1) only 

22 address steam-assisted flares, (2) focus on 
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1 oversteaming, and (3) limit the need for the 

2 wasteful addition of natural gas to the flares. 

3 Pressure relief valves are designed to 

4 protect plant personnel, the public equipment, 

5 and EPA should not change the MACT floor practice 

6 for PRVs. PRVs relieve very infrequently and for 

7 short periods of time, with very little total HAP 

8 emissions. While monitoring such releases to 

9 ensure that PRVs have properly closed makes sense 

10 and most companies already do so, prohibiting 

11 atmospheric releases will require routing PRVs to 

12 additional new flares. This will require massive 

13 investments, both for these new flares and for 

14 flare headers to control releases of rare 

15 events. 

16 EPA has greatly overstated the risks that 

17 coking units pose, and the proposed 

18 depressurization requirements go well beyond the 

19 new requirements set by the recently promulgated 

20 refinery NSPS rule. EPA has greatly 

21 underestimated the cost of controlling these 

22 emissions, controls that result in virtually no 
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1 benefit. 

2 As part of this suite of proposed rules, 

3 EPA has attempted to implement the 2008 U.S. 

4 Court of Appeals ruling of the startup, shutdown, 

5 and malfunction, or SSM provisions, found in the 

6 MACT regulations. Unfortunately, EPA has 

7 interpreted the court ruling to mean that all 

8 instances of SSM must adhere to the same emission 

9 standards established for normal operations. 

10 Particularly in the case of malfunctions, this is 

11 a physical impossibility, and the enforcement 

12 that would result from this approach is the 

13 equivalent of having a police waiting for people 

14 at the auto repair shop every time something goes 

15 wrong with their car. 

16 We strongly urge the Agency to reassess 

17 their obligation to address SSM emissions by 

18 either revising the existing standards, which are 

19 not currently based on SSM events, or to craft 

20 separate standards to address those circumstances 

21 outside of normal operations. 

22 Thank you again for this opportunity to 
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1 speak, and I am happy to answer any questions. 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Friedman. 

3 Are there any questions for either 

4 Congressman Green or Mr. Friedman? 

5 [No audible response.] 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Well, gentlemen, thank you 

7 again for adjusting your schedules to be here 

8 today and for your testimony. 

9 Folks, before I invite the next speakers 

10 up, I would like to just remind you that if you 

11 have preregistered to speak, please be sure you 

12 have checked in at the front desk. So if you 

13 have preregistered, please be sure to check in at 

14 the front desk. Thanks. 

15 Our next speakers are Matt Todd and Alex 

16 Cuclis. 

17 [Pause.] 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, gentlemen. 

19 MR. TODD: Good morning. 

20 MR. THOMPSON: Beginning with you, Mr. 

21 Todd, if you will just state and spell your name 

22 for the court reporter, and then begin your 
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1 testimony. 

2 MR. TODD: Good morning. It's Matthew 

3 Todd, M-a-t-t-h-e-w, T-o-d-d. I am with the 

4 American Petroleum Institute.   I’m speaking today 

5 on behalf of the American Petroleum Institute. 

6 As I said, API represents over 600 oil and 

7 natural gas companies, leaders of a 

8 technology-driven industry that supplies most of 

9 America’s energy, supports more than 9.8 million 

10 jobs and 8 percent of the U.S. economy, since 

11 2000 has invested nearly $2 trillion in U.S. 

12 capital projects to advance all forms of energy, 

13 including alternatives. 

14 Our members are dedicated to continuous 

15 efforts to improve the compatibility of our 

16 operations with the environment and our 

17 communities while economically developing energy 

18 resources and supplying high-quality products 

19 and services to consumers. We recognize our 

20 responsibility to work with the public, the 

21 government, and others to develop and to use 

22 natural resources in an environmentally sound 
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1 manner while protecting the health and safety of 

2 our employees and the public. Many of our 

3 members will be directly impacted by the proposed 

4 refinery sector rule which is the focus, 

5 obviously, of today’s public hearing. 

6 I have three key points that I would like 

7 to make today. First, air quality in the United 

8 States has improved significantly, continues to 

9 improve, and our industry is doing its part to 

10 contribute to this success. Second, after 

11 significant effort, the U.S. EPA has concluded in 

12 this rulemaking that the public is protected with 

13 an ample margin of safety. Finally, the safe 

14 operation of our refineries to protect our 

15 workers and the community is our number-one 

16 priority. 

17 My first point is that air quality has 

18 improved significantly and continues to improve, 

19 and our industry is contributing to these 

20 improvements. According to the EPA Report on the 

21 Environment, mean benzene concentrations have 

22 dropped by 66 percent from 1994 to 2009 
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1 nationwide. 

2 Locally, the improvements to air quality 

3 have been even more dramatic. The Houston 

4 Regional Monitoring Network, an extensive 

5 collection of ambient air monitoring stations 

6 across the Houston area, shows an 85 percent 

7 reduction of BTEX, a mixture of key pollutants. 

8 In fact, since 2006, all of their monitors have 

9 been well below the TCEQ’s Air Monitoring 

10 Comparison Values for benzene. This term is used 

11 by TCEQ to collectively describe the safe 

12 concentrations of a particular chemical in the 

13 air used to evaluate ambient air monitoring data. 

14 The U.S. oil and natural gas industry has 

15 been a key part of these improvements, investing 

16 over $268 billion since 1990 toward improving the 

17 environmental performance of its products, 

18 facilities and operations. In the year 2012 

19 alone, approximately $14.9 billion was expended 

20 on environmental protection. 

21 My second point today is that the EPA has 

22 concluded in this rulemaking that the public is 
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1 protected with an ample margin of safety from 

2 refinery emissions. Once again, EPA has reached 

3 this conclusion, this time after developing an 

4 entirely new protocol for refineries to report 

5 their emissions and a multi-million-dollar -- 

6 tens of millions of dollars -- information 

7 collection request, including data collection 

8 from every refinery for all the emission sources 

9 and direct emission testing for a number of 

10 emission sources. 

11 All of this information was then 

12 processed through conservative risk modeling 

13 which determined that communities around 

14 refineries are protected with an ample margin of 

15 safety from these emissions. 

16 While this is my final point today, it 

17 goes without saying that the safe operation of 

18 our refineries to protect our workers and the 

19 community is our number-one priority. As such, 

20 API will be taking a close look to ensure these 

21 proposed regulations don’t compromise the safety 

22 of our workers and the community. 
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1 For example, in this rule, EPA has 

2 proposed requirements prohibiting the use of 

3 equipment whose sole purpose is to prevent 

4 over-pressuring of equipment and avoid 

5 potentially catastrophic damage. This 

6 prohibition will not only increase safety risk 

7 but will require many additional flares. 

8 Obviously, this part of the proposal needs to be 

9 revised from a safety perspective. Our written 

10 comments will address this provision in greater 

11 detail, as well as other parts of the proposal. 

12 In closing, I appreciate the opportunity 

13 to provide the testimony on this important 

14 rulemaking for our industry. I would like to 

15 reiterate again air quality has improved 

16 significantly, and our industry is doing its part 

17 to contribute to this success. After significant 

18 effort, the Agency has concluded that the public 

19 is protected with an ample margin of safety, and 

20 the safe operation of our refineries to protect 

21 our workers and the community is our number-one 

22 priority. 
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1 We will be submitting detailed comments 

2 to the docket to ensure that the final regulation 

3 doesn’t inhibit the safe operation of our 

4 refineries, doesn’t increase emissions from any 

5 sources, and is cost effective. 

6 Thank you. 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Todd. 

8 Before you start, Mr. Cuclis, I am going 

9 to do a sound check here. Can the folks in the 

10 back in the room just put your hand up? Can you 

11 hear the testimony, and can you hear us? 

12 ATTENDEES: No. 

13 MR. THOMPSON: You cannot? Okay, thanks. 

14 ATTENDEE: So they don't have to start 

15 all over again. 

16 MR. THOMPSON: No. 

17 [Laughter.] 

18 MR. THOMPSON: So, guys, can you turn the 

19 volume up just a little? Who controls that? 

20 Okay. 

21 MR. CUCLIS: Are we good? 

22 MR. THOMPSON: Yeah. Just pull it a 
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1 little closer to you. 

2 MR. CUCLIS: All right. 

3 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. Thank you 

4 for your patience. 

5 MR. CUCLIS: Good morning. My name is 

6 Alex Cuclis. That's C-u-c-l-i-s. I work with 

7 the Houston Advance Research Center. 

8 I have worked on air quality projects at 

9 -- 

10 ATTENDEE: We can't hear you. 

11 ATTENDEE: We can't hear back here. 

12 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. You can start your 

13 testimony. Just sit tight for a moment. 

14 Restart. Just hold on. 

15 MR. CUCLIS: Okay. 

16 [Pause.] 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Test it, please. 

18 MR. CUCLIS: Test. Is it working? 

19 ATTENDEES: Yes. 

20 [Applause.] 

21 MR. CUCLIS: Great, great. 

22 MR. THOMPSON: Please. 
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1 MR. CUCLIS: As I said, my name is Alex 

2 Cuclis. I have worked on air quality projects 

3 for the Houston Advance Research Center and the 

4 University of Houston for 12 years. Before that, 

5 I worked for 15 years as a refinery engineer at 

6 Shell Deer Park, which is just a few miles away. 

7 The results from TexAQS 2000 Large Air 

8 Quality Campaign showed that Houston Area 

9 Refineries emitted VOCs at least 10 times higher 

10 than reported. A follow-up study in 2006 found 

11 that some of the emissions, VOC emissions, fell 

12 by 40 percent, but different measuring methods 

13 found emissions were still 10 times higher than 

14 reported. 

15 In the 1980s and '90s, BP in Europe 

16 measured refinery emissions that were 5 to 20 

17 times higher in estimates using differential 

18 absorption lidar, or DIAL. BP, and later Shell, 

19 built DIAL systems to locate and quantify VOC 

20 emissions and to prioritize and reduce leaks. 

21 In 1988, a DIAL study in Sweden showed 

22 refinery emissions were 20 times higher than 
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1 reported. DIAL found a large leak that operators 

2 did not know about. The leak was fixed, and a 

3 DIAL study was repeated, but emissions were still 

4 15 times higher than estimates. Since that time, 

5 regulators in Sweden told refiners to measure 

6 emissions and to stop reporting based on EPA 

7 emission estimate methods. 

8 In 1992, Sweden's refiners did measure 

9 emissions using different techniques, including 

10 fence-line monitors; however, leak rates could 

11 not be calculated from the fence-line 

12 concentrations. So, in '95, the Swedes required 

13 DIAL at all refineries to be repeated every 3 

14 years. 

15 Solar occultation flux, or SOF, provided 

16 measurements similar to DIAL in the early 2000s. 

17 So now the Swedes require either a SOF or DIAL 

18 test each year. All measurements are made inside 

19 the refineries, not at the fence line, to find 

20 specific sources of emissions. DIAL and SOF are 

21 both two to three orders of magnitude more 

22 sensitive than the IR camera. 
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1 SOF is reasonably cheap. DIAL is pricy, 

2 but so are regulations based on inventories that 

3 are off by an order of magnitude. EPA used DIAL 

4 at a coke facility in New York and proved that 

5 benzene emissions were 30 times higher than 

6 reported. This led to significant changes at 

7 that facility that protected the community. 

8 Last year, the first SOF studies at 

9 refineries were done in California and found that 

10 emissions there were 3 to 10 times higher than 

11 estimates. They are in the process of bringing 

12 SOF back this year. 

13 Sinopec, who runs the largest refinery 

14 system in China, just purchased the first 

15 commercial version of SOF. They intend to use 

16 SOF to assess leak detection and repair programs 

17 and reduce emissions at all of their refineries. 

18 Without measurements that locate and quantify 

19 leaks, industry has and will emit pollutants they 

20 either do not know about or have ignored, and 

21 regulators will develop controls for others, like 

22 banning lawn mowing before noon or making 
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1 everybody buy an electric lawn mower, which has 

2 had relatively little impact. 

3 Emissions have reduced substantially from 

4 refineries in the past decade, and I don't want 

5 to at all discount that, but the results continue 

6 to be the same. In Texas, California, and Europe, 

7 measurements are consistently 3 to 15 times 

8 higher than the VOC estimates that are based on 

9 EPA estimating techniques. These are not just 

10 temporary upsets. They are continuous emissions 

11 that are found every time downwind measurements 

12 are taken, and they are essentially unseen by 

13 ground-level monitors. 

14 The technical staff who built emissions 

15 inventories and rely on EPA and those who use the 

16 inventories to build complex air quality models 

17 and others who use the models hoping to bring the 

18 best control strategies to reduce pollution and 

19 most of all people who live in places like Galena 

20 Park all need technologies that actually locate 

21 and measure leaks. 

22 The great advantage of SOF and DIAL is 
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1 that they measure concentrations from the ground 

2 to the sky and use wind speeds to quantify their 

3 pollutant leak rates. 

4 The things I have described here today, 

5 locating and measuring leaks, protecting the 

6 community, and even doing that at a low cost can 

7 all be done with these techniques, and in fact, 

8 it is not only possible, but it is being done by 

9 agencies across the world. 

10 I am happy to answer any questions 

11 anybody has on that. Thank you very much for the 

12 time. 

13 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 

14 testimony. 

15 Are there any questions from the panel 

16 for Mr. Todd or Mr. Cuclis? 

17 [No audible response.] 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Gentlemen, thank you 

19 again. Thank you for your testimony and your 

20 patience. Thanks. 

21 Our next speakers are Luke Metzger and 

22 Brandt Mannchen. 
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1 [Pause.] 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, gentlemen. 

3 MR. METZGER: Good morning. 

4 MR. MANNCHEN: Good morning. 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for coming. 

6 Mr. Metzger, we would like to start with 

7 you. Please state and spell your name for the 

8 court reporter, and then start your testimony. 

9 MR. METZGER: Great. My name is Luke 

10 Metzger. That is L-u-k-e, M-e-t-z-g-e-r. I am 

11 the Director of Environment Texas, which is a 

12 statewide citizen-funded advocate for clean air, 

13 clean water, and open spaces. 

14 Pollution from oil refineries poses 

15 serious risks to the health of people living 

16 nearby, especially children. There are here in 

17 Texas about 597,000 people with asthma, including 

18 178,000 children, who live in counties with at 

19 least one oil refinery. 

20 According to a 2006 study by the 

21 University of Texas School of Public Health, 

22 children living within 2 miles of the Houston 
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1 Ship Channel, which is home to five oil 

2 refineries, have a 56 percent greater risk of 

3 leukemia than children living 10 miles away. And 

4 a 2008 study published in the journal 

5 Environmental Science and Technology found that 

6 for residents of the eastern portion of the 

7 Houston Ship Channel, the greatest contributor to 

8 an increased risk of cancer is point-source 

9 emissions from petrochemical refineries. 

10 My organization, Environment Texas, 

11 together with the Sierra Club, have been involved 

12 with three lawsuits involving refineries and 

13 chemical plants here in the Houston area. We 

14 have settled suits against Shell Oil's Deer Park 

15 refinery and Chevron Phillips'chemical plant in 

16 Baytown, and I have copies of those settlements 

17 here I will enter into the record. And we are 

18 currently also in the middle of a lawsuit against 

19 ExxonMobil for violations of the Clean Air Act at 

20 its refinery and chemical plants in Baytown. In 

21 each of these cases, we found several things to 

22 be common. 
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1 First, refinery emissions are far higher 

2 than what is reported, and that is due to (1) the 

3 use of unrealistically high flare combustion 

4 efficiency rates, and (2) the fact that companies 

5 generally will report emissions from leaks and 

6 other upset conditions when they are discovered, 

7 which can often long after the emissions began. 

8 In the trial in our lawsuit against Exxon 

9 in February, we submitted unrebutted expert 

10 testimony showing that Exxon’s flare emissions 

11 are many times larger than what they report. 

12 Exxon had years of prep for trial, 3 weeks of 

13 testimony, in order to contest that and to show 

14 evidence to the contrary, and they couldn’t. The 

15 only response was, "We follow the regulations on 

16 how to report, and they allow us to assume a 98 

17 or 99 percent combustion efficiency rate." 

18 So federal regulations need to be updated 

19 to take into account the current state of 

20 knowledge of how industrial flares work in 

21 practice and how they can be far more efficiently 

22 used. You also need to set a hard cap on flaring 
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1 to ban routine emissions. 

2 Second, the evidence in the Exxon trial 

3 and the results of our past litigation against 

4 Shell and Chevron Phillips prove that refinery 

5 emissions can be reduced dramatically, but this 

6 only happens when companies are forced to do so. 

7 Shell and Chevron Phillips reduced annual upset 

8 emissions by 95 percent from pre-lawsuit levels. 

9 Exxon also finally began trying to reduce their 

10 upset emissions, but that only started after we 

11 started filing these lawsuits. We can’t sue 

12 everybody, so it is critical that federal 

13 regulations be far stricter across the board. 

14 Third, Exxon personnel and experts 

15 testified that Exxon does not believe it is 

16 economically reasonable for the company to spend 

17 money on capital improvements, like additional 

18 sulfur recovery units, additional flare 

19 compressors, and flare gas recovery systems that 

20 would cut emissions by many tons per year. Only 

21 stricter federal requirements will force 

22 companies like Exxon to prioritize pollution 
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1 reduction over profits. 

2 Finally, the lack of fence-line 

3 monitoring systems is a huge problem. Stationary 

4 monitors are few and far between, and they are 

5 simply not capable of reliably detecting plumes 

6 of pollution from relatively short-lived upset 

7 events or from specific point sources of 

8 emissions. Only fence-line monitors can reliably 

9 do that. 

10 Companies, like Exxon did at our trial, 

11 often use inadequate data from the few stationary 

12 monitors to argue that their emissions are not 

13 creating any risk for the public. 

14 Thank you for including, for the first 

15 time ever, mandatory fence-line monitoring in a 

16 national rule. However, in order for that rule 

17 and the monitor to be meaningful, you need to 

18 require the best available monitoring techniques, 

19 monitoring for more pollutants in real time, and 

20 better monitoring for leaks. 

21 Oil refineries, especially in Texas, have 

22 gotten away with fouling air for too long. It is 
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1 critical that you adopt a strong rule that really 

2 protects our communities and especially our 

3 children. 

4 Thank you. 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Metzger. 

6 Would you please state and spell your 

7 name for the court reporter and give your 

8 testimony, sir. 

9 MR. MANNCHEN: Sure. My name is Brandt 

10 Mannchen, B-r-a-n-d-t, M-a-n-n-c-h-e-n. And I am 

11 a citizen of the City of Houston. I am 

12 representing myself today. 

13 Concerning the requirement for visible 

14 emissions from players, unless there is an actual 

15 emergency that could result in extreme plant 

16 damage or imminent threat to people who live or 

17 work nearby, no visible emissions from flares 

18 should be allowed. If flares are so efficient as 

19 is stated, 98 percent, then visible emissions 

20 should not occur. 

21 Concerning flares and online gas 

22 chromatographs, I support that. We need to bring 
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1 flares from the stone age and require monitoring 

2 commensurate with the massive amounts of air 

3 pollutants, hazardous or otherwise, that are 

4 burned or emitted from flares. 

5 I do not support the use of grab samples, 

6 since a continuous method to determine whether 

7 flares actually destroy air pollutants and 

8 measurement of air pollutants that flares do emit 

9 is needed. 

10 I do not agree with EPA that wind does 

11 not affect flare performance. The information 

12 that EPA presents is not convincing on this issue 

13 and at best suggests that additional appropriate 

14 data collection is needed. 

15 I do not support bypassing any air 

16 pollution. Bypassing means that citizens, other 

17 life forms, and building materials are 

18 automatically in danger, and I do not support 

19 that. 

20 I oppose using optical gas imaging 

21 devices in place of portable hydrocarbon 

22 analyzers, Method 21, which provide an actual 
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1 instantaneous concentration of volatile organic 

2 compounds. You can't get that with an infrared 

3 camera. 

4 I am shocked that EPA says $3,900 per ton 

5 to reduce HAPs is an excessive amount. Back in 

6 the 1970s when I was looking at the State 

7 Implementation Plans for reducing VOC, that was 

8 considered a minor amount of money to spend to 

9 reduce tons of pollutants. I don't understand 

10 this. It makes no sense to rely upon 

11 industry-reported emissions inventories, as EPA 

12 does, to determine cost effectiveness, because 

13 industries have shown time after time, they 

14 underestimate their emissions. This is a 

15 conflict of interest. 

16 Concerning fence-line monitoring, EPA 

17 must rethink the fence-line monitoring 

18 requirements and make them continuous, 

19 state-of-the-art, immediate, and inclusive of all 

20 significant HAPs, not just benzene but also ethyl 

21 benzene, xylene, toluene, and 1,3-butadiene at a 

22 minimum. Something much quicker for sampling, 
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1 like instantaneous sampling, is needed. The 

2 present proposal does not require sufficient 

3 elevation of monitoring stations, so that 

4 fugitive emissions from towers and other elevated 

5 equipment are reliably monitored. The public has 

6 a right to know what types of HAPs are crossing 

7 the fence line and in what concentrations they 

8 are monitoring that determines this is what the 

9 refinery industry must do, and let's not poor-boy 

10 it. They can afford half-a-million dollars or 

11 even a million dollars, if that's what these 

12 things cost. 

13 I do not support a 30 percent capacity 

14 for fluidized catalytic cracking units. Today's 

15 technology is good enough for a 10 to 20 percent 

16 capacity limit. 

17 Finally, EPA must push the refinery 

18 industry to ensure that it uses the best 

19 available control technology and monitoring 

20 technology. There is no reason to give the 

21 refinery industry a break, since oil companies 

22 are making incredible amounts of money, tens of 
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1 millions of dollars each quarter. 

2 Thank you. 

3 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Mannchen. 

4 Are there any questions for either Mr. 

5 Metzger or Mr. Mannchen? 

6 [No audible response.] 

7 MR. MANNCHEN: Thank you. 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Okay, gentlemen. Thank 

9 you both. 

10 At this time, I would like invite John 

11 Sullivan and Jim Lefton to please come forward 

12 with your testimony. 

13 [Pause.] 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, gentlemen. 

15 Starting with Mr. Sullivan. 

16 MR. SULLIVAN: Thank you for coming to 

17 Houston to have this hearing. Any regulatory 

18 changes in the direction of precaution will get 

19 the biggest bang for the buck right here because 

20 so many of us live very proximate to the very 

21 facilities that are creating a problem. 

22 I would like to just consider a public 
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1 health context for this. I represent myself. I 

2 am speaking for myself, but I work at the Sealy 

3 Center for Environmental Health and Medicine, a 

4 part of UTMB, and we always look at this -- 

5 speaking for myself, we always look at this in a 

6 public health context, and consider the idea of 

7 cumulative risk, which the EPA has really 

8 developed in a very interesting way. It refers 

9 to the combined threats from exposure via all 

10 relevant routes to multiple stressors, including 

11 biological, chemical, physical, and psychosocial 

12 entities. 

13 Most of the communities that live around 

14 the Ship Channel and around refining facilities 

15 throughout the State of Texas and Louisiana have 

16 a burden of cumulative risk that they carry that 

17 is many, many, many -- you know, composed of many 

18 things. They are not all part of the refining 

19 process, of course, because of emissions, but you 

20 have to consider the vulnerability of these 

21 communities because they have this burden, and 

22 it's something that exists and can't be denied, 
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1 even though everything about it is not 

2 attributable to any one source. And when you are 

3 writing regulations regarding emissions, this 

4 should be considered. 

5 The next thing is health disparities -- 

6 health disparities or differences in the 

7 incidence, prevalence, mortality, and burden of 

8 diseases, and other adverse health conditions 

9 that exist among specific population groups in 

10 the United States. 

11 The study that was referred to by Mr. 

12 Metzger earlier, the Coker-Symanski study that 

13 was published in Environmental Health 

14 Perspectives about the Ship Channel and that 

15 2-mile around it where children have a 56 percent 

16 greater chance of acute lymphatic lymphoma and 

17 leukemia, this is something that is a disparity, 

18 an obvious disparity, because other parts of the 

19 city and other parts of the area don't bear that 

20 same burden. This needs to be considered when 

21 you are writing regulations that are going to 

22 guard against acute emissions or extended periods 
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1 of emissions. 

2 These communities proximate to the TRI 

3 reporting facilities in variably show higher than 

4 normal incidence of asthma, chronic bronchitis, 

5 and other negative respiratory health outcomes 

6 too. 

7 And then next thing is facility density, 

8 which is not really a public health concept, but 

9 this is something that is obvious when you come 

10 over the bridge here, coming into Galena Park. 

11 You are going to see a very dense concentration 

12 of these types of facilities, and the EPA 

13 developed a tool a long time ago called the EJ 

14 SEAT, which is a way of scoping a community's 

15 vulnerability and whether or not you could 

16 consider them an environmental justice community. 

17 And a facility density was one of the major 

18 criteria. Another one was history of compliance, 

19 what sort of compliance histories do the 

20 refineries have and chemical plants or whatever 

21 facility you are trying to regulate, and that 

22 needs to be considered. The TRI report is just 
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1 not enough to go on, and these other things are 

2 very important. 

3 Another thing -- and this is specific to 

4 the Houston Ship Channel and any port in the Gulf 

5 right now -- we are about to undergo a period of 

6 great expansion because of the Panamax extension 

7 of the Panama Canal, and possibly Nicaragua will 

8 have their own canal. This may be another one, 

9 and the ports in the Gulf are going to attract a 

10 lot more business, which is good. It is the way 

11 the economy needs to grow, but we have to think 

12 about the added burden of pollution that this is 

13 going to create. The movement of goods, the 

14 infrastructure that is necessary to make that 

15 happen, creates this burden. It attracts more 

16 traffic, more PM, more PM2.5. There is going to 

17 be a lot of things that are not coming from the 

18 refineries that are also going to be here too. 

19 This is all here in one sort of airshed stew, so 

20 it needs to be considered. 

21 A good way to consider it is to institute 

22 the use of health impact assessments and factor 
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1 them in, just as you would an environmental 

2 impact statement. In fact, they should be 

3 complements to one another, because we really 

4 need to think about the health impact of any 

5 policy before we institute it, rather than go 

6 back and try and fix the problem afterward. 

7 We also need to think about how will our 

8 airshed here change when the influx of upgraded 

9 bitumen shows up, and it already has to a certain 

10 extent, but this will become more prevalent as 

11 time goes on when the pipeline is finished, which 

12 it probably will be. This tar sands crude has 

13 more heavy metals in it, and probably, there will 

14 be a greater amount of sulfur emissions of some 

15 sort into the airshed. This needs to be 

16 considered as part of the cumulative-risk layer 

17 cake that develops. 

18 The analysis of complex mixtures and 

19 their effect on human health really needs to be 

20 factored into this too. It is not a 

21 chemical-by-single-chemical situation. It is a 

22 large number of chemicals, and the exposure is 
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1 simultaneous. 

2 How does this affect human health? I 

3 know that is a very difficult and thorny issue 

4 that has been looked at for years, but it can't 

5 be ignored just because it's difficult. It has 

6 to be considered. 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Mr. Sullivan, I am going 

8 to ask that you please wrap up your testimony. 

9 MR. SULLIVAN: Sure, sure. 

10 And finally, the national cost for all 

11 these externalized health problems, this has to 

12 be considered too. It is just not the cost to 

13 industry but the cost to the rest of us, the 

14 state and local government, whoever is picking up 

15 the health tab. 

16 Thank you very much for the opportunity 

17 to speak. 

18 MR. THOMPSON: And thank you for your 

19 testimony, sir. 

20 Mr. Lefton, good morning. 

21 MR. LEFTON: Good morning. My name is 

22 Jim Lefton, and I am an employee for the United 
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1 Steelworkers International Union, assigned to the 

2 Houston area. I am here today on behalf of our 

3 president, Leo Gerard; and the vice president 

4 that is over the oil sector of our union, Gary 

5 Beevers. 

6 As many of you know, we represent 

7 thousands of workers up and down the Houston Ship 

8 Channel, both at refineries and at chemical 

9 plants, as well as many other industries 

10 throughout Harris County. The USW International 

11 Union is supporting the proposed EPA refinery 

12 emissions rule. 

13 The union sees the proposed rules as a 

14 benefit, not only to our members but those who 

15 work inside the facility and those who are our 

16 friends and families who work and live outside 

17 the fence line. These proposed rules in concert 

18 with each other would reduce exposures not only 

19 to workers but certainly to the community and 

20 environment in general. 

21 It is not cost prohibitive, and it is 

22 necessary. Without mandatory requirements, 
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1 refiners will not voluntarily curb any emissions 

2 but will continue to use the easily obtained 

3 exemptions to address every exceedance, which 

4 will not produce better maintenance programs or 

5 better technology for startups. 

6 The EPA has determined that implementing 

7 the proposed rules will have no noticeable effect 

8 on the price of produced petroleum products, and 

9 as an organization that deals with this industry 

10 daily, we agree. 

11 If you think of refineries as an 

12 airplane, they are, for the most part, designed 

13 to fly at optimum speed and altitude, not so much 

14 for takeoffs and landing. Additional, more 

15 refined controls would make this startup process 

16 much more controlled than it currently is in most 

17 facilities. These added control schemes would 

18 also reduce the potential for flaring during the 

19 startup processes which in and of itself is a 

20 very dangerous process. 

21 There may have to be some equipment 

22 modifications made to equipment operability, as 
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1 most refineries, unlike an airplane, are not 

2 designed to start up and take off. An airplane 

3 has flaps to assist with lift for takeoff and 

4 landings, whereby refineries usually have no 

5 flaps, though it can takeoff and start, but with 

6 less control, it will further continue to expose 

7 the community and also do damage to the 

8 environment. 

9 Many refiners are already following some 

10 proposed pieces of these rules through EPA 

11 consent decrees, as you well know. This proposal 

12 would help level the playing field for everybody. 

13 Better combustion of flares would greatly reduce 

14 the amount of pollution that goes into the 

15 communities. Many facilities already have 

16 continuous pilots and automated steam 

17 controllers, which help to improve combustion, 

18 but this rule would require every site to comply 

19 with the same combustion rules, thereby leveling 

20 the playing field on the cost of new flare tips, 

21 combustion controls, and continuous pilots. 

22 Lowering the allowable process pressure 
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1 on coking units when going to the flare would 

2 reduce the amount of pollutants put through the 

3 flare system and increase the amount, in our 

4 opinion, of marketable hydrocarbons captured. 

5 While a pressure of 12 to 15 psig does 

6 not sound like much, a coker drum is a very large 

7 vessel, and it becomes an issue of volume. 

8 Reducing that de-pressuring from 12 to 15 psig to 

9 2 psig will lower emissions that go out on an 

10 8-to-12-hour cycle per drum. With only two 

11 drums, that is a reduction of 4 flaring events a 

12 day. This will benefit the overall flare 

13 emissions reductions. 

14 As you know, benzene is a known 

15 carcinogenic, and all efforts to reduce exposure 

16 are greatly appreciated, but at the same time, we 

17 don't want to just be moving the exposed area. 

18 Workers in the facility that are exposed or have 

19 a history of benzene exposure are monitored. 

20 People living outside the fence line who may be 

21 exposed are not monitored because the potential 

22 for exposure is not known. By tracking chemicals 
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1 that are being released inside the refinery and 

2 then traveling outside, we can get a better 

3 picture of just what the hazards may be and the 

4 precautions that should be taken to reduce the 

5 level of exposure. Making that information 

6 available to the public will enable them to 

7 monitor the air in their neighborhoods and 

8 hopefully enable them to take precautions when 

9 necessary. 

10 The loss of the flaring exemption for 

11 startups, shutdowns, and upset conditions should 

12 drive a better maintenance program in the 

13 refineries. An improved mechanical integrity 

14 program can work to reduce breakdown conditions 

15 and reduce upset flarings. Also, a controlled 

16 shutdown is easier to control by pushing products 

17 through the process as opposed to pressuring 

18 equipment out through the flare. 

19 The USW has supported inclusion of the 

20 atmospheric storage tanks in the process, safety 

21 management standards under the President's 

22 Executive Order 13650, Request for Information. 
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1 The regulations for atmospheric tanks in this 

2 rule are a good fit for the alignment of PSM and 

3 the risk management rules. 

4 I want to thank you for your time and let 

5 you know that we do appreciate the work that you 

6 do. 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Lefton. 

8 Are there any questions for the 

9 gentlemen? Before you go, are there any 

10 questions for Mr. Sullivan and Mr. Lefton? 

11 [No audible response.] 

12 MR. THOMPSON: Well, again, thank you 

13 very much for your testimony. 

14 MR. LEFTON: Thank you. 

15 MR. THOMPSON: Good. At this time, I 

16 would like to invite Adrian Shelley and Theresa 

17 Landrum to the podium. 

18 Adrian Shelley? 

19 MR. SHELLEY: Yes. Hello. 

20 MR. THOMPSON: Hi. 

21 [Pause.] 

22 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning to both of 
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1 you. 

2 MR. SHELLEY: Good morning. 

3 MS. LANDRUM: Good morning. 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Thanks for coming. 

5 Mr. Shelley, if you could begin by 

6 stating and spelling your name for the court 

7 reporter, and begin your testimony, sir. 

8 MR. SHELLEY: Yes. Thank you. Thank you 

9 for having us all here today. My name is Adrian 

10 Shelley, A-d-r-i-a-n, S-h-e-l-l-e-y. I am the 

11 Executive Director of Air Alliance Houston, here 

12 in Houston Texas. 

13 Air Alliance is the Houston region's 

14 leading air quality and public health non-profit 

15 organization. We were one of the plaintiffs in 

16 the lawsuit that initiated this rulemaking. This 

17 has been a key issue of ours for a long time, as 

18 a lot of you here know, as a lot of you in this 

19 room know. So thank you all for being here. We 

20 really appreciate it. 

21 It has already been mentioned today, the 

22 amazing density of petrochemical industry and 
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1 specifically the refining industry that we have 

2 right here in Houston. 

3 At this very moment, we are within 25 

4 miles of five oil refineries with a total of 

5 daily refining capacity of 1.3 million barrels of 

6 oil. That is a fraction of the 5 million barrels 

7 or so capacity that we have here in Texas. We 

8 are one of the key stones of the nation's energy 

9 industry, and in fact, Houston is known as the 

10 Energy Capital of the World. 

11 This is Texas. This is not California. 

12 We do not have Cal/EPA or any state regulatory 

13 agency that has our interests in mind. We in 

14 fact have a state regulatory agency that is 

15 interested primarily in easing the regulatory 

16 process for our industry, and in fact, our latest 

17 state slogan is "Texas Open for Business." So we 

18 thank you for being here. 

19 The protections that are going to be 

20 provided to our people here at Houston are going 

21 to come from you. They are not going to come 

22 from the states, and in fact, the state maintains 
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1 that it cannot, it actually cannot by law, impose 

2 requirements or permit terms that are in excess 

3 of federal minimum requirements. I have 

4 personally been told this by TCP representatives 

5 in the context of negotiating for fence-line 

6 monitoring technologies at oil refineries right 

7 here in Houston. We have been told by the TCEQ 

8 that even if we were to get an oil company to 

9 agree to install an advanced fence-line 

10 monitoring system, that they would not by law be 

11 able to put such a requirement in their permit, 

12 because it would be in excess of a federal 

13 minimum. So in fact, they do not have the 

14 authority to do that. 

15 All of that is a long way of saying we 

16 need your help here to protect our people. Our 

17 state regulatory agency cannot do it for us. 

18 Right now, we are among the 136,000 

19 people in Houston that live within half-a-mile of 

20 the Houston Ship Channel. We are among now a lot 

21 of the 25,000 people that are within one-half 

22 mile of one of our five oil refineries right here 
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1 in Houston. This is the epicenter of the 

2 problem, and you are going to see with the faces 

3 up here today who these people are. I mean, we 

4 all know that we are looking at a vulnerable 

5 segment of the population here. These are 

6 invariably low-income communities of color that 

7 are being put at risk here. There are more 

8 children here. There are more people here 

9 without access to health care than anywhere else 

10 in the nation. In fact, our own surveys have 

11 showed that in some of these communities, more 

12 than 50 percent of the people lack access to 

13 health care. 

14 We are very close to the site of one of 

15 only two public health clinics that are in this 

16 area. The Galena Park Youth Clinic is out of a 

17 school right down the road. The Strawberry 

18 Pasadena Health Clinic is the only other clinic 

19 within several miles of this area. So we need 

20 these protections. 

21 I see I am getting lights here, so I am 

22 going to keep going. 
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1 There is a lot of the rule that we 

2 appreciate. We thank you for tighter controls on 

3 flares and on delayed cokers. We appreciate 

4 that. We don't appreciate that the risk 

5 assessment found risk to our communities to be 

6 acceptable. This is primarily because we are 

7 looking at vulnerable populations here, and we 

8 have cumulative impacts in this area that have 

9 not been adequately accounted for in health 

10 impact assessments. 

11 Flares are used in the industry to 

12 dispose of gases routinely. We need hard caps on 

13 flaring in that practice in addition to the 

14 improved efficiencies that we need. 

15 We frankly find it offensive to be told 

16 that these regulations would be too expensive. 

17 We don't appreciate the fear monitoring, the 

18 scare tactics we get from the industry about 

19 gasoline prices. We have seen the regulatory 

20 impact analyses. We know, and history has showed 

21 us, that costs are not a factor here, and 

22 frankly, we find those arguments offensive. 
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1 I see that I have a red light here. I am 

2 going to close with one thing. Very recently in 

3 Denver, Colorado, at the Clean Power Plant 

4 hearing -- maybe some of you guys were there -- 

5 there was a retired coal worker, Stanley 

6 Sturgill, who said, quote, We are dying, 

7 literally dying for you to help us. 

8 Thank you. 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Shelley. 

10 Thank you. 

11 Ms. Landrum, good morning. 

12 MS. LANDRUM: Good morning, and thank you 

13 for giving me the opportunity to be here. I 

14 thought it was so important for me to be here 

15 today that I traveled all the way from Detroit, 

16 Michigan. 

17 I live in an impoverished community, 

18 predominantly African American. We are home to 

19 the only oil refinery in the State of Michigan, 

20 Marathon Oil Corporation. 

21 We have a high rate -- I have to bring a 

22 human aspect to this. This is what we are 
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1 supposed to have, no flaring, but in my 

2 community, this is what we have on a daily basis. 

3 Not only do we have it on a daily basis, we have 

4 it, the constant bombardment of this from the 

5 startup, shutdown, and malfunction. 

6 The community that I live in, the area is 

7 called Southwest Detroit 48217. That is how we 

8 identify ourself. We have been deemed by EPA as 

9 the most polluted zip code in the State of 

10 Michigan, number three in the nation. 

11 I live in the County of Wayne. The 

12 County of Wayne has been a non-attainment for SO2

13 for more than 10 years. I support stronger 

14 regulations for fence-line monitoring. 

15 The reason that I feel that the EPA 

16 should implement these stronger regulations is to 

17 protect human health. Environmental Protection 

18 Agency. What is your mission? What is your 

19 goal? And what is the vision for our communities 

20 if we do not have the EPA to support the word 

21 "protection"? 

22 I heard several gentlemen mention about 
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1 cumulative impact. We are being exposed daily to 

2 mercury, carbon dioxide, toluene, benzene, sulfur 

3 dioxide, and many, many more chemicals. When 

4 those chemicals combine, they create a toxic soup 

5 that is hazardous to human health. 

6 I am a -- 

7 [Pause.] 

8 MS. LANDRUM: -- cancer survivor. My 

9 mother, my father, and my brother all died of 

10 cancer. One household. We have a family, the 

11 Washington family, all eight were wiped out due 

12 to cancer. It is not coming for just our 

13 lifestyles. We feel it is strongly coming from 

14 the industries around us. Our homes, our land 

15 are being effected. 

16 This house is less than 300 feet from 

17 Marathon Oil. At night, we see the flaring and 

18 even the explosions. Since 1998, we have 

19 suffered five catastrophic explosions from 

20 Marathon Oil alone. 

21 When there is the flaring and the 

22 startup, this is what our snow on our grounds 
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1 look like. 

2 We feel that the stronger regulations for 

3 fence-line monitoring would help us determine 

4 what is coming from those stacks, what those 

5 refineries are emitting. What is harming our 

6 health? 

7 These are some of our grounds around the 

8 homes. The community is deathly afraid that 

9 these oil refineries are harming us to the point 

10 that our community will no longer exist. On my 

11 block alone, we had more than 10 people that have 

12 died of cancer. We have six that are surviving 

13 cancer. On another block, we had 17 residents 

14 die within the last 5 years of cancer. 

15 I heard a gentleman say that there is no 

16 health risk. How do we know? Our doctors are 

17 not trained to identity environmentally related 

18 diseases, and I put that on the medical 

19 profession. But I put this on the EPA. Protect 

20 human life. Create stronger regulations, and 

21 impose more fence-line monitoring on these 

22 industries that can afford to pay. 
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1 This is a metal sign. The corrosion 

2 around the city is on every metal sign. It is 

3 being eaten up by something. We feel it is 

4 coming from the oil refineries. 

5 This is one of our residents, Sheri. 

6 Just about a year ago, there was an explosion at 

7 Marathon Oil. She has what they call "sulfur 

8 burns" on her. The doctors have determined that 

9 these chemicals came from Marathon Oil, and as 

10 you can see, this is her back yard right by 

11 Marathon Oil. 

12 And this is Sheri. She has now been 

13 diagnosed with lesions on the brain, and here's 

14 some other photos. 

15 But what I wanted to show you is this 

16 here, this is her dog. Look at the chemicals 

17 that are on the ground. This is in the back 

18 yard. The chemicals are coming, what we feel, 

19 from Marathon Oil Refinery that is causing the 

20 loss of life, of animals, the land, and the 

21 people. 

22 And I appreciate you allowing me to bring 
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1 a human aspect to all the technical words and 

2 things that are being presented to you today. 

3 Thank you. 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Landrum. 

5 [Applause and cheering.] 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Before you go, I would 

7 like to extend an invitation to the panel to ask 

8 questions. 

9 [No audible response.] 

10 MR. THOMPSON: Well, again, thank you 

11 both very much for your testimony this morning. 

12 MS. LANDRUM: Thank you. 

13 MR. SHELLEY: Thank you. 

14 MR. THOMPSON: At this time, I would like 

15 to invite Scott Elder and James Que to come forth 

16 with your testimony, please. 

17 [Pause.] 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, gentlemen, 

19 and thanks for joining us. 

20 We would like to begin with Mr. Elder. 

21 MR. ELDER: Hi. My name is Scott Elder, 

22 S-c-o-t-t, E-l-d-e-r. I am currently an intern 
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1 at an airlines in Houston, and I am working and 

2 living in Houston. 

3 I would just like to start by saying that 

4 because I live here, I see daily the impact that 

5 these refineries have in the communities. It is 

6 a little bit of an outrage. 

7 First of all, I would like to talk about 

8 the EPA's new regulation on standards in coke 

9 burning and also sulfur emissions. These new 

10 regulations assume that each facility has the 

11 same catalytic cracking unit and is under the 

12 same air pressure and using the same O2 enrichment 

13 in order to calculate the pollutants from the 

14 facility. However, many of these facilities are 

15 extremely old and are calibrated differently. So 

16 to assume that all of these facilities are under 

17 the same conditions, I believe, is incorrect and 

18 gives these facilities huge leeways in doing what 

19 they are supposed to do and also what they can 

20 do. 

21 Secondly, I would like to state that one 

22 of the contentious issues about the new rule is 
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1 the passive sampling opposed to that other, more 

2 non-passive methods for fence-line monitoring. 

3 The reason that it is a passive sampling system 

4 as opposed to other methods is predominantly the 

5 monetary aspect, that it costs more to put these 

6 in place. However, according to WhyCharts.com, 

7 Glow Energy, which is one of the large refineries 

8 here in Houston, has a quarterly income of over 

9 almost $600 million a quarter. To have an FTIR, 

10 fence-line monitoring system, which could be in 

11 place, it would cost about $100,000. I find that 

12 that is kind of disconcerting that there is an 

13 conceded importance put on the bottom line of 

14 this company as opposed to the health of these 

15 communities. 

16 Thank you. 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Elder. 

18 Mr. Que, good morning. 

19 MR. QUE: Yes. Good morning. My name is 

20 James Que. I am a philosopher. I am from Baton 

21 Rouge, Louisiana, and I am here with the 

22 Louisiana Democracy Project. 
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1 I am here to support the proposed oil 

2 refinery regulation changes as well as the 

3 extensions that are likely to be offered by 

4 vulnerable communities today. 

5 As Americans, we end our Pledge of 

6 Allegiance with the vision of "liberty and 

7 justice for all," and I want to suggest that the 

8 work of the EPA is really not technical work at 

9 all. Your work is actually wisdom work, and I 

10 want to suggest a framework that you can use to 

11 advance that kind of work. This is particularly 

12 useful because we have an adversarial system 

13 right now where y our opponents believe that 

14 there ought not be any limits or any rules to 

15 their activity, and so I want to suggest how you 

16 get liberty and justice for all and you advance 

17 the actual wisdom work that is the mission of 

18 your organization. 

19 The reason, by the way, that your work is 

20 wisdom work is that human beings don't have 

21 intuitions about toluene and benzene and these 

22 kinds of things. We know about catastrophic 
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1 events, but long-term cumulative effects and 

2 stuff, this is just not stuff that nature 

3 equipped us to deal with, and so, therefore, what 

4 we have to do is get beyond logic and politics 

5 and start looking at larger and larger patterns. 

6 So I am going to suggest two frameworks 

7 that are going to be useful. First of all, if 

8 you want to have liberty for all, then what you 

9 are talking about are the four freedoms that FDR 

10 introduced to us. We are talking about the 

11 freedom from fear, that these communities ought 

12 to have freedom from fear. We are talking about 

13 the freedom to speak, that they ought to be able 

14 to articulate their concerns to themselves and to 

15 other people. We are talking about freedom from 

16 want. They ought to have the capacity to be able 

17 to have the things that they believe are 

18 necessary for their sustenance, and finally, we 

19 are talking about freedom to worship, the ability 

20 to change things as you need them. 

21 Now, the second dimension is something 

22 called the "beloved community." In other words, 
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1 if you want justice for all, then you are talking 

2 about the beloved community, and the beloved 

3 community, as John Rawls the philosopher tell us, 

4 it is a community where every member of the 

5 community has the same kind of exposures, and 

6 that leads me to the final thing that I'd like to 

7 say. 

8 What's going on here is that right now, 

9 the risks associated with these petrochemical 

10 activities are not in any way correlated with the 

11 benefits from them, and there is something that 

12 you all can do about that. 

13 In particular -- by the way, we know 

14 right now, we got this vulnerable community model 

15 that basically says that if vulnerable people 

16 come here and they show you their stories about 

17 the misery that they suffered, then somehow or 

18 another, that should motivate you to intervene. 

19 But we know for a fact that when trees fall in 

20 forests, where none of us are around, those trees 

21 still make a sound. So if these petrochemical 

22 companies figure out a way to silence everybody, 
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1 that still doesn't mean that they are not having 

2 an adverse impact on us, which ultimately it may 

3 take 10 years. It took the Vikings 1,000 years 

4 for them to essentially marginalized or be wiped 

5 out in Greenland, and so that will happen to us. 

6 And so here's the cue. All you need to 

7 do is develop feedback mechanisms, so 

8 proportionate to the economic benefit that 

9 petrochemical companies get from their activity, 

10 there is exposure. So imagine this. Imagine 

11 that you decided that there were 10 units of 

12 exposure based upon the kind of activity they are 

13 engaged in. Then what you do is you set up a 

14 mechanism where the decision-makers in these 

15 corporations, because these are the people who 

16 actually have the ability to intervene, that the 

17 decision-makers have to have some exposure. 

18 So, for example, imagine you said, "Look, 

19 you fellows have to have somebody in the Ship 

20 Channel so many days a year, so that if there's 

21 some adverse impacts, you all are going to be 

22 feeling them." That will motivate them to use 
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1 their Ph.D.'s and whatnot to figure out how to 

2 avoid these activities. If they say that we have 

3 to do these things, then they should also use 

4 some of their intellectual wherewithal to figure 

5 out how to do these things safely. 

6 Thank you very much for allowing me to 

7 speak. 

8 [Applause.] 

9 MR. THOMPSON: I did want to ask, Are 

10 both of you going to submit written comments, as 

11 well? 

12 MR. QUE: I hadn't planned to, but I 

13 could. 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you greatly. 

15 And are there any questions from the 

16 panel? 

17 [No audible response.] 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Gentlemen, thank you both. 

19 Thank you very much. 

20 At this time, I would like to invite Juan 

21 Parras and Ilan Levin to please come forward for 

22 testimony. 
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1 [Pause.] 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, gentlemen, 

3 and thank you for joining us today. 

4 I will start off with you, Mr. Parras. 

5 Could you state and spell your name for the court 

6 reporter, and then please begin your testimony. 

7 MR. PARRAS: Yes. Good morning. My name 

8 is Juan Parras, J-u-a-n. Last name is 

9 P-a-r-r-a-s. I am the Executive Director of 

10 TEJAS, Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy 

11 Services. 

12 I would like to begin my testimony by, 

13 first of all, with all due respect to my 

14 Congressman Gene Green, Congressional District 

15 29, he starts out by saying that he is today 

16 expressing his disappointment. Well, today, I am 

17 expressing my disappointment with him in the fact 

18 that he always shows up at public hearings 

19 defending the industry and the cost to the 

20 industry that it is going to cost them and never 

21 mentions public health in his community and never 

22 mentions about the impacts of air toxins to his 
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1 community. So I am extremely disappointed with 

2 his comments today, and I just wanted that to be 

3 on the record. 

4 Additionally, I would like to say that 

5 our community is heavily inundated with toxic 

6 chemicals, cumulative chemicals. There are 

7 communities that are exposed to eight 

8 cancer-causing chemicals on a daily basis. That 

9 is illogical, it's unfair, and it's injustice. 

10 It deals with environmental injustice issues. 

11 There are 86 schools in the school 

12 district, in the Houston Independent School 

13 District. There are reports by the Center for 

14 Health and Environmental Justice, Lois 

15 Gibbs'group, that identified the most toxic 

16 schools in the nation. Houston has 86 schools 

17 that are in the top 5 percent, most toxic schools 

18 in the nation. 

19 The report was mentioned that if you live 

20 within the 2-mile radius of the Houston Ship 

21 Channel, there is a 56 percent risk of 

22 contracting leukemia. That is unjust to the 
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1 communities that live within the Houston Ship 

2 Channel. 

3 Others have mentioned that the Panama 

4 Canal is going to drastically increase the toxins 

5 and the freight and movements of toxic chemicals, 

6 coal, coal being brought down here to the Gulf 

7 Coast to be transferred to other places. 

8 We also have the Keystone pipeline, as 

9 you know. That we in the community oppose the 

10 Keystone pipeline because it also is going to 

11 create a lot of toxic emissions into our 

12 communities, and the bottom line is that most of 

13 this oil will be refined here, so we will keep 

14 the poison and the toxic chemicals. And then 85 

15 percent of the oil will be shipped across the 

16 country. These are things that our Congressman 

17 again supports. 

18 The representative of the United 

19 Steelworkers, he had some good points that 

20 basically all the workers in all the industries 

21 support this in EPA regulations, but I mentioned 

22 to him that he failed to mention the workers. He 
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1 never mentioned about a loss of jobs, because 

2 that is what the opponents will say, that this 

3 will definitely cause employees to lose their 

4 jobs. So I'm glad that he is with us on that, 

5 and we support all his testimony that he said. 

6 The other things that I would like -- I 

7 don't know how much time I have, but the other 

8 things I would like to do is submit at least for 

9 the record -- we do have some maps from all the 

10 industries that border the Houston Ship Channel. 

11 This is the greatest concentration of plants that 

12 we have in the nation, and that is why they call 

13 us the Petrochemical Industry of the Country. 

14 But also -- and again, this is something 

15 that has already been mentioned -- we live in a 

16 state that if our Governor is ever elected 

17 President and he has run on the issue that he 

18 will shut down the EPA, well, we live in that 

19 state, and we don't appreciate comments like that 

20 because obviously he is not impacted like we are, 

21 due to hazardous exposures and toxic exposures. 

22 But we also live in a state that every time the 
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1 EPA drafts new policy that does have huge impacts 

2 on public health, we turn around and slap the EPA 

3 with a lawsuit. 

4 So those are the things that are 

5 happening in our state. It's unfortunate that 

6 those things happen, but it kind of gives you an 

7 idea of where our state stands really in its 

8 concerns for the public and the citizens of this 

9 state and this country. They are willing to take 

10 risks, not their personal risk, but they are 

11 willing to accept risk and placing that risk on 

12 us instead of saying, well, we need to care about 

13 everybody. Just like the gentleman before talked 

14 about life, liberty, and justice, we have no 

15 justice in this state, and I recommend that your 

16 regulations be strictly imposed, and that 

17 fence-line monitors be real-time monitors, and 

18 that we check excessive emissions because, again, 

19 this has been reported. 

20 All the industry does, because we have a 

21 voluntary system of reporting, is that they 

22 underreport all their emissions. All this is 
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1 already on the records. I'm sure that EPA has a 

2 whole bunch of data. There is a lot of research 

3 that has been done, and there's a lot of meetings 

4 that have taken place like this. 

5 We in fact are a state that has been 

6 under non-attainment ever since the Clean Air Act 

7 was imposed or regulated. We need to make sure 

8 that we become a city, a state, an area that can 

9 meet the air quality issue. 1970, almost 40 

10 years later, we are still under non-attainment. 

11 That is ridiculous. Obviously, someone is not 

12 doing their job when we continue to be 

13 non-attainment for this length of time. 

14 So the rules, again, we welcome those 

15 rules, and we think that you ought to not only 

16 mandate those rules, but you ought to enforce 

17 either taking federal funds that come to the 

18 state, as you can, when they fail to meet the 

19 requirements of the law, and I think the 

20 testimony here so far is obviously leaning, and I 

21 hope it continues to lean in favor of public 

22 health, concern for the citizens of this city and 
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1 this state, and that that message will go clearly 

2 to President Obama that we need to impose 

3 regulations on the industry and also on the issue 

4 of chemical security. 

5 MR. THOMPSON: And your final thoughts, 

6 Mr. Parras. Final thoughts. 

7 MR. PARRAS: Okay. My final thoughts is 

8 that it is not on the agenda right now, but we 

9 are seriously concerned about chemical security, 

10 which also has huge impacts on communities right 

11 next -- on the fence line of the industry. 

12 Thank you for your time, and I appreciate 

13 it. 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. Thank you 

15 very much. 

16 Mr. Levin, good morning. 

17 MR. LEVIN: Good morning. 

18 MR. THOMPSON: If you could state and 

19 spell your name for the court reporter, and then 

20 begin your testimony. 

21 MR. LEVIN: Sure. For the record, I am 

22 Ilan Levin, I-l-a-n, L-e-v-i-n. I am an attorney 
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1 and the Associate Director of the Environmental 

2 Integrity Project, and we work with communities 

3 not just here in Texas but across the country. 

4 In Texas, we work with folks in Port Arthur, here 

5 in the Houston Ship Channel, Corpus Christi, and 

6 other refinery communities to try to enforce the 

7 laws that are on the book and to try to avoid 

8 political interference with those laws. 

9 I really appreciate the opportunity to 

10 testify briefly today, and we are going to submit 

11 detailed written comments at the close of the 

12 comment period. 

13 We need strong, clear, enforceable 

14 federal standards, and you have heard from other 

15 speakers why that is so important here, 

16 especially in Texas where we have weak permitting 

17 and weak enforcement at the state level. 

18 A quick example. We have in Texas, 

19 permits that are called "Texas flexible permits," 

20 and the Agency has recently approved the 

21 continuation of that seriously flawed program. 

22 So refineries, chemical plants, and other 
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1 industries, but especially refineries, have used 

2 those flexible permits and will continue to use 

3 them to avoid federal new source review. It has 

4 happened just recently with an expansion at the 

5 Exxon complex, but it's also happened with 

6 several Valero facilities and other refineries 

7 around Texas. 

8 What they do is they get caps that are 

9 inflated. They can make major modifications at 

10 the facility and without going through federal 

11 new source review, and as you know, that's the 

12 time when facilities are supposed to upgrade and 

13 install the modern pollution controls. So we 

14 really rely on these federal minimum standards, 

15 federal rules that are in the Code of Federal 

16 regulations, because that's really what we rely 

17 on here in Texas to protect communities living 

18 close to refineries. 

19 With respect to the rule before us today, 

20 we support fence-line monitoring for benzene. 

21 You heard a little bit about that today, and 

22 there will be more in our comments. We support 
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1 improved flare monitoring and combustion 

2 efficiency. We support reducing emissions from 

3 delayed cokers. We support the improved tank 

4 controls. 

5 A couple areas where the rule falls 

6 short, the risk analysis, and you heard a little 

7 bit about that from folks who live really close, 

8 on the fence line of these refineries, but there 

9 are several problems with EPA's risk analysis. 

10 The most obvious, at least most obvious to me, is 

11 that it doesn't take into account people's 

12 exposure to background levels. 

13 You have heard about the huge refinery 

14 and petrochemical complex here in Houston. I am 

15 sure you know about it. You will hear later from 

16 a couple folks that traveled from Corpus Christi, 

17 Texas, and they will tell you about their 

18 experience. But we work with folks in Corpus 

19 Christi in the little Dona Park neighborhood, and 

20 they are surrounded by six large refineries, as 

21 well as other oil and gas facilities, chemical, 

22 petrochemical plants. So you can't look at a 
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1 refinery unit in a vacuum, because that's just 

2 not the real world. 

3 Another area where the rule needs 

4 improvement is with fence-line monitoring for 

5 benzene. That is really good. We support that, 

6 but the proposed reference level is three times 

7 higher than California's standard. Also, benzene 

8 is a good first step for fence-line monitoring, 

9 but we'd like to see monitoring for other toxics, 

10 as well. 

11 Tanks. Expanding the current standards 

12 to more and different kinds of storage tanks is a 

13 good first step, but we think EPA should do what 

14 the South Coast Air Quality Management District 

15 has required since 2008, which is that all 

16 refinery tanks need internal floating roofs. 

17 With respect to the FCCUs, the cat 

18 crackers, EPA's data collection showed 

19 disturbingly high levels of hydrogen cyanide 

20 emissions from full-burn FCCUs. As I understand 

21 it, these high hydrogen cyanide levels are the 

22 result of refineries opting for the lower cost 
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1 nitrogen oxide controls, and so top of the line 

2 nitrogen oxides removal with the selective 

3 catalytic reduction, the top-of-the-line 

4 pollution controls for NOx will, as I understand 

5 it, not cause the same hydrogen cyanide spikes 

6 that we're seeing. 

7 And I'm going to wrap up now. I see my 

8 time is up. 

9 Last point. With respect to startup, 

10 shutdown, maintenance, we support EPA's efforts 

11 to finally close the loophole that has allowed 

12 refineries to emit virtually uncontrolled 

13 emissions during these periods, and we appreciate 

14 that EPA has had a long policy on this, but many 

15 states still have vague rules. Even here in 

16 Texas, our state rules have a provision that 

17 defines a planned upset as well as an unplanned 

18 upset. 

19 Our State Implementation Plan is really 

20 kind of a mess. It's vague. It's confusing. 

21 We've tried to enforce it before and run up 

22 against a lot of roadblocks, and so we really 
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1 encourage you to stay wrong and write these 

2 clear, enforceable federal rules that are the 

3 bare minimum that folks here in communities all 

4 across Texas rely on. 

5 Thanks a lot. I will be happy to answer 

6 any questions. 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Levin. 

8 Are there any questions for Mr. Parras 

9 and Mr. Levin? 

10 MS. LASSITER: Yeah. Mr. Levin, I have a 

11 couple of questions for you. One, you make 

12 reference to the fence-line monitoring standard 

13 in California being higher. In our proposed 

14 rule, we proposed 9 micrograms per cubic meter, 

15 which is approximately -- is that 2.5 to 3 parts 

16 per billion? Right? 

17 Can you elaborate on that a little bit 

18 more? 

19 MR. LEVIN: Not a whole lot, but as I 

20 understand it -- and my colleague, Sparsh 

21 Khandeshi, is also here to testify, and he will 

22 know more about it. 
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1 MS. LASSITER: Okay. 

2 MR. LEVIN: But in general, I understand 

3 that the trigger in California is 3 micrograms, 

4 which I think is something like 1 part per 

5 billion. So it is sort of -- I think the rule 

6 before us today is maybe 3 times higher. 

7 Again, we will include that information 

8 in our detailed comments. Thanks. 

9 MS. LASSITER: Okay, thank you. 

10 MR. LEVIN: Thank you. 

11 MR. THOMPSON: Additional questions? 

12 [No audible response.] 

13 MR. THOMPSON: Gentlemen, thank you both 

14 for your testimony. Thank you very much, Mr. 

15 Parras and Mr. Levin. 

16 [Applause.] 

17 MR. THOMPSON: At this time, I would like 

18 to invite Yudith Nieto and Monique Harden to 

19 please come forward with your testimony. 

20 [Pause.] 

21 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, ladies. 

22 Thanks for joining us today. 
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1 Starting with you, Ms. Nieto, would you 

2 state and spell your name for the court reporter, 

3 and then please begin your testimony. 

4 MS. NIETO: My name is Yudith Nieto. It 

5 is Y-u-d-i-t-h, N-i-e-t-o. 

6 I also want to mention that Senator Gene 

7 Green was also talking about the inadequate 

8 notice, and so I just wanted to mention that I 

9 know exactly how that feels. I am from Houston, 

10 Texas. I am from a community in Houston called 

11 Manchester, which is surrounded in all fours by 

12 industry, and we are very familiar with 

13 inadequate notice. There's always leaks and 

14 emissions that we are not notified about and 

15 incidents that we are not notified. The 

16 community is not familiar with any kind of 

17 emergency response or any kind of routine 

18 emergency drills, so we are very familiar with 

19 inadequate notices. So I just wanted to mention 

20 that. 

21 Our community is disproportionately 

22 impacted by at least eight different 
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1 cancer-causing carcinogens, and so we find it 

2 also very offensive, as some people mentioned, 

3 when some of the industry representatives mention 

4 that it is too expensive to implement technology 

5 that would protect communities. Even the lower 

6 risks to us is a very high risk for our health, 

7 so we know exactly what a lower risk means. It 

8 doesn’t mean that we are not at risk and there is 

9 no risk at all. 

10 The community lives in fear of an 

11 incident or a catastrophic explosion happening in 

12 the community, without any notices at all and no 

13 transparency between the industry or community. 

14 So they don't even have the compassion and 

15 courtesy to let us know what is going on or if 

16 there is something serious in the community for 

17 us to evacuate. 

18 There was an incident not too long ago 

19 where there was a leak that went on for 2 weeks 

20 that we were not notified about, and the only 

21 reason I know that is because I actually called 

22 the industry, different industries to find out 
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1 what was going on, and one of the workers 

2 actually felt compelled to tell me what was going 

3 on, and it wasn't his job to tell me, but he 

4 decided that I was concerned enough for my health 

5 and my family's health to let me know that there 

6 was a leak that had been happening that was not 

7 able to be shut down. 

8 So there is the lack of transparency 

9 between even the workers as far as in case of 

10 incidence, I find, because I did call several 

11 industries, as I mentioned, and some of the 

12 workers there had no idea what I was talking 

13 about. 

14 And the incident that I was talking about 

15 where these larger plumes that were happening in 

16 the community where our houses were shaking, our 

17 windows were breaking, and the walls were 

18 cracking, and none of the industries -- we have 

19 at least eight different industries surrounding 

20 the community, and none of them knew what was 

21 going on, or they did not want to tell us. 

22 I think it was Theresa, Ms. Theresa, who 
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1 came up here and mentioned, "I am one of the 

2 human perspectives of living in the shadow of 

3 industry and not being taken notice of whenever 

4 it comes to these incidents and these potential 

5 hazards." 

6 We do support the refinery rules, but 

7 there is nothing that says in the refinery rules 

8 that the community needs to be notified directly, 

9 not as public information and just tell us that 

10 the information is public and we need to call 

11 somebody or get online to find out what was going 

12 on. We need to be notified directly. Just as we 

13 get notified for floods or a missing child or a 

14 missing elderly, I think that we also need to be 

15 notified directly when it comes to an incident. 

16 There is a lot more that I can say, but I 

17 don't think I have enough time. I am just going 

18 to leave it at that and just sort of remind you 

19 that there are humans and there are children 

20 involved that are at risk to these facilities, 

21 and we are not just secondary to their 

22 investments. 
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1 As somebody else mentioned, I think it 

2 was Senator Gene Green who said that these 

3 industries produce things that we do need and 

4 that we do need to buy, but if there are no 

5 people to buy them, then these industries would 

6 not exist. So we need to be taken into account. 

7 Thank you. Thank you for coming. 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 

9 testimony, Ms. Nieto. Thank you. 

10 Ms. Harden? 

11 MS. HARDEN: Good morning. My name is 

12 Monique Harden. First name, M-o-n-i-q-u-e. Last 

13 name, H-a-r-d-e-n. I am the Co-Director and 

14 Attorney of Advocates for Environmental Human 

15 Rights. We are a public interest law firm in New 

16 Orleans, Louisiana, and we are dedicated to 

17 upholding the human right that we all have to 

18 live in a healthy environment. 

19 AEHR is pleased to have the opportunity 

20 to collaborate with the Deep South Center for 

21 Environmental Justice and working with Louisiana 

22 Environmental Justice community organizations to 
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1 participate in this public hearing on the EPA 

2 proposed oil refinery rule. 

3 Nearly 30 leaders and members 

4 representing Truth Community Outreach, Louisiana 

5 Democracy Project, Mossville Environmental Action 

6 Now, Bayou Interfaith Shared Community 

7 Organizing, Sierra Club Delta Chapter, and the 

8 Youth Group of the Zion Travelers Cooperative 

9 Center are here today. 

10 We have traveled together by boss from 

11 Louisiana to provide comments and stand in 

12 solidarity with people here in Texas who organize 

13 and advocate for environmental justice and human 

14 rights and the Manchester Neighborhood here in 

15 Houston and Port Arthur and communities across 

16 this country who struggle to survive on the fence 

17 lines of oil refineries and their network of 

18 polluting industries. 

19 Health is the reason we are here, and 

20 health is a basic fundamental human rights. In 

21 this rulemaking, the EPA has the opportunity to 

22 require changes in oil refineries to prevent 
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1 health risks. Such changes are warranted by the 

2 demonstrable evidence that people living near oil 

3 refineries are simply not healthy, and 

4 furthermore, in the Mossville, Louisiana, human 

5 rights case, which is currently pending before 

6 the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, 

7 our U.S. Government through the U.S. Department 

8 of Justice and the State Department with EPA's 

9 assistance asserts that the EPA's rulemaking on 

10 health risks from hazardous air pollutant 

11 emissions is conducted for the purpose of 

12 protecting our human right to health. That's 

13 stated in these briefs, legal briefs filed by the 

14 U.S. Government in the Mossville, Louisiana, 

15 human rights case. 

16 However, in the proposed oil refinery 

17 rule, the EPA fails to require any change at oil 

18 refineries that is based on health. The EPA 

19 fails to mention any of the community health 

20 surveys or other related health reports that 

21 identify severe health problems suffered by 

22 people who live in close proximity to oil 
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1 refineries on the fence lines, in the shadows of 

2 these facilities. 

3 The EPA also fails to discuss in the 

4 proposed rulemaking the duty that it has to 

5 ensure that the human right to health is 

6 protected in particular for those living in close 

7 proximity to oil refineries. 

8 The EPA's determination in the proposed 

9 rulemaking that health risks from oil refinery 

10 pollution are, quote/unquote, acceptable would 

11 only continue the human rights violations 

12 suffered in fence-line communities, and this EPA 

13 determination that health risks are acceptable 

14 removes protection of our basic human right to 

15 health. For this reason, we strongly recommend 

16 that the EPA reconsider its health risk 

17 determination in the proposed oil refinery rule 

18 for the purpose of ensuring that the human right 

19 to health is protected, and that means going back 

20 to the drawing board and getting in touch with 

21 the facts and data and demonstrable proof that 

22 health risks are a significant problem and 
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1 looking at that in view of the human rights 

2 obligation that you have as an agency to uphold 

3 and protect our human right to health. 

4 With that being said, we are generally in 

5 favor of the technological control base parts of 

6 the EPA proposed rulemaking, specifically the 

7 fence-line monitoring, the elimination of 

8 exemptions from malfunctions, shutdowns, and 

9 startups, and limits on flaring to highlight 

10 those that we are very encouraged by and support 

11 the EPA in moving forward on. 

12 Just a few additional comments with 

13 regards to each of these. As it relates to the 

14 fence-line monitoring, the EPA notes within the 

15 proposed rulemaking that the whole purpose of the 

16 fence-line monitoring is to determine whether or 

17 not benzene is in excess of 9 micrograms per 

18 cubic meter, and if it is, there is a corrective 

19 action plan scenario that would be required of 

20 the facility to reduce that emission level of 

21 benzene, and then if it continues as monitoring 

22 data would show, then another corrective action 
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1 work plan would need to be submitted, this time 

2 for the approval of EPA. 

3 What we would encourage the EPA not to do 

4 is advocate that responsibility to the states. 

5 In Louisiana in particular, we already have toxic 

6 ambient air pollution standards that are not 

7 enforced by the state. To allow our Louisiana 

8 Department of Environmental Quality to take over 

9 the corrective action plan work would be beyond 

10 negligent. It would be irresponsible, and it 

11 would not provide any protection to ensure that 

12 benzene emissions -- and it should extend to 

13 other hazardous air pollutants, but at least in 

14 this case, benzene emissions would actually go 

15 beneath or 9 micrograms per cubic meter. 

16 To wrap up, with regards to the emission 

17 exemptions that would be prevented during 

18 startups, shutdowns, and malfunctions, this is an 

19 excellent opportunity for EPA to bring 

20 requirements and policies that have been 

21 developed and continuing to be developed with 

22 regards to chemical security and industrial 
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1 facility safety, because the goal here is how do 

2 you stop the malfunctions, and so we can 

3 eliminate the exemptions for pollution that would 

4 be counted, but the real goal for human lives is 

5 how do you prevent the malfunctions. Looking at 

6 best practices like near-miss incident reporting 

7 would be kinds of things that should be brought 

8 into this section of the technological controls. 

9 These things are already in existence and should 

10 be brought in to ensure that malfunctions can be 

11 prevented and minimized as much as possible. 

12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Harden. 

13 Are there any questions for Ms. Nieto or 

14 Ms. Harden? 

15 [No audible response.] 

16 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you very much for 

17 your testimony. 

18 [Applause.] 

19 MR. THOMPSON: At this time, I would like 

20 to invite Lyric Turner and Dorothy Felix to 

21 please come forward for testimony. Lyric Turner 

22 and Dorothy Felix. 
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1 [Pause.] 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, ladies, and 

3 thank you for joining us this morning. I would 

4 like to begin with Ms. Turner first. 

5 Ms. Turner, if you could start by stating 

6 and spelling your name for the court reporter, 

7 and then you can begin with your responsibility. 

8 MS. TURNER: My name is Lyric Turner, 

9 L-y-r-i-c, T-u-r-n-e-r, and I am associated with 

10 the Zion Travelers Cooperative Center. 

11 Hello. My name is Lyric Turner. I am 

12 from downtown Phoenix in Plaquemines Parish, 

13 Louisiana. I am the Youth Coordinator of 

14 Connecting Kids to the Environment, a project 

15 that involve skids going out and testing the 

16 water to see if there is any pollution in the 

17 water. 

18 I am also the Youth Director of the 

19 Summer Enrichment Program at the Zion Travelers 

20 Cooperative Center, also known as ZTCC, which 

21 started in 2008 with only two kids and has grown 

22 into 32 kids. After Hurricane Katrina and 
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1 rebuilding the homes in my community, I started 

2 to focus on coastal restoration, climate change, 

3 and pollution. 

4 Before I start my comments, I want to 

5 first give thanks to the ZTCC and the Deep South 

6 Center for Environmental Justice for giving me 

7 this opportunity to speak on my behalf of my 

8 community. 

9 I sit here today asking you for a healthy 

10 future for my generation. As I read the EPA 

11 proposed regulation for oil refinery pollution, I 

12 noticed the language is unnecessarily difficult 

13 to understand. All pollution regulations should 

14 be made easy to understand and since we are all 

15 affected by pollution. 

16 Now let's get into the rules. EPA should 

17 add these proposed regulations, a process for 

18 clear communication with fence-line communities 

19 to identify and prevent oil refinery operations 

20 that would violate the proposed regulations. 

21 So to identify the violation, our 

22 community needs EPA to do the following. First, 
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1 clearly communicate what the proposed regulation 

2 would change at oil refineries. Second, train 

3 people on what to look for at oil refineries; for 

4 example, flaring. And lastly, make the 

5 monitoring data easy to understand and easy to 

6 get. 

7 To prevent a violation, our community 

8 needs the EPA to do the following. First, hire 

9 enough inspectors who can go and investigate oil 

10 refinery operations. Second, make these 

11 inspection reports easy to understand and easy to 

12 get. Third, make the penalties fit the crime. 

13 No more slaps on the wrist. And last, ensure 

14 that the oil refinery doesn't repeat a violation. 

15 My community has a lot of people with 

16 asthma, both children and adults. My sister, 

17 Lariel Turner, who is here with us today, suffers 

18 from asthma. Asthma is caused by oil refinery 

19 pollution. My community is surrounded by an oil 

20 refineries, which is Phillips 66 and other 

21 industries, United Bulk, Chevron, ConocoPhillips 

22 and Stonehaven. I have a problem with the EPA 
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1 saying in the proposed regulation that the risk 

2 of cancer and other health problems like asthma 

3 is susceptible. ZTCC is calling on EPA to 

4 withdraw this part of the proposed regulation 

5 because it is not based on EPA going to 

6 fence-line communities and recognizing the health 

7 problems we suffer. 

8 So, in conclusion, in defense of my 

9 communities who suffer from oil refinery 

10 pollution and regulations to protect our rights 

11 to participate and monitoring enforcement and 

12 assessing health risks. Special efforts needs to 

13 be made to show that youth are part of this 

14 participation. 

15 As a young person, I am eager to find a 

16 way to connect the kids to the environment, to 

17 learn about preventing pollution, because the 

18 future is in our hands. 

19 Thank you. 

20 [Applause and cheering.] 

21 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, Ms. Felix. 

22 MS. FELIX: Good morning. 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Could you please state and 

2 spell your name for the court reporter and begin 

3 your testimony. 

4 MS. FELIX: I am Dorothy Felix, 

5 D-o-r-o-t-h-y. Felix is F-e-l-i-x. 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

7 MS. FELIZ: I am Dorothy Felix, President 

8 of Mossville Environmental Action Now, which is 

9 also known as MEAN, and MEAN has been working for 

10 years to change the environmental conditions in 

11 the community. 

12 Although I strongly support EPA's new 

13 proposed refinery rule, there are concerns that 

14 must be rectified if the rule is to be approved. 

15 I reside in the community of Mossville, 

16 Louisiana, which is an African American community 

17 founded in the 1700s, and this community is 

18 located right in the middle of 14 large 

19 industrial plants. Because the state is 

20 audacious enough to believe our community is not 

21 already saturated with chemical plants, it is in 

22 favor of SASOL erecting the largest, the first of 
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1 its kind in the United States, a gas-to-liquid 

2 ethane cracker plant. This announcement was made 

3 in December, on December 3rd, 2012, by the 

4 Governor of Louisiana, Bobby Jindal, which had no 

5 community input or involvement. 

6 Since then, SASOL has offered to buy out 

7 the community, but residents feel that the offer 

8 SASOL is extending is unfair and unjust. So, 

9 frankly, it is time our government establishes 

10 rules, enforces rules, and executes stiff 

11 penalties for those who break the rules. 

12 These plants need to improve their 

13 operations. They need to reduce excessive 

14 flaring, numerous upsets, and releases. These 

15 plants also need to stop saying these chemicals 

16 do not go beyond the fence line. 

17 If EPA's proposed refinery rule becomes 

18 endorsed, an independent impartial third party 

19 needs to oversee the monitoring to ensure 

20 infractions result in stiff accountability. 

21 Enforcing compliance is a necessary. No human 

22 being should have to live in polluted areas where 
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1 deadly chemicals and toxics are present in 

2 communities where the toxic upsets and releases 

3 result in diminishing the residents' health and 

4 cause deaths. 

5 In fact, many residents in Mossville were 

6 tested for dioxin, and the test revealed that 

7 some of their blood levels were three times that 

8 of any national comparison and as well as a 

9 section of the Mossville community being 

10 relocated as a result of groundwater 

11 contamination. 

12 Georgia Gulf exceeded the ambient air 

13 standards in excess of 5 years while residents 

14 were still living there. These hardships that 

15 our community has been forced to live with can be 

16 and must be prevented in the future, and as 

17 members of the community who have endured pain 

18 and suffering for years and years from these 

19 deadly chemicals, we appeal to you to protect us. 

20 You, the Agency in place and empowered to 

21 protect all fence-line communities, we appeal to 

22 you to strongly enforce this rule, so that we 
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1 human beings, the current generation and future 

2 generations, will have a healthy and safe 

3 environment to live in. 

4 Thank you. 

5 [Applause.] 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Are there any questions? 

7 [No audible response.] 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both. 

9 At this time, I would like to invite 

10 Margie Richard and Stephanie Anthony to please 

11 come forward for testimony. 

12 [Pause.] 

13 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, ladies, and 

14 thanks for joining us. 

15 I would like to start with Ms. Richard. 

16 Please state, spell your name for the court 

17 reporter, and begin with your testimony. 

18 MS. RICHARD: Good morning. My name is 

19 Margie Eugene Richard, M-a-r-g-i-e, capital E, 

20 last name R-i-c-h-a-r-d. 

21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

22 MS. RICHARD: Thank you so much for 
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1 having me here. I am a resident of St. Charles 

2 Parish, living in Southeast Louisiana. It is so 

3 good to see all of you again. I am glad that you 

4 invited me here to represent community people, 

5 and that is through Truth Community Outreach, 

6 former president of CMN, and Concerned Citizens 

7 of Norco. 

8 I strongly agree with the recommendations 

9 you have, but I would like to give you some 

10 suggestions about storage tanks. I would like to 

11 suggest that in your method of measuring the 

12 leakage from the storage tanks, that you would 

13 also have a device to measure the leakage from 

14 the bottom of the tanks as well as the top, and 

15 the reason for that is because you can have 

16 seepage from the tanks that will go into the 

17 ground, and when it's in the ground, remember the 

18 process of evaporation, and then it goes into the 

19 air. So that also gives us another added 

20 pollutant, like you are going against the Clean 

21 Air Act. And if you don't have a measuring 

22 device to measure all of the leakage, not just 
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1 the top of the tanks, then we are not giving true 

2 reports. 

3 The next thing is I would like to see if 

4 there is anyway EPA can demand that all tanks be 

5 covered. There are a lot of tanks in industrial 

6 facilities that are not even covered, and to give 

7 you an example of that, just remember where I 

8 live, I am surrounded in Southeast Louisiana by 

9 over 12 petro plant, 12 industrial facilities 

10 that is both major, large, and small. That's not 

11 including the small ones, but just remember that 

12 a lot of times when you have pollution in the 

13 air, there's a little game -- I don't know if any 

14 of you know of it -- called Tic-Tac-Toe or 

15 connecting the dots. When there is an explosion 

16 or a worst-case scenario and it goes into the 

17 air, whether it's from the flaring, that goes 

18 over the 5-minute times that you have 

19 recommended, one will sense the other, the other 

20 will sense the other, and it's kind of like very 

21 hard to get to the bottom of where the pollution 

22 is coming from. That needs to be corrected. 
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1 That needs to be considered. 

2 You also need to consider the fact that 

3 when you have community people living within the 

4 radius of 12 major plants and over 12 small ones 

5 in an area that you have constant pollution, this 

6 brings me to the fact that there needs to be 

7 another measuring device besides ambient monitors 

8 that are controlled mostly by the facilities. 

9 Community people need to have monitors that are 

10 easily to assess the data from the monitors, and 

11 also they need to have a method or way of giving 

12 input to industry. 

13 A lot of times when community people are 

14 those who are beyond the fence line, they are 

15 ignored, left out, or if they don't have a 

16 certain amount of money in their pocket, in their 

17 little local areas, they are the ones who are 

18 affected most. And this is where most of the 

19 problems are coming from. I hope that EPA have 

20 an insight beyond what has been reported as far 

21 as health is concerned. 

22 It is not possible for you, they say, to 
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1 prove that benzene is causing the cancer, and 

2 which it is, but isn't it visible that you can 

3 see every person who is even at this hearing 

4 today is reporting the same thing that has been 

5 reported year after year, month after month? 

6 There is a disconnection with the method of local 

7 people reporting to their local agencies who are 

8 supposed to help them. That is DEQ, the 

9 Department of Environmental Quality. There is 

10 kind of like who is available in the worst-case 

11 scenario. 

12 We just had an incident in St. Rose, 

13 Louisiana, where people were calling everywhere 

14 to try to get information as to where the odors 

15 were coming from. 

16 This brings me to what lesson has been 

17 learned from Norco, Louisiana, when the micros 

18 from the storage tanks that were even being used 

19 flies into the air, and it affects the people 

20 mentally. Children look up and say, "What is 

21 that?" People look up, and the worst case, when 

22 the tanks are blowing away or in pieces if they 
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1 are overheated, it causes chaos. It causes 

2 people not to be able to think right. 

3 So would you please add to your 

4 recommendation that industrial facilities would 

5 put aside funds for some university or some 

6 health agency to do research on how people who is 

7 living in the radius of plants or outside the 

8 fence line are affected mentally? Because 

9 certainly, it has a mental effect. 

10 There are too many children in areas on 

11 the fence line of industrial facilities who are 

12 being classed as ADD, ADHD. I could go on and 

13 on. So, certainly, there must be a mental effect 

14 for what is going on. Would you please have them 

15 come up with some type of study that can include 

16 the health effect beyond just the things that you 

17 say they can't discuss or find, and that is, you 

18 have no proof of cancer, but you have people 

19 dying of cancer. And we live in Cancer Alley. 

20 Well, how did it get the name? You have the 

21 proof. The research has been done. 

22 The next thing I want to address to you 
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1 is -- 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Ms. Richard, I'm sorry. I 

3 have to ask you to conclude your testimony. You 

4 are well over, and we are running behind. But, 

5 again, do note that if you have additional 

6 comments you would like to make, you can certain 

7 submit in written format. 

8 MS. RICHARD: I am so obedient. Thank 

9 you, but that's always the case. 

10 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you very much. 

11 Please sit tight. 

12 [Applause.] 

13 MR. THOMPSON: Ms. Anthony. 

14 MS. ANTHONY: Stephanie Anthony, 

15 S-t-e-p-h-a-n-i-e. Good morning. I am Stephanie 

16 Anthony, and I bring you greetings from Louisiana 

17 Democracy Project where I serve as Founding 

18 Director. We are a grassroots social justice 

19 organization based in Baton Rouge. 

20 Our mission is to educate, advance, 

21 encourage, and increase citizen participation in 

22 the democratic process through active involvement 
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1 in the community. 

2 We facilitate activities which will 

3 advance and protect the long-term best interest 

4 of the community at large. We have an 

5 environmental justice program called Pray for Our 

6 Air, which was established back in 2001. We are 

7 happy with the proposed rules. We understand all 

8 too well the violations, lawsuits, and consent 

9 decrees that have made them possible. 

10 In 2009, we joined with Louisiana 

11 Environmental Action network and Tulane 

12 Environmental Law Clinic to bring a citizens 

13 lawsuit against ExxonMobil for its violations of 

14 the Clean Air Act with illegal fugitive 

15 emissions, spills, and leaks. We did not, 

16 however, win, but ExxonMobil facility in Baton 

17 Rouge and Port Allen will be paying a total of 

18 more than $2.3 million in penalties, civil fines, 

19 environmental projects, and internal improvements 

20 as part of a settlement with the Louisiana 

21 Department of Environmental Quality for 

22 infractions going back to 2008. 
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1 We held monthly Pray for Our Air meetings 

2 at Allen Chapel AME Church, which sits in front 

3 of the Scenic Highway Refinery after Exxon had a 

4 spill. Originally, the company said that they 

5 spilled less than 10 pounds of naphthalene and 

6 that nothing went over the fence line. In this 

7 case, we later found out that the naphthalene 

8 release actually involved 26,688 pounds of 

9 benzene, 10,882 pounds of toluene, 1,100 pounds 

10 of cycle hexane, 1,564 pounds of heptane, 12,605 

11 pounds of additional volatile organic compounds. 

12 It took them from June the 14th until August the 

13 1st to clean it up. 

14 When the local newspapers asked why the 

15 community around the plant was not alerted, the 

16 ExxonMobil spokesman stated that the community 

17 could not have done anything anyway. 

18 The neighbors around chemical plants are 

19 consistently and routinely discounted. We 

20 applaud more monitors at refineries. We wish 

21 there were more monitors not just at the 

22 refineries but all the chemical plants which 
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1 release poisons in the air. We want to stress 

2 compliance. Compliance. We need a formula that 

3 will ensure compliance. Otherwise, we are 

4 creating a toothless, clawless lion. 

5 Self-monitoring, self-reporting of the 

6 chemical industry to us is like asking drivers to 

7 self-monitor and report how many times they run a 

8 red light or a stop sign in a quarter. We need 

9 other parties in the monitoring mix, including 

10 citizens and unbiased experts. 

11 Industry is notorious for saying no toxic 

12 chemicals went over the fence line, so we think 

13 more monitors are a great idea, and we feel that 

14 timely gathering and the dissemination of simple 

15 data is essential. 

16 We are the human monitors. Louisiana 

17 Democracy Project did an independent health 

18 survey of 200 residents who live less than a mile 

19 from the Exxon refinery. Over two-thirds of 

20 those surveyed had asthma, bronchitis, other 

21 breathing conditions, chronic nose bleeds, 

22 headaches, and cancer. We need a mechanism to 
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1 measure the people in conjunction with monitoring 

2 the air. 

3 We believe that EPA should be a champion 

4 of the people. We would personally like to thank 

5 EPA Criminal Division for the work that they did 

6 in Baton Rouge. They walk softly and carry a big 

7 stick. We think EPA should be one of the 

8 best-funded agencies in the nation. We pray that 

9 you will not spend another day struggling for 

10 your existence. We pray that you will walk in 

11 the destiny that your founders envisioned. We 

12 pray that in every situation, you will put the 

13 well-being of citizens first. 

14 We pledge to continue to work and to pray 

15 for clean air. Thank you. 

16 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Anthony. 

17 [Applause.] 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Are there any questions 

19 from the panel for either of the ladies? 

20 MS. RICHARD: I have a question. May I 

21 ask you a question? 

22 MR. THOMPSON: You certainly can ask. We 
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1 will see. We can't respond. We are here to 

2 listen to you today. 

3 MS. RICHARD: That's okay. 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. Well, ladies, thank 

5 you both very much for your testimony. Thank 

6 you. 

7 At this time, we are going to take a 

8 quick 5-minute break and reconvene promptly in 5 

9 minutes. We are running just a little behind, so 

10 we want to get as many people in for lunch as we 

11 possibly can. It is 11:11. Let's come back in 5 

12 minutes, about 11:15, 11:16. 

13 Thank you. 

14 [Recess taken from 11:11 to 11:19 a.m.] 

15 MR. THOMPSON: Okay, ladies and 

16 gentlemen. If you could just grab a seat, so 

17 that we can get started. Thank you. 

18 At this time, I am going to invite Kelly 

19 Haragan and Patty Whitney to please come forth 

20 for testimony. 

21 And while they are making their way to 

22 the stage, I just do want to remind everyone that 
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1 each of you have 5 minutes for your testimony. 

2 We are running a little behind schedule. I mean, 

3 I am fine with running over 30 seconds, 40 

4 seconds, even a minute, but in order to get 

5 everybody in and be respectful of everyone, if 

6 you could be so kind to pay attention to the 

7 clock here. When you see the red light come on, 

8 please wrap up your testimony. Begin to wrap up 

9 your testimony. 

10 With that, ladies, thank you very much 

11 for joining us this morning. We would like to 

12 start with you, Ms. Haragan. Could you please 

13 state and spell your name for the court reporter, 

14 and then you can begin with your testimony. 

15 MS. HARAGAN: Sure. I am Kelly Haragan, 

16 K-e-l-l-y, H-a-r-a-g-a-n. I am the Director of 

17 the Environmental Clinic at UT Law School. 

18 First, I'd like to thank you for your 

19 work on this very important rule. The 

20 Environmental Clinic works with communities 

21 around the state that are on the fence line of 

22 refineries. More recently, most of our work has 
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1 been in Corpus Christi, Texas, which is home to 

2 six refineries, numerous chemical plants, and is 

3 expanding at a rally astronomical rate right now 

4 because of the Eagle Ford Shale. The new 

5 development going on in Corpus Christi is like 

6 nothing we have ever seen before. 

7 You will hear from Mr. Placker, who is 

8 from Corpus Christi, later today, but there are a 

9 number of our clients who couldn't make it here 

10 today because they are actually sick. They have 

11 cancer. They break out in rashes. When there's 

12 events at the plants, they have respiratory 

13 problems, and they are all counting on you to 

14 adopt this strong rule and to make improvements 

15 in the air quality that they breathe and their 

16 children and their grandchildren are going to 

17 breathe. 

18 They have lived for years with excess 

19 benzene emissions. There's been two refineries 

20 indicted criminally for benzene emissions in 

21 Corpus Christi. They live with flares. They go 

22 off at all hours, and in addition to the 
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1 pollutants they experience, as other people have 

2 said, it literally shakes their houses and breaks 

3 their windows, and they have had to replace 

4 windows with Plexiglas because they kept 

5 breaking. It wakes them up in the middle of the 

6 night. 

7 They also live with fear. These 

8 refineries all use hydrogen fluoride, and that is 

9 probably the thing that people are most scared 

10 of. The Corpus Christi East Refinery has had a 

11 number of accidents in the past few years with 

12 hydrogen fluoride, and some of them have been 

13 really near misses that have been devastating for 

14 workers in the plant and have almost been 

15 catastrophic for the communities around the 

16 plant. 

17 So we are really looking for your help to 

18 tighten up these rules for the people who live 

19 around the plants, and we support a lot of things 

20 in this rule. I will just address some of those 

21 quickly, because a lot of people have gone over 

22 them. 
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1 The elimination of the affirmative 

2 defenses is crucially important. It makes no 

3 difference to health why these emissions are 

4 happening, and this is a health-based rule. So 

5 it is really important that we treat those 

6 emissions just like any other emissions coming 

7 out of these plants. 

8 The fence-line monitoring, we think is a 

9 wonderful concept. It is a significant 

10 improvement. We do think that you should be 

11 monitoring for additional pollutants, and we 

12 would like to see monitoring that gives more 

13 real-time results rather than over the extended 

14 period. 

15 The tanks are particularly important in 

16 Corpus Christi right now. Every time I drive 

17 down there, there are dozens of new tanks going 

18 in. Some of our clients have new tanks literally 

19 in their back yards, so the emissions from these 

20 tanks, which are one of the biggest sources of 

21 health risks as you guys documented in the rule 

22 are really affecting people. And we think that 
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1 there are things being done in other 

2 jurisdictions that are stronger than the 

3 requirements in the rule, like in South Coast. 

4 We support your requirements for cokers. 

5 We support more controls on flares to try to make 

6 them more efficient. We also believe that you 

7 should put some actual limits on flare emissions 

8 and require that flares only be used in 

9 emergencies. We still have some old flares in 

10 Texas that are permitted for routine operations. 

11 Lastly, hydrogen fluoride isn't really 

12 addressed in your rule, but the risks from 

13 hydrogen fluoride are catastrophic risks, and 

14 while every day the missions coming out of the 

15 plant may not cause health risks, if something 

16 goes wrong -- and it has gone wrong several times 

17 in Corpus Christi -- it could devastate the 

18 neighborhood, and there is those threat of 

19 significant risks. 

20 And then there's also the health impacts, 

21 the real impacts from living with that fear. 

22 People live day to day worrying about when an 
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1 alarm goes off that it is going to be a hydrogen 

2 fluoride accident. So I would encourage you to 

3 also consider that the very real health impacts 

4 to people from living close to these plants and 

5 having the constant threat of accidents, the 

6 alarms going off -- one of our clients, when her 

7 grandchildren come to visit, they can only stay 

8 with her for a few days because they get 

9 respiratory problems, and then they have to go 

10 stay with a friend on the other side of town. 

11 And they are fine there. It is only when they 

12 actually come to her neighborhood which is right 

13 next to the refineries that they have problems. 

14 So beyond that, I will leave technical 

15 details to the written comments, but I would like 

16 to briefly address what I think is a major 

17 problem with the rule, and that is the assumption 

18 that the 1:10,000 is an acceptable risk. The 

19 Clean Air Act doesn't require EPA to accept that 

20 as the risk level, and EPA shouldn't accept that 

21 as the risk level. EPA acknowledges that these 

22 rules affect people of color and poor people 
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1 disproportionately. They are more impacted by 

2 the health impacts from these rules. 

3 Both the Clean Air Act and the Civil 

4 Rights Act allow EPA to adopt stricter standards 

5 and require a reduction, a further reduction in 

6 the health impacts from refineries. 

7 Under Title 6 of the Civil Rights Act, 

8 the Agency has a duty to ensure that no person on 

9 the grounds of race, color, or national origin 

10 shall be denied the benefits of or subject to 

11 discrimination under any program or activity that 

12 receives EPA funding. 

13 I think it's discrimination to allow 

14 communities of color to face a higher health 

15 burden than the rest of the population, and that 

16 is what this rule is doing. 

17 EPA's regulations also note a duty to 

18 affirmatively try to address past discrimination, 

19 and that is what we are facing in a lot of these 

20 communities. In Corpus Christi, where we work, 

21 the communities adjacent to the plants -- 

22 Washington-Coles and Hillcrest -- were racially 
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1 zoned. It was the only place in the city where 

2 African Americans could live. The street running 

3 through the middle of that area used to be called 

4 "Black Street," and at the same time, the city 

5 let the plants locate in that area, designated it 

6 the industrial district. As the plants grew and 

7 surrounded these communities, their property 

8 values plummeted, and it is often the only asset 

9 that these people have. They cannot afford to 

10 sell their properties and move away from the 

11 pollution. 

12 So I am asking you to use your authority 

13 not only under the Clean Air Act but under the 

14 Civil Rights Act to address this discrimination 

15 and to use all the technically feasible tools 

16 available to reduce the risk to these 

17 communities. 

18 Thank you. 

19 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Haragan, 

20 for your testimony. 

21 Ms. Whitney. 

22 MS. WHITNEY: Good morning. My name is 
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1 Patty Whitney, P-a-t-t-y, W-h-i-t-n-e-y. I am 

2 from Louisiana. I am with Bayou Interfaith 

3 Shared Community Organizing. I am a community 

4 advocate. 

5 I have several things I want to cover, so 

6 I am going to kind of go fast to make sure I can 

7 get it in. 

8 One, we drove through Houston this 

9 morning, and I am so glad that there is 

10 regulatory agencies in this city and in this 

11 state who keep people from killing each other on 

12 the highways. They have rules and regulations 

13 that they follow, and that is designed to protect 

14 the general public. No one would dare consider 

15 getting rid of traffic regulations in this 

16 country, and I am offended by anyone who says 

17 that EPA should not exist, because we need the 

18 EPA to protect us. 

19 With that said, there's a lot of things I 

20 think the EPA could make themselves better at, 

21 one of which is in every kind of the major 

22 petrochemical states who are huge owners, I 
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1 guess, of our huge sites of the petrochemical 

2 industry, it is irresponsible for the EPA to 

3 advocate their primary responsibility to protect 

4 the citizens to the local state organizations. 

5 It is ingenuous. It goes against the logic of 

6 the whole situation. You need oversight from a 

7 bigger level than the rooster in the henhouse. 

8 So that needs to be addressed perfectly, quickly. 

9 As to the new rules, we are generally 

10 supportive of all of the new rules, but we 

11 consider them just a baseline, and there is 

12 definitely room for improvement in each of these 

13 areas and in fact for more coverage in other 

14 areas, including goods movement. Anywhere there 

15 is goods movement throughout the country, there 

16 should be more monitoring of pollutants that come 

17 off of that movement of the goods. 

18 Good neighbors are made by good fences. 

19 There is an old saying early in American history, 

20 "Good fences make good neighbors." What we are 

21 now is neighbors with industries and corporations 

22 who may not have our best interest at heart. We 
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1 need to protect that and realize that people come 

2 before profits. We need to make sure that that 

3 is always a standard in every decision, and a 

4 cost-benefit analysis is not just the cost5 benefit ratio of how to decide of something is 

6 worthy. In the industrial world, it is also a 

7 way it should be looked at in the personal and 

8 social world, as well. 

9 Is it cost effective for us to have 

10 communities that are being destroyed through no 

11 fault of their own? And if that is a problem for 

12 the industries who want to locate there, they 

13 find it cost prohibitive to actually protect the 

14 communities they want to live next door to as 

15 neighbors, then maybe they should move out of the 

16 neighborhood and find another place where there 

17 are no neighbors they can bother. 

18 But in this case, we need to protect the 

19 neighbors who have been hereditarily 

20 disenfranchised and brought here, which includes 

21 me. 

22 So the fence-line monitoring, I think one 
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1 suggestion I would make would be that these 

2 monitors need to be out in the community and 

3 measure at the fence line but beyond within the 

4 community itself, but also realize there should 

5 be some sort of monitoring as well that has a GPS 

6 location on it with weather monitoring capability 

7 that is real time, so that when you see an event 

8 happening, you also get to notice what type of 

9 weather is in the area at the time. 

10 I lived many years along the river in 

11 Louisiana, and it was quite common that whenever 

12 it is foggy or rainy, you get a lot more things 

13 going up in those stacks. "Oh, it's just the 

14 weather." No, it's not. But that needs to be 

15 part of the processing to where you have a 

16 baseline data collection on what type of weather 

17 is happening when there is any type of escape 

18 happening, as well. 

19 When there are elimination of exemptions 

20 during a startup, shutdown, or malfunction, that 

21 is a problem because, traditionally, when you 

22 have problems, you are going to have more 
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1 emissions, so you are going to have more illness. 

2 You are going to have greater impacts on the 

3 neighbors. So there should be more protections 

4 for the neighbors, not less. So that needs to be 

5 part of the rule, and it needs to be increased, 

6 as well. 

7 Storage tank. We all agree on that, as 

8 well. 

9 Limits on flaring. There needs to be a 

10 citizens corps. I think that all industries who 

11 have pollutants into the air should be mandated 

12 to put money into an escrow account that provides 

13 for environmental health professional medical 

14 services in those communities to be monitored by 

15 community. The community should have oversight 

16 of who those doctors are, doctors who know what 

17 environmental risks are and what those diseases 

18 are, or also some nonbiased professional. It 

19 should not be an industry professional. It 

20 should be people, but there needs to be medical 

21 services, more than just a general practitioner 

22 who does not want to make waves, can know what 
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1 they are looking at. Otherwise, you will never 

2 get accurate data. 

3 I know I am through. I just want to say 

4 that that's my air. That is her air and her air 

5 and his air. These natural resources are shared 

6 by every human on the planet. They do not belong 

7 to the Governor. They do not belong to the EPA. 

8 They do not belong to the industry. They belong 

9 to me. I have a right -- and my children and my 

10 grandchildren have a right -- to breathe the air 

11 that was given to us by our creator to have clean 

12 air, clean water, clean soil. No one has the 

13 right to take that away from me, no matter how 

14 much money they make. If the EPA doesn't do 

15 their job and their accountability for protecting 

16 my rights, then, yeah, maybe they just don't need 

17 to be there. 

18 I am glad you are here. I am glad. This 

19 is a start, but I urge, please protect the 

20 natural resources that are shared by every person 

21 on this Earth and are not owned by any particular 

22 government or entity. 
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1 Thank you. 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Whitney and 

3 Ms. Haragan. 

4 [Applause.] 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Are there any questions? 

6 [No audible response.] 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Okay, ladies. Thank you 

8 very much. 

9 MS. WHITNEY: Thank you. 

10 MR. THOMPSON: At this time, I would like 

11 to invite Congressman Olson and Darryl 

12 Malek-Wiley to please come forward for testimony. 

13 [Pause.] 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, gentlemen. 

15 Thank you for joining us today. 

16 MR. MALEK-WILEY: Good morning. 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Starting with you, 

18 Congressman Olson, if you will just state your 

19 name for the court reporter and then begin with 

20 your testimony, sir. 

21 REP. OLSON: My name is Congressman Pete 

22 Olson, Texas-22. Good morning. 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. 

2 REP. OLSON: Thank you all for allowing 

3 me to speak this morning on this important issue. 

4 Again, I am Congressman Pete Olson. I've been in 

5 Congress for three terms, the last two terms on 

6 the House Energy and Commerce Committee. I 

7 proudly work for the Texans in Congressional 

8 District 22. 

9 I am here to learn about refinery sector 

10 rules because Houston has a lot of refineries. 

11 That goes with having the title of being the 

12 Energy Capital of the World, and that is why I 

13 formed the House Energy Caucus -- I'm sorry -- 

14 the House Refinery Caucus. 

15 With that said, I speak as a Texan who 

16 grew up just down the road here in the shadow of 

17 the Johnson Space Center, NASA. Refineries are 

18 the cornerstone of our nation's economy. Much of 

19 the quality of life in America is thanks to our 

20 dependable refinery sector. 

21 That's not news here in Galena Park. The 

22 Gulf has 48 percent of America's refinery 
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1 capacity. We provide the gasoline, the diesel, 

2 and other products for our nation. That brings 

3 many benefits, benefits that must be balanced 

4 with clean air, clean water, and the safety of 

5 our children. 

6 Our environment is improving. We've seen 

7 ozone, nitrous oxide, and sulfur fall 

8 dramatically in recent years. These are 

9 incredible improvements but not cheap. They come 

10 at a high cost through the refineries, with a 

11 price tag well into the billions. 

12 As you know, they have made it safer to 

13 live near refineries. At this point, the health 

14 impacts are relatively small. In that sense, 

15 these refinery sector rules here today are not 

16 quite contentious, yet we should never, ever be 

17 content. We should always pursue improvements. 

18 I am not here to argue against the 

19 monitors around refineries. There will be a cost 

20 associated with those monitors. You should know 

21 that. But I worry they pick up pollution that 

22 came from somewhere else. These new regulations 
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1 must be balanced in a sensible way, and that is 

2 where my concerns lie this morning. Safety in 

3 our refineries should always be, and has been, 

4 the top priority. 

5 Pressure relief valves and some of that 

6 equipment are rarely used now. I am told that 

7 the impact in air quality is extremely low, and 

8 yet they are critically important in presenting a 

9 disaster. And that's why I'm nervous for EPA to 

10 propose a rule that could instantly alter the use 

11 of this equipment. Industry would be forced to 

12 scramble for retrofits. Safety may decline. EPA 

13 ought to tread very lightly on equipment needs 

14 for safety. 

15 As EPA knows, cost decrease would comply 

16 as time increases. This lets refineries complete 

17 work during down time and avoids a mad rush with 

18 contractors that have equipment. It allows 

19 stakeholders, the folks of Galena Park, time to 

20 find the best approach to achieve a common goal. 

21 I caution EPA to strongly reconsider the 

22 need for rapid changes to infrastructure, 
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1 especially any immediate deadlines in this rule. 

2 Health benefits are small and still unclear. The 

3 cost may be very large. EPA should avoid acting 

4 until we have all the answers. 

5 Thank you very much. As we say in 

6 Washington, I yield back the balance of my time. 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Congressman 

8 Olson. 

9 MR. MALEK-WILEY: Good morning. My name 

10 is Darryl Malek-Wiley. That is D-a-r-r-y-l, 

11 M-a-l-e-k, hyphen, W-i-l-e-y. I am the Senior 

12 Organizing Representative for Environmental 

13 Justice and Community Partnership based on New 

14 Orleans, Louisiana. 

15 We feel that the Environmental Protection 

16 Agency needs to move faster on this rule and work 

17 harder to protect the health of community 

18 members. We are looking at an industry right 

19 now, the oil and gas industry. One example, 

20 Marathon Oil this first quarter of 2014 had a 

21 profit of $540 million. You heard testimony 

22 earlier about accidents in Detroit. There were 
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1 accidents in Louisiana. It is time to take these 

2 gigantic profits and reinvest them into 

3 protecting the communities where these facilities 

4 are located. 

5 In Louisiana, the Louisiana Environmental 

6 Bucket Brigade has done an analysis of accidents 

7 from 2005 through 2013, and looking just 

8 specifically at the 17 refineries in Louisiana, 

9 there were over 3,764 accidents in that time 

10 period. It is time for action and more 

11 monitoring on these facilities. We need the 

12 Environmental Protection Agency to strengthen 

13 this regulation and also to make sure that the 

14 Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality 

15 enforces the action vigorously. 

16 Right now, Louisiana DEQ likes to not 

17 enforce as vigorously as we would like to see, 

18 especially on the flaring issue. One time we 

19 were doing a campaign, and we had a video camera 

20 set up on the Internet, and it was focused on a 

21 flare. You could look at it at any time of the 

22 day or night to see if it was operating. 
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1 Something like that, that data needs to be 

2 recorded in a way that communities can look at it 

3 at their own computers. The same with all the 

4 data that is collected with the fence-line 

5 monitors, the monitor system needs to be beyond 

6 just the fence line. It needs to be in the 

7 community where people live, work, and play. 

8 Because of the variances of monitoring, 

9 you might have a low level at a fence-line 

10 monitor, but this stuff would go over top of it 

11 and be more impact of the community. We need to 

12 make sure that we are picking up those types of 

13 upsets. 

14 We need to have more enforcement actions 

15 around monitoring and around operation of flares 

16 in Louisiana and Texas both, because we are the 

17 energy central. We are where the people live 

18 next to these refineries and are more at risk for 

19 health issues. We would like to see the rules 

20 expanded beyond benzene to cover a whole range of 

21 pollutants coming out of the refineries, but not 

22 only the refineries, as we all know, there are 
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1 not just refineries in Louisiana and Texas. 

2 There are massive petrochemical plant facilities, 

3 and we need to have these same types of 

4 monitoring at those facilities looking at the 

5 range of chemicals emitted by the different 

6 plants. 

7 The Congressman mentioned that you might 

8 pick up something from a different plant, but it 

9 is still the same impact on the community. We 

10 need to find out where that is coming from. So 

11 we need to make sure that we have strong, 

12 enforceable rules that can be enforced not only 

13 by EPA and the state but by the citizens if the 

14 EPA and the state do not fulfill their regulatory 

15 requirements. 

16 Thank you very much. 

17 MR. THOMPSON: And thank you for your 

18 testimony. Thank you both. 

19 [Applause.] 

20 MR. THOMPSON: Are there any questions? 

21 Are there any questions? 

22 [No audible response.] 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: All right. Well, 

2 gentlemen, thank you again for your time today. 

3 MR. MALEK-WILEY: Thank you. 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

5 At this time, I would like to invite Mary 

6 Williams and Robert Bullard to please come 

7 forward for testimony. 

8 [Pause.] 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning to you both, 

10 and thank you for joining us. Nice talking to 

11 you this week. If you will state and spell your 

12 name for the court reporter, and then we can hear 

13 your testimony. Thank you. 

14 MS. WILLIAMS: Mary Williams, M-a-r-y, 

15 W-i-l-l-i-a-m-s. Good morning to you all. Good 

16 morning. 

17 I will be brief. My name is Mary 

18 Williams. I am Assistant Director for Community 

19 Relations at the Deep South Center for 

20 Environmental Justice in New Orleans. 

21 First of all, I would like to thank you 

22 all for having us here for this hearing. 
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1 I have been involved with working with 

2 community residents along the Mississippi River, 

3 the Chemical Corridor, and the Gulf Coast Region 

4 for over 13 years, and these residents have 

5 suffered physical and psychological health 

6 problems from the negative impact of toxic 

7 chemical exposure due to the emissions from 

8 nearby refineries in their communities. 

9 I support the EPA's efforts to strengthen 

10 refinery air toxic emission limits, monitoring 

11 these requirements to protect public health, and 

12 I do understand that this rule would require 

13 monitoring of air concentrations of benzene 

14 around the fence-line perimeter of refineries. 

15 I am in full support of the proposed rule 

16 to install passive air monitors to the fence line 

17 of refineries to measure benzene concentrations, 

18 but as we sometimes know -- as we do know that 

19 when we put measures in place to protect people 

20 and property, they sometimes fail, especially 

21 when there is severe weather or if there is an 

22 explosion. 
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1 It would be useless to have these air 

2 monitors, if they don't function, 24 hours a day, 

3 7 days a week in case of severe weather or some 

4 type of exposure. 

5 So my recommendation to the EPA is that 

6 you include a refinery rule that random testing 

7 of the air monitors be conducted to ensure that 

8 the monitors are able to withstand the impact or 

9 severe weather, such as hurricanes, tornadoes, 

10 earthquakes, and exposure. 

11 Thank you. 

12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Williams. 

13 Dr. Bullard. 

14 DR. BULLARD: Good morning. 

15 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. 

16 DR. BULLARD: My name is Dr. Robert 

17 Bullard. I am the Dean of the Barbara 

18 Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs at 

19 Texas Southern University, here in Houston, 

20 Texas. 

21 First, I want to thank the EPA for 

22 holding this hearing and allowing the public to 
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1 speak. It is also significant where this hearing 

2 is being held, in EPA Region 6, not Dallas but in 

3 Galena Park, in a refinery community that 

4 typifies why these proposed rule changes are 

5 desperately needed. I have to ask, "What took 

6 you so long?" That is a rhetorical question. We 

7 all know the answer. 

8 For the past three decades, I have worked 

9 with residents who live in fence-line communities 

10 near refineries in California, Michigan, New 

11 Jersey, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, and Texas. I 

12 have traveled in dozens of these communities and 

13 have seen with my own eyes and heard with my own 

14 ears too many horror stories, enough to fill at 

15 least a dozen of my books. 

16 Fence-line communities have waited for 

17 years for meaningful federal protection from the 

18 pollution from these refineries. Many state 

19 environmental agencies have failed miserably in 

20 providing this needed protection. Many 

21 environmental justice communities have little 

22 confidence in the states to lead on refinery 
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1 emissions reduction. That is why what is being 

2 proposed by the EPA is really a big deal. 

3 Many of us had hoped the agency would 

4 have gone even further. Nevertheless, I strongly 

5 support EPA’s effort to move forward, instead of 

6 backward, when it comes to refinery emissions. 

7 Residents who live on the fence line with these 

8 refineries have a right to know what they are 

9 breathing and how these chemicals may affect 

10 their health. These residents also have a right 

11 to be protected from harmful chemicals. 

12 Refineries are not randomly distributed 

13 across the American landscape, and most Americans 

14 don’t live next to one of them. So for too long, 

15 the problems, concerns, and challenges of 

16 fence-line communities have been somewhat 

17 invisible and ignored. We all wish emission 

18 controls and level of protection were such that 

19 the refinery CEOs and their spouses, children, 

20 and grandmothers would feel safe living next 

21 door. However, we know they don’t live next 

22 door, but we know who do. 
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1 Refineries in the Gulf Coast, in 

2 Louisiana’s petrochemical corridor, whether in 

3 Port Arthur, in Houston, or Corpus Christi, the 

4 people who live in those communities do not look 

5 like America. They are overrepresented with 

6 communities of color, low-income families, 

7 children, individuals who don't have health 

8 insurance, and oftentimes people who are 

9 unemployed who could walk to work and cross the 

10 fence. But oftentimes, the jobs are not for the 

11 people who are impacted negatively by these 

12 facilities. 

13 This is not a pretty picture. EPA should 

14 not allow any families, and especially innocent 

15 children, to be overburdened with pollution and 

16 their neighborhoods to become toxic sacrifice 

17 zones. In evaluating risk, EPA needs to 

18 emphasize cumulative risk. 

19 The communities that we are talking about 

20 are not healthy communities. Their health is 

21 being challenged, and so any measures that we are 

22 talking about, metrics, have to take that into 
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1 account. 

2 These communities can't wait for justice. 

3 They can't wait for health protection. They need 

4 it now. They have been waiting too long. 

5 The proposed rules would require for the 

6 first time to measure concentration of benzene on 

7 the fence line. This is a good start, but it is 

8 only a start. We need more chemicals. 

9 EPA should require fence-line monitoring 

10 that mandates the best current technology to give 

11 neighborhoods a real-time, continuous measure of 

12 pollution and not just a snapshot. To be 

13 effective, the standards also must be accessible 

14 to the public, enforceable, and requiring 

15 corrective action be taken quickly to fix 

16 violations. 

17 These new requirements would also mandate 

18 refiners to upgrade pollution controls for 

19 storage tanks and to ensure that gases are 

20 properly destroyed through flaring. We all know 

21 that there is a flaring game going on. 

22 Finally, we are pleased that EPA has 
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1 committed to undertaking this long overdue 

2 rulemaking, and we urge the agency to use its 

3 authority to ensure equal protection from 

4 pollution for all Americans. 

5 Thank you very much. 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

7 [Applause.] 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Are there any questions 

9 for Ms. Williams or Dr. Bullard? 

10 [No audible response.] 

11 MR. THOMPSON: Well, thank you both very 

12 much for being here today and for your testimony. 

13 Thank you. 

14 DR. BULLARD: Thank you, sir. 

15 MR. THOMPSON: At this time, I would like 

16 to invite Ericua Thomas and Willie Fontenot to 

17 come forward for testimony. 

18 [Pause.] 

19 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning to the both 

20 of you. I think it's still morning. Yes, it is. 

21 We are going to start with Ms. Thomas. 

22 MS. THOMAS: My name is Ericua Thomas. 
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1 It is spelled E-r-i-c-u-a, T-h-o-m-a-s. Good 

2 morning to everyone. I name is Ericua Thomas, 

3 and I am from St. Gabriel, Louisiana. I am 26 

4 years old, and I was born with congenital 

5 glaucoma. I work with the Louisiana Democracy 

6 Project and Pray for Our Air. 

7 I stand before you today to support the 

8 proposal of oil refinery changes in regulation 

9 and to remind the EPA that small communities like 

10 St. Gabriel need more fence-line monitoring and 

11 is at the mercy of the petrochemical plants. 

12 I was born in a small community called 

13 St. Gabriel, Louisiana, where there were farms, 

14 sugar cane fields, trees, et cetera, but as I got 

15 older, those things have become less, due to our 

16 oil refineries and polluted air. 

17 I strongly recommend the proposal for 

18 more fence-line monitoring, not only in our big 

19 cities but also in our small communities, in and 

20 out of the surrounding communities. 

21 It is time that we need to be informed. 

22 We need to be protected, and we need to be more 
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1 powerful about our EPA rules and proposals and 

2 action plans. 

3 I also strongly recommend that we also 

4 have better health consumptions than to have 

5 health risk. Myself, I have breathing problems, 

6 and I also have asthma. So it is essential for 

7 me, as well, to be able to enforce the 

8 regulations for oil refinery change and the 

9 fence-line monitoring. 

10 Thank you for allowing me to speak to you 

11 today, and God bless. 

12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you very 

13 much. 

14 [Applause.] 

15 MR. FONTENOT: Before I start, in order 

16 to help you with your hearing, if you would call 

17 out the next group before you have the first 

18 group, who are going to be the next two groups 

19 speaking. They could come, maybe sit in the 

20 front, so we have one group, that the next ones 

21 could get right up here very quickly, and that 

22 will save you about 30 minutes by the end of the 
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1 day. 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. Your 

3 recommendation is much appreciated, and so noted. 

4 If you will state your name and spell it 

5 for the court reporter. 

6 MR. FONTENOT: My name is William A. 

7 Fontenot. That's W-i-l-l-i-a-m, A, and last name 

8 is F-o-n-t-e-n-o-t. 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

10 MR. FONTENOT: You're very welcome. 

11 I currently serve as Conservation Chair 

12 of the Delta Chapter of the Sierra Club, which 

13 covers Louisiana, and today, this summer, I am 

14 serving as the Chair of the Delta Chapter, and I 

15 will be sending in some other written comments. 

16 I have left a copy of my presentation at the 

17 front desk. They have it in somebody's 

18 briefcase. 

19 I hate to do this, but I have to disagree 

20 with just about everyone who has made a 

21 presentation up until now, because fence-line 

22 monitoring is totally inappropriate for what you 
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1 are trying to do. You need to be using something 

2 more highly technical, like remote sensing. If 

3 we were talking in 1950, we could be talking 

4 about fence-line monitoring, but this technology 

5 today, which would make it possible to find out 

6 what is being emitted by a plant, you can have 

7 the equipment completely read out everything that 

8 your sampling is picking up several miles from a 

9 facility, and so you wouldn't have to have 26 

10 monitors around and oil refinery. You could have 

11 a couple of remote monitors that are able to pick 

12 up a dozen different facilities at the same time. 

13 So you need to get your regulations in sync with 

14 current technology. That is, to me, a critical 

15 measure. 

16 The other thing, one of the things that 

17 is wrong with fence-line monitoring -- the 

18 presentation that I put together for today is 

19 very short, but this is a photograph that I took. 

20 I took this photograph of the Baton Rouge oil 

21 refinery, it is the Exxon oil refinery in Baton 

22 Rouge, Louisiana, which has been in operation 
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1 since the teens, the 19 teens. That would be 

2 1917 or earlier. This is an explosion that 

3 occurred at the Exxon refinery on Christmas Eve 

4 of 1989, and that was the same year that the 

5 Exxon Valdez accident happened. 

6 Over here is a storage tank of about 

7 500,000 gallons of diesel fuel that was ruptured 

8 by a pipeline that ruptured, and the gas that got 

9 out exploded, killed one person and ruptured this 

10 500,000-gallon tank of diesel fuel. 

11 Over on the right-hand side of the 

12 photograph is a little bitty white thing. That 

13 is the State Capitol in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 

14 and that building is the tallest State Capitol in 

15 the United States. It is more than 30 stories 

16 high, and if the wind was blowing just a little 

17 bit so that the smoke would be a little farther 

18 to the west, it would cover that State Capitol. 

19 You would be able to see five or ten blocks of 

20 the State Capitol rather than the whole State 

21 Capitol. That is why fence-line monitoring is 

22 not appropriate. I don't know what the specific 
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1 gravity of benzene is, but if benzene is lighter 

2 than air, the benzene would be like the smoke off 

3 the ground. 

4 You see all this smoke coming from this 

5 diesel tank and a bunch of other smoke coming off 

6 of this refinery. If you had fence-line 

7 monitoring here, the U.S. Environmental 

8 Protection Agency, the Louisiana Department of 

9 Environmental Quality, and Exxon would be able to 

10 report if their monitoring shows that no 

11 chemicals or pollution got off of their refinery 

12 during this explosion accident, and this burning 

13 went on for more than 24 hours. 

14 So a monitor at a fence line would not 

15 pick up benzene if there is any benzene in this 

16 smoke. So I think you need to go back and talk 

17 to your scientists and figure out what kind of 

18 monitoring would be appropriate to pick up this 

19 kind of disaster from an oil refinery or any 

20 other facility. 

21 Like my other presenter here on my left, 

22 I am legally blind. I had to give up driving 20 
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1 years ago, and it is a hereditary thing. One of 

2 the challenges -- and I see my time is up. 

3 MR. THOMPSON: Yes, sir. 

4 MR. FONTENOT: Thank you. 

5 One of the challenges is that the workers 

6 at these plants are your best possible first line 

7 of understanding what is happening at these 

8 facilities and in the community, and you cannot 

9 be doing these regulations to monitor benzene 

10 from Exxon or any other refinery if you are not 

11 dealing with all of the other chemical plants. 

12 There are about two dozen chemical plants within 

13 50 kilometers of my home, and I live about 3 

14 miles from Exxon. To use kilometers, it doesn't 

15 translate to most people in this room. It would 

16 work fine if we were in Europe, but you need to 

17 talk about miles because that's the standard 

18 measure. 

19 But the workers are so important, and 

20 please look at the details about working with the 

21 community and making sure that emergency 

22 responders and people have the resources and the 
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1 training that they need to have in order to deal 

2 with accidents like this, not just the normal 

3 releases. 

4 Thank you very much. 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you for 

6 your testimony, both oral and written. 

7 Thank you both for your testimony. 

8 Are there any questions before you guys 

9 go? Are there any questions? 

10 [No audible response.] 

11 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you very 

12 much. 

13 [Applause.] 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Our next speakers are 

15 Leslie Fields and Ryan Knapick. Leslie Fields 

16 and Ryan Knapick. 

17 [Pause.] 

18 MR. THOMPSON: I think I can formally say 

19 good afternoon. 

20 MS. FIELDS: Good afternoon. 

21 MR. THOMPSON: And thank you both for 

22 joining us. Starting with you, Ms. Fields, could 
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1 you state and spell your name for the court 

2 reporter, and then give your testimony. 

3 MS. FIELDS: My name is Leslie Fields, 

4 L-e-s-l-i-e, F-i-e-l-d-s. I am the Director of 

5 the Environmental Justice and Community 

6 Partnerships Program of the Sierra Club based in 

7 Washington, D.C. I am delighted to follow my 

8 colleagues from the Sierra Club, Willie Fontenot 

9 and Darryl Malek-Wiley. I am very much 

10 appreciative of this opportunity to testify and 

11 generally support this rule. It is also great to 

12 be back on Houston and also in Galena Park. 

13 I would come here to visit my friend, the 

14 late Senator Mario Gallegos in his office here. 

15 He was very proud of this community, and so I am 

16 delighted to be here again. 

17 This rule is long and complicated, and 

18 you have heard from a lot of people. So I am 

19 just going to limit my comments to the section on 

20 the proposed rule of the startup, shutdown, and 

21 malfunction exemptions and the affirmative 

22 defenses. 
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1 An industrial facility releases 

2 significant air emissions over short periods of 

3 time during the startup, shutdown, malfunction, 

4 and maintenance events. The pollution caused by 

5 these events often exceeds the routine pollution 

6 emitted by source during normal operations, but 

7 because of these loopholes, facilities have been 

8 exempted from these permit limits and face no 

9 penalties for these large emissions. The 

10 pollution jeopardizes public health and quality 

11 of life in these communities, as you have heard, 

12 and which are often predominantly low-income 

13 people and communities of color. 

14 Loopholes for these large pollution 

15 events should have never even existed in the 

16 first place, and fixing these problems is as old 

17 as the Clean Air Act itself. These SSMs were 

18 wrongfully approved by man of the -- since the 

19 '70s because EPA simply lacked the resources and 

20 experience to review in process at the time, but 

21 that is not the case anymore. So we are glad EPA 

22 is trying to close these loopholes particularly 
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1 because of the litigation that was filed by the 

2 Sierra Club and other environmental 

3 organizations, many of whom are represented here. 

4 In fact, before that, even in the 1970s, 

5 EPA recognized that the SSM provisions that 

6 provide automatic exemptions violated clean air 

7 requirements but didn't initiate a broad effort 

8 to fix it. So these violations have far-reaching 

9 effects and conflict with the Clean Air Act's 

10 other requirements. 

11 States have relied on continuous 

12 compliance of emission limitations in the 

13 modeling exercises to demonstrate attainment of 

14 ambient air quality standards. In areas that are 

15 meeting air quality standards, state plans must 

16 include emission limitations designed to ensure 

17 that the air quality doesn't worsen. So a 

18 non-attainment area such as this area, they must 

19 include emission inventories that are 

20 comprehensive, accurate of the actual emissions 

21 and must include emission statements from 

22 stationary sources. 
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1 The automatic exemptions took away 

2 enforcement power from EPA and the citizens, in 

3 violation of the Sections 113 and 304 of the 

4 Clean Air Act, and so the exempting emissions 

5 undermine the core purpose of the Clean Air Act 

6 and require that EPA finally recognizes that. 

7 So that there can be no dispute that 

8 malfunctions have serious potential to injure 

9 public health and welfare. This potential 

10 doesn't depend on whether or not functions were 

11 accidents or planned when these events results in 

12 spokes, and pollution in surrounding communities 

13 suffer and in horribly tragic ways. 

14 Additionally, as my colleague, Monique 

15 Harden, mentioned, there should be an emphasis on 

16 prevention of these malfunctions. The goal of 

17 the Clean Air Act is to protect health and 

18 welfare, promote pollution prevention, and as 

19 such, when they didn't include -- since EPA is 

20 not including a regulatory affirmative defense 

21 that results in malfunction, EPA must be vigilant 

22 in its case-by-case enforcement discretion. 
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1 In light of recent case law, the D.C. 

2 Circuit Court has recognized that EPA or citizens 

3 enforcement action, the court has the discretion 

4 to consider defenses raised and determine whether 

5 the penalties are appropriate. 

6 Regarding the residual risk assessment, 

7 EPA should evaluate it in light of the Executive 

8 Order 12898 on environmental justice and also 

9 Executive Order 12866 that concerns environmental 

10 health and safety risk that EPA has reason to 

11 believe that may disproportionately affect 

12 children. 

13 There really needs to be better overall 

14 environmental justice analysis, and EPA is 

15 totally capable of doing this, and we saw this 

16 regarding the recent work we have done on the 

17 definition of solid waste. That rule creates 

18 specific conditions for recycling hazardous and 

19 secondary materials under RCRA, and the EPA 

20 analysis could include identifying factors that 

21 affect vulnerability, potentially affect the 

22 communities in order to understand the potential 
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1 effect of communities better. EPA should look at 

2 the other factors that affect communities, a 

3 complete risk profile. These include factors 

4 that increase likelihood of damages, obviously 

5 the facility's site within the community, and 

6 likelihood of health risk in the event of 

7 releases. These other factors should include 

8 susceptibility of the community, higher numbers 

9 of children, vulnerable populations, higher 

10 disease rates, the ability of the community to 

11 participate in decision-making or receiving 

12 information, lack of information, language 

13 barriers, lack of social capital, the ability of 

14 the community to prepare for impacts, such as 

15 evacuation issues in emergencies or again if 

16 there's been other kinds of accidents, like 

17 chemical accidents, the ability of the community 

18 to recover from environmental insults such as the 

19 lack of health care and the lack of financial 

20 resources, and the potential impacts of land use 

21 on the community, the availability of recreation 

22 and other enrichment opportunities, cumulative 
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1 impacts, which is critically important, as has 

2 been mentioned earlier, which may include all of 

3 the above, and the distribution of environmental 

4 burdens, the location and other potential sites 

5 of pollution, such as Superfund sites, hazardous 

6 waste facilities within the same community, and 

7 the compliance rates, particularly comparing 

8 facilities subjected to other regulations. So 

9 all this information needs to be created in terms 

10 of overall disproportionate impact on these 

11 communities. 

12 We also support, as has been mentioned, 

13 the monitoring, reduction of gas flares, and I 

14 also wanted to give a shout-out to our good 

15 friend, Theresa Landrum who came down from 

16 Detroit. We have been working in that community 

17 and other communities around the country. 

18 I would also recommend at the other 

19 hearings, such as the Midwest, for those 

20 communities in Detroit, Indiana, and also for 

21 communities on the East Coast who could not 

22 participate in this hearing just because of lack 
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1 of resources and time. 

2 We appreciate this opportunity in that 

3 EPA is finally, during a long overdue period, as 

4 Dr. Bullard stated, considering these important 

5 recommendations and to vigorously and stringently 

6 enforce this rule once it's promulgated. 

7 Thank you. 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Fields. 

9 MR. KNAPICK: Hi. Good afternoon. 

10 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon. 

11 MR. KNAPICK: My name is Ryan Knapick. 

12 Knapick is spelled K-n-a-p-i-c-k. I am a Staff 

13 Attorney for the Clean Air Council. 

14 The Clean Air Council is a non-profit 

15 environmental organization headquarters in 

16 Philadelphia. The Council has members throughout 

17 the State of Pennsylvania, and for more than 40 

18 years, the Council has fought to improve air 

19 quality across the Mid-Atlantic Region and 

20 protect everyone's right to breathe clean air. 

21 Thank you for the opportunity to speak 

22 today in solidarity with our friends here in 
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1 Texas. 

2 Clean Air Council supports EPA's efforts 

3 to promulgate first-time rules that would require 

4 operators of petroleum refineries to monitor 

5 hazardous air pollutants, specifically benzene, 

6 at the fence line of facilities. These proposed 

7 rules are of increased importance to the Council 

8 because they would directly affect the 

9 Pennsylvania Energy Solutions, or PES refinery, 

10 located in South Philadelphia. This refinery is 

11 adjacent to socially disadvantaged areas, 

12 including the Grays Ferry neighborhood. 

13 Formerly operated by Sunoco, this 

14 refinery has been a chronic violator of its 

15 permits and previously subjected to numerous 

16 suits by federal, state, and city agencies. 

17 The proposed rules are positive steps to 

18 ensuring refineries such as PDS will measure and 

19 report toxic air pollution entering local 

20 communities and take necessary corrective action 

21 when limits are exceeded. However, the Council 

22 also believes that EPA should strengthen these 
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1 rules, so they actually protect people from 

2 exposure to toxic air pollution. 

3 For instance, fence-line monitoring and 

4 related corrective action standards must mandate 

5 the use of the best current technology to give 

6 neighborhoods a real-time continuous measure of 

7 pollution, not just a snapshot, and ensure the 

8 refineries quickly fix all pollution problems 

9 through enforceable corrective action 

10 requirements. EPA must give stronger weight to 

11 its concerns raised in the proposed rule 

12 regarding passive or diffusive sampling, 

13 including the lack of real-time information 

14 feedback, short-term information that would 

15 identify the time and duration of fugitive 

16 emission events. 

17 Thus, Clean Air Council supports the 

18 implementation of active fence-line monitoring 

19 networks at all facilities affected by this 

20 proposed rule. 

21 Further, the Council believes that the 

22 advantages and information gathering and 
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1 subsequent benefit to communities located near 

2 refineries will outweigh any concerns related to 

3 expense and/or labor. Indeed, EPA has already 

4 determined that active monitoring station 

5 networks are technically feasible and are an 

6 appropriate method for measuring emissions of 

7 hazardous air pollutants at refinery fence lines. 

8 The Clean Air Council also feels that EPA 

9 should not finalize any special for industry 

10 interests that loosen emission limits during 

11 startup, shutdown, or malfunction events. EPA 

12 must finalize limits for delayed coker units and 

13 storage tanks and make them as strong as 

14 possible. 

15 Lastly, EPA must require strong 

16 protection from wastewater and other emission 

17 points rather than rejecting protections because 

18 of distorted or inappropriate consideration of 

19 cost reductions. 

20 In summary, the Clean Air Council 

21 believes that EPA must seize this opportunity to 

22 implement truly robust and effective standards 
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1 for petroleum refineries, including active 

2 monitoring networks at the fence lines of these 

3 facilities. Otherwise, communities such as Grays 

4 Ferry will be ill-equipped to properly address 

5 the environmental health risk they face on a 

6 daily basis. 

7 Thank you. 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Knapick and 

9 Ms. Fields. 

10 Are there any questions for either or 

11 both about their testimony? 

12 [No audible response.] 

13 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. Well, thank you 

14 both. 

15 MS. FIELDS: Thank you very much. 

16 MR. THOMPSON: At this time, I would like 

17 to invite Stephen Pavel and Saleem Chapman to 

18 please come forth for testimony, and following 

19 these two will be Cecil Price and Paul Sarahan on 

20 deck. 

21 [Pause.] 

22 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon, gentlemen, 
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1 and thank you. Thank you both for joining us 

2 today. 

3 Starting with Mr. Pavel, if you will 

4 state and spell your name for the court reporter. 

5 MR. PAVEL: Stephen Pavel, S-t-e-p-h-e-n, 

6 P-a-v-e-l. 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. 

8 MR. PAVEL: Thank you. Thanks very much 

9 for being here. We appreciate it. Usually, I 

10 present to World Heavy Oil Congress, AIChE, 

11 American Chemical Society. I've been in refining 

12 for about 40 years, except for 4 years, I was a 

13 high school chemistry teacher. 

14 My viewpoint is really different from 

15 everybody else's. I live in Kingwood. We are 

16 not a fence-line community. In fact, most of 

17 Houston is not a fence-line community, but we are 

18 all affected by the toxic, hazardous, poisonous, 

19 carcinogenic materials that are being emitted by 

20 refineries. And I am not going to listen to 

21 somebody that poisoned my grandparents, parents, 

22 myself, and my kids with lead tell me how I 
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1 should approach their emissions. 

2 So we have this new heavy oil coming in. 

3 It is coming in from Athabasca, the bitumen. I 

4 worked with that for 4 years. It is the nastiest 

5 stuff you have ever seen, and as they know in 

6 Detroit and Chicago and we well know here, it 

7 just piles up coke, because coke, petcoke is a 

8 waste product that is really only for sale, that 

9 is really piled up on the banks of the Athabasca 

10 River by Suncor, and they have about a million 

11 barrels in production right now and look to have 

12 5 million barrels coming our way. 

13 We have the new Tidal oil place, which is 

14 another source of oil, the EI gives us -- or the 

15 Basin during the Shell gas. 

16 So the biggest problem I find is, when I 

17 was looking for this, is that we have flawed 

18 emission factors that are vastly wrong, and if 

19 you go through the literature, it is anywhere 

20 from 3 to 15. But in one case, the Texas 

21 flexible permit for benzene was .005, and they 

22 were emitting about 50 pounds an hour. So that 
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1 is 9,280 times what the flexible permit or 

2 calculated rate is. So if it is 10,000 times, 

3 chemical engineers don't even know this is going 

4 on, seriously. The real emission is 10,000 

5 times. What safety system is working? You can't 

6 go through your LOPAs, your HAZOPs, your PSMs. 

7 Everything is false. So, yeah, we should be 

8 scared. 

9 So LIDAR and DIAL, if you look to a 

10 letter from Bill White to the EPA, let's do 

11 something to get our emission factors right, that 

12 was one of the best letters I've read, 27 pages. 

13 There's a lot more toxics. If you include all of 

14 the elements, there's like 129. 

15 We have a cancer map of Houston. It's 

16 right over -- you can see where you live, and 

17 usually, people start looking. You can see it 

18 tracks where the emissions go. 

19 Let's see. The problem with benzene was 

20 a new thing. It was exposure to solvents are 

21 linked to childhood brain tumors. That's not 

22 very pleasant. PM2.5's were the invisible 
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1 killers. There's no safe-level PM2.5's. They 

2 are related to out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, 

3 which is 90 percent fatal. Each dot on this map 

4 -- this was done by Ensor and Raun -- this is 

5 Houston. Each dot on the map is a cardiac 

6 arrest. I know three of the dots. I had a 

7 friend that had five kids, heart attack. A 

8 football coach and a guy that worked on the 

9 American Petroleum Institute's Committee on 

10 Measurement Accountability, all died of heart 

11 attacks. Roughly, PM2.5's cut 12 years off your 

12 life. These guys lived in Kingwood. These 

13 didn't live across the fence. We're all affected 

14 by this, and if we don't pay attention to the 

15 people that live out of bounds, you are not going 

16 to get support. But it's an international 

17 problem. 

18 This is a bad-air day. If you can see, 

19 this is particulates over Houston. You can see 

20 it is not a very nice day. Particulates on 

21 Houston. Again, this covers the entire 

22 landscape. This is not just across the fence 
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1 line. 

2 Here is not too bad an air day, but it is 

3 still probably causing some people health 

4 effects. 

5 If you have ever had a child with otitis 

6 media, the inner ear infection, you can blame 

7 particulates and those guys that are emitting 

8 them. You don't drive into your gas station and 

9 say, "What can you do for my kid with this ear 

10 ache? He is whimpering. He's crying in the 

11 middle of the night." Oh, yeah, I'm going to 

12 take this advice. 

13 So that is otitis. The other thing is 

14 particulates contribute to conjugate decline in 

15 later life, to add insult to injury. 

16 This is the ozone map. It looks like 

17 Exxon might be getting a nice bit. Everything 

18 comes from the ship channel, and if you do the 

19 maps, I have hundreds. They all go. But this 

20 one is nice. It looks like Exxon's new corporate 

21 headquarters could get a nice hit of ozone. 

22 And that's the only way you get effective 
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1 change. The DIAL measurements were great. 

2 Here's the problem with fence-line 

3 monitors. If you look -- and this is in the 

4 literature -- this is the benzene, and it is all 

5 scattered above the fence-line monitoring, which 

6 might be 10 foot off the ground, but you have all 

7 this other benzene that is going over the rest of 

8 the population. 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Mr. Pavel, I'm sorry, but 

10 your time has expired. 

11 MR. PAVEL: I know, and I watched people 

12 expire, and you still gave them minutes. 

13 MR. THOMPSON: So as I was about to day 

14 -- 

15 MR. PAVEL: Oh, good. 

16 MR. THOMPSON: -- your final words, 

17 please. 

18 MR. PAVEL: The final words, okay. 

19 So we've got serious health and safety 

20 implications when you are estimating emissions 

21 that are carried downwind. This will in fact 

22 affect all of us. It affects the people outside 
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1 of the country, because U.S. standards end up 

2 being used in Canada and all over the world. So 

3 it is not only what we do to ourselves, but this 

4 is stuff that we could be doing to others. 

5 So appreciate your time. 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. 

7 MR. PAVEL: Thank you. 

8 MR. THOMPSON: And I missed your 

9 affiliation. 

10 MR. PAVEL: Well, I speak as a father and 

11 a citizen that breaths. 

12 MR. THOMPSON: Citizen, okay. 

13 MR. PAVEL: I am with Full Spectrum 

14 Consulting, which I do consulting to -- refinery 

15 training, basically. 

16 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. 

17 MR. PAVEL: But this has really changed 

18 my whole outlook because of the -- I mean, there 

19 can't be a single safety review that has been 

20 done correctly, because all emissions are 

21 under-calculated. It is incredible. 

22 MR. THOMPSON: Again, thank you for your 
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1 testimony, sir. 

2 Mr. Chapman. 

3 MR. CHAPMAN: Good afternoon. 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon. 

5 MR. CHAPMAN: My name is Saleem Chapman. 

6 Saleem, S-a-l-e-e-m. Last name, Chapman, 

7 C-h-a-p-m-a-n. I am the Director of 

8 Environmental Justice for the Clean Air Council. 

9 The Clean Air Council has been an 

10 environmental health advocate in the Mid-Atlantic 

11 Region since 1967 and is active on a number of 

12 environmental issues, including a reduction of 

13 environmental health risk within socially 

14 vulnerable communities. 

15 I sincerely appreciate this opportunity 

16 to speak in support of adopting the EPA's 

17 proposed rule to control residual risk from 

18 hazardous air emissions at the nation's petroleum 

19 refineries. 

20 From the perspective of near neighbors of 

21 refineries, such a role is long overdue. 

22 Minorities in low-income communities remain more 
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1 readily affected by environmental pollution and 

2 the subsequent public health outcomes. 

3 Disproportionately, low-income and minority 

4 populations live in close proximity to oil 

5 refineries and thereby are exposed to a toxic 

6 combination of thousands of tons of hazardous 

7 pollutants. These pollutants are linked to 

8 increased rates of cancer, neurological damage, 

9 and other serious health impacts. 

10 The largest oil refinery complex on the 

11 Eastern Seaboard, Philadelphia Energy Solutions, 

12 formerly Sunoco, is hosted by exceptionally 

13 distressed neighborhoods of South and Southwest 

14 Philadelphia, including Grays Ferry. Sunoco had 

15 a chronic history of environmental violations and 

16 enforcement by government agencies to have truly 

17 protected the health, welfare, and quality of 

18 life of host communities. Innumerable 

19 environmental, socioeconomic, and psychosocial 

20 stressors affect Grays Ferry, earning this 

21 neighborhood the moniker of the "Forgotten 

22 Bottom." It is home of less than 1 percent of 
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1 Philadelphia's total population, but it accounts 

2 for 10 percent of the Philadelphia recipients for 

3 Section 8 housing, most of which is inhabited by 

4 persons of color. 

5 Even more disconcerting is that the 

6 National Air Toxics Assessment determined that 

7 this community faced elevated risk for cancer and 

8 other non-cancer negative health effects. This 

9 has left many residents of the neighborhood 

10 feeling helpless and powerless to protect our 

11 health. Unfortunately, these residents do not 

12 have the economic resources to simply move to a 

13 healthier neighborhood, putting them in a 

14 self-perpetuating cycle of adverse health 

15 outcomes. These are the very Americans that are 

16 most dependent agencies such as the EPA to look 

17 after their interests. 

18 Honestly, can we say that the EPA has met 

19 the obligations to the near neighbors of 

20 refineries? 

21 When the Sunoco plant threatened to close 

22 down, the federal, state, and local government 
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1 rushed to find new buyers and bend the regulatory 

2 requirements to keep the refinery going. 

3 Then I asked why is the government so 

4 slow to ensure that the emissions from such 

5 refineries are minimized and that the health of 

6 hosting communities is adequately protected. 

7 Most in the description of circumstance, 

8 this is an environmental justice issue. Federal 

9 standards from residual risk from refineries are 

10 not adequately designed to protect public health 

11 equitably. Socially vulnerable communities 

12 already have diminished capacity to manage 

13 exposure to environmental health risk. This 

14 capacity is further diminished when these 

15 communities are not afforded the requisite data 

16 to undertake health protective measures. 

17 EPA's proposal takes significant steps in 

18 the right direction by requiring enhanced firing 

19 of fence-line refinery facilities and by limiting 

20 emissions that occur during startup and shutdown 

21 and by requiring the use technology to further 

22 lower dangerous emissions. Once finalized, these 
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1 changes will assure more limited emissions, 

2 better plant line air monitoring, and hopefully 

3 more vigorous enforcement. 

4 On behalf of the residents and 

5 communities I work with, I urge the EPA to affect 

6 fence-line monitoring for all polluting 

7 facilities sited in these populated areas. 

8 Members of these neighborhoods being asked to 

9 host such facilities deserve to know their 

10 exposure risk. That being said, EPA's proposed 

11 fence-line monitoring may not be adequate to 

12 effectively inform residents. It appears that 

13 the EPA will allow passive systems that will 

14 require lab analysis for results, thereby 

15 delaying the responsibility to know in real time 

16 their true risk exposure. 

17 I appreciate this opportunity to appear 

18 before this panel, and this concludes my 

19 testimony. 

20 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Chapman and 

21 Mr. Pavel. 

22 Are there any questions for Mr. Pavel or 
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1 Mr. Chapman? 

2 MS. LASSITER: Mr. Pavel, are you going 

3 to provide a copy of your presentation -- 

4 MR. PAVEL: Yes. 

5 MS. LASSITER: -- or is there a 

6 particular website where the information is 

7 located that you were referencing? 

8 MR. PAVEL: Yes. 

9 MS. LASSITER: Okay, thank you. 

10 MR. PAVEL: Thank you. 

11 MR. THOMPSON: Gentlemen, thank you both 

12 for your testimony. 

13 MS. PRICE: Hello. Good afternoon. 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon. 

15 MS. PRICE: My name is Ceil Price. 

16 That's spelled C-e-i-l. Last name, Price, 

17 P-r-i-c-e. I am Senior Assistant City Attorney 

18 for the City of Houston. On behalf of Mayor 

19 Annise Parker, the City and its operating 

20 departments, including the Department of Health 

21 and Human Services, I thank you for this 

22 opportunity to provide comments on the proposed 
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1 petroleum refinery sector risk and technology 

2 review and new source performance standards. My 

3 oral comments now this afternoon summarize more 

4 extensive and technical ones that the City will 

5 submit in writing. 

6 The City of Houston unequivocally 

7 supports the proposed rule. The City comments 

8 EPA for its work, which benefits all affected 

9 parties. Reduced emissions means that refineries 

10 will lose less product, and of course, reduced 

11 emissions also achieve cleaner air for the 

12 surrounding communities. The proposed rule 

13 eliminates long recognized weaknesses in current 

14 operational approaches in three main ways. 

15 First, the City of Houston has long had a 

16 concern with emissions from storage tanks, 

17 flares, and coking units. The health department 

18 performed a study a couple of years ago which was 

19 funded by EPA that found actual emissions from a 

20 floating roof tank battery were more than 150 

21 times greater than the estimated value. Houston 

22 supports the proposal and the proposed rule that 
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1 facilities use a gas chromatograph on flares and 

2 GC provides real-time data on flare destruction 

3 efficiency and it reduces uncertainty with 

4 reporting emission events. 

5 Houston supports the use of combustion 

6 zone net heating value, and so that the flare 

7 vent gas that heating value to determine the 

8 maximum allowable flare tip velocity. Again, 

9 EPA's proposal would yield data that relies on 

10 real-world parameters. 

11 Houston also supports de-pressurization 

12 of delayed coking units to 2 psig prior to 

13 venting to the atmosphere. This action may 

14 prevent the release of some VOC emissions which 

15 reduces again the impact to the surrounding 

16 communities while allowing some operational 

17 flexibility. 

18 Second, it has been the City's experience 

19 that emissions from startup, shutdown, and 

20 malfunctions are directly related to larger 

21 emissions compared with normal operations. The 

22 EPA-funded Houston study that I mentioned a 
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1 minute ago documented that problem, and the 

2 proposed rule would eliminate many industry 

3 exemptions. 

4 The City supports the use of real-time 

5 fence-line monitoring instead of passive 

6 monitoring in areas with a dense network of 

7 flares and multiple other emission sources like 

8 areas found in and around Houston. 

9 Real-time monitoring systems provide 

10 immediate feedback for leak detection, a greater 

11 potential for reduced emissions, as well as the 

12 potential, of course, to reduce product losses. 

13 Finally, the City of Houston has long 

14 been concerned that emissions that are actually 

15 entering our ambient air have been underestimated 

16 and, as the previous speaker noted, 

17 underreported. While Houston does support the 

18 use of benzene as an indicator for the presence 

19 of other VOCs in the ambient air, the City 

20 respectfully suggests that total hydrocarbons be 

21 measured concurrently. That activity would guard 

22 against overloading samplers and then 
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1 inadvertently undercounting benzene. 

2 Further, we think that the proposed 

3 benzene action level is too high. Houston has, 

4 as you know, multiple refineries in the source 

5 category, as well as many additional benzene 

6 sources that are not covered by this rule that 

7 are located near each other and also located near 

8 residential areas. 

9 The City of Houston strongly believes 

10 that the proposed ruled must have a mechanism to 

11 ensure that the air has improved, not further 

12 deteriorated, and Houston respectfully requests 

13 that you consider the limit of 4.5 micrograms per 

14 liter, which is similar to TCEQ's long-term 

15 effects screening level. 

16 I thank you for your time, and I will 

17 yield any remaining time for questions or to 

18 other speakers. 

19 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Price. 

20 MR. SARAHAN: Good afternoon. 

21 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon. 

22 MR. SARAHAN: I am Paul Sarahan. 
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1 P-a-u-l. Last name is spelled S-a-r-a-h-a-n. I 

2 am with Thompson & Knight, and today, I am 

3 speaking on behalf of the Texas Oil and Gas 

4 Association. 

5 TXOGA appreciates the opportunity to 

6 provide a brief summary of issues it has 

7 identified with respect to the proposed rule that 

8 is the subject of today's hearing. 

9 We note at the outset that EPA's own 

10 analysis shows that the public is already 

11 protected under current regulations with an ample 

12 margin of safety, as EPA defines it, and that the 

13 public health benefits from the rule, under 

14 best-case scenarios, would be quite small. 

15 To achieve the promised small public 

16 health benefits, each of EPA's analyses, 

17 assumptions, and conclusions must be correct. 

18 Unfortunately, because EPA's conclusions are not 

19 supported by sufficient and accurate data and 

20 analysis, the American public will only find out 

21 later that the promised improvements in public 

22 health were actually nonexistent. 
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1 While TXOGA shares concerns that it 

2 understands have been addressed by the API and 

3 AFPM, our testimony today is focused on facets of 

4 the proposed rule dealing with fence-line 

5 monitoring and flaring operations. 

6 EPA's fence-line monitoring concept in 

7 the proposal is not scientifically justified. 

8 EPA justifies the requirement for fence-line 

9 monitoring based on its concern for the perceived 

10 uncertainty in the emission factors for refining 

11 sources of hazardous air pollutants, and the 

12 assumed lack of monitoring data in the areas that 

13 surround refineries. 

14 Through its proposal, EPA assumes that 

15 all refineries have inadequate air monitoring 

16 data for their surrounding areas. That's 

17 incorrect. EPA has failed to acknowledge the 

18 availability of an extensive historical, 

19 Texas-based ambient air monitoring dataset for 

20 benzene in its concept development or in 

21 specifying alternative options. 

22 As EPA knows, TCEQ measures air toxic 
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1 concentrations, including those for benzene, at 

2 approximately 82 monitoring sites across Texas, 

3 mostly in urban and industrial areas. Many of 

4 these monitors are sited close to refinery 

5 boundaries. 

6 Also of note is EPA's inappropriate 

7 scientific basis for setting an action-level 

8 concept and the value of that action level. EPA 

9 has utilized refinery emission inventories of 

10 benzene and modeling to create a value under 

11 which EPA believes all monitoring at refinery 

12 fence lines should meet. These emission 

13 inventories are the same uncertain values for 

14 which it justifies the need for fence-line 

15 monitoring in the proposal. 

16 EPA also proposed an impractical and 

17 cumbersome means to appropriately account for 

18 off-site, upwind, and for excluded on-site 

19 sources in the calculation of background levels. 

20 That should be excluded from the action-level 

21 value. 

22 TXOGA also has concerns regarding the 
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1 lack of options for performance-based reductions 

2 in monitoring requirements. A robust dataset of 

3 area air monitoring that indicates that benzene 

4 emissions are well controlled and protective of 

5 public health and the environment should obviate 

6 the requirement for a fence-line monitoring 

7 system or allow an operator to curtail the 

8 frequency of that fence-line monitoring. 

9 With respect to flare operation, EPA's 

10 proposed limits of 270 and 380 BUT per SCF are 

11 not supported by available data. These limits 

12 are overly conservative and will result in 

13 excessive addition of supplemental gas. TXOGA 

14 recommends instead a single lower limit that is 

15 supported by science. 

16 The proposal also requires flares to meet 

17 flare-tip velocity and visible emission limits at 

18 all times when flaring, even during full 

19 hydraulic loads from rare emergency events that 

20 exceed the design capacities of the flares. This 

21 is impractical. 

22 While EPA recognizes that there is 
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1 virtually no available data for non-assist 

2 flares, it concludes that it is reasonable to 

3 assert that the requirements for non-assist 

4 flares should parallel those for steam-assist 

5 flares. 

6 TXOGA recommends that the rule address 

7 only steam-assist flares, with a single limit as 

8 discussed above, as there is no data to support 

9 the regulation of air-assist or non-assist 

10 flares. 

11 TXOGA appreciates the opportunity to 

12 provide this testimony, and we will be submitting 

13 more detailed comments to the docket to address 

14 these and other important issues. 

15 Thank you very much. 

16 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

17 Are there any questions? 

18 [No audible response.] 

19 MR. THOMPSON: Well, again, thank you 

20 both. 

21 Okay. Our next speakers are Jesse 

22 Marquez and Billy Placker, and following are 
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1 Donald Smith and Sparsh Khandeshi. 

2 [Pause.] 

3 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon, gentlemen. 

4 MR. MARQUEZ: Good morning. Thank you 

5 for this opportunity. My name is Jessie Marquez, 

6 J-e-s-s-e, M-a-r-q-e-z. I am a resident of 

7 Wilmington, a community of Los Angeles. I am 

8 also Executive Director of the Coalition for a 

9 Safe Enforcement. 

10 I am here on behalf of 36 residents of 

11 the L.A. area from Wilmington, San Pedro, Harbor 

12 City, Lomita, Long Beach, and Carson, who asked 

13 me to hand-deliver their public comments, and so 

14 each one has prepared their comments. And I 

15 would just like to read you some of their 

16 concerns and why they wish to submit these 

17 comments. 

18 This is from Mr. Eduardo Herrera: "In 

19 1995, I was diagnosed with leukemia and had to go 

20 through the terrible ordeal of chemotherapy at 

21 Kaiser Hospital for over 1 month. I have learned 

22 that oil refineries release a chemical called 
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1 benzene which is known to cause leukemia. I want 

2 you to do everything in your power to stop the 

3 release of benzene and other cancer-causing 

4 chemicals from oil refineries." 

5 "Hello. My name is Anna Marie Vigil, and 

6 I live in Harbor City, California. I am 

7 suffering from Stage 4 kidney disease, asthma, 

8 diabetes, high blood pressure," and she has eye 

9 problems, which she says, "I believe is caused by 

10 my exposure to toxic air pollution from 

11 ConocoPhillips oil refinery near Harbor City, a 

12 few miles from my home." 

13 This is from Sofia Caerio, "I have 

14 pulmonary fibrosis, chronic bronchitis, and high 

15 blood pressure, which I believe is caused by my 

16 exposure to unsafe levels of toxic chemicals in 

17 the air being released daily from oil refineries 

18 and the flaring occurring from the four oil 

19 refineries near my community." 

20 This is from Balin Alcatros [ph]: "I am 

21 writing to inform you that I am supporting 

22 stricter oil refinery oil pollution standards and 
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1 stricter regulation of oil refinery manufacturing 

2 operations. My husband has a tumor, and my son 

3 has asthma, which I believe is caused by our 

4 exposure to toxic oil refinery pollution." 

5 And I will turn these in, but I do want 

6 to clarify some things that seem not be known 

7 clearly, and that is technology exists today off 

8 the shelf that can prevent over 90 percent of all 

9 emissions from a refinery, so it's not a myth. 

10 It is scientific fact that they are off the 

11 shelf. 

12 The U.S. EPA, even on their website, has 

13 validated, certified, approved vapor recovery 

14 systems. All that requires is building an extra 

15 storage tank, so that instead of burning it 

16 through a combustion unit, the flue gasses will 

17 go to an empty storage tank. That is how simple 

18 that process is. It is not complicated 

19 whatsoever. 

20 The South Coast Air Quality Management 

21 District in California has already adopted a 

22 flare minimization plan requirement. This year, 
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1 as of 2014, every and all six oil refineries in 

2 the L.A. area have a flare minimization plan in 

3 place, so it exists, and it is working and 

4 operating, so that other states and other 

5 communities understand that they do exist and are 

6 operating right now, and we fully supported them. 

7 Another area of our concern was the fact 

8 that we were talking about public health. A 

9 health risk assessment only tells you who might 

10 die of cancer. In Europe, they have already 

11 adopted health impact assessments as an accurate 

12 assessment of public health, and if you combine 

13 that with a public health survey, it is 99 

14 percent on the mark. 

15 Now, what does a health impact assessment 

16 tell you? Well, when you include the public 

17 health survey, it is a door-to-door public health 

18 survey. It will tell you exactly who has 

19 leukemia, who has lymphoma, who has myeloma, who 

20 has lung cancer, who has COPD, who has asthma, 

21 who has autism, who has diabetes, because why? 

22 The survey documents it, so you know exactly in 
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1 the communities that border a refinery, how many 

2 people have these illnesses, how old they are, so 

3 you can determine if they are children or they 

4 are senior citizens. It will tell you how long 

5 they have had this illness, what the financial 

6 cost has been to them. 

7 So we ask that you include health impact 

8 assessments as another health assessment tool, 

9 because a health risk assessment is not good 

10 enough. 

11 Thank you. 

12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Marquez. 

13 Mr. Placker. 

14 MR. PLACKER: My name is Billy Placker, 

15 B-i-l-l-y, P-l-a-c-k-e-r, and I am from Corpus 

16 Christi, Texas, and I live in what they call Dona 

17 Park down there, where I'm on a refinery road. 

18 And I don't believe I'm on the fence line. I 

19 believe I'm in the fence. 

20 The contamination we have down there in 

21 our yards is unreal, and just to allow you to 

22 understand this, I heard one time the EPA didn't 
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1 accept hair samples about what you may have in 

2 you. Well, me and my grandson had hair samples 

3 done one time, and lead from zero to 100, you 

4 shouldn't even be a 1. I topped out over 100 on 

5 lead, cadmium, 48 on arsenic, 98 on aluminum. My 

6 12-year-old grandson had half of what I did. 

7 Well, if it ain't in us, it's on us, which means 

8 it's in the air, it's in the ground, and it's 

9 inside our homes. And that's living inside that 

10 area right there. 

11 The neighborhood I live in consists of 

12 300 homes. My mother and my father live in the 

13 neighborhood and have for 51 years. My daughter 

14 and four grandchildren live next door to me, ages 

15 4, 9, 10, and 15. All four of them were born and 

16 raised in this area, and all four of them have 

17 ADHD. I haven't heard anybody here talk about 

18 ADHD yet, and it seems to be something there's a 

19 lot of kids in this neighborhood that have ADHD. 

20 When I first moved over there, there was 

21 only one small refinery. Now there's six of 

22 them. They keep getting bigger and bigger all 
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1 the time. 

2 Two of my grandchildren have severe 

3 asthma. It's hard to watch them with the 

4 different medications and stuff they take. They 

5 change who they really are. When they are not on 

6 their medication, they are jumping all over the 

7 place, and in reality, that is probably who they 

8 are. But we have to give them medications to 

9 calm them down, so they can go to school. 

10 When they can't breathe from the asthma 

11 and we have to rush them to the hospital, it is 

12 really hard. It's hard to watch your grandchild 

13 like that right there and not really know what to 

14 do. 

15 It seems like there's always flaring all 

16 the time over there. The smell of the refinery 

17 lingers in the neighborhood all the time. 

18 I used to work in the refinery 

19 construction, so I know what's going on in there, 

20 and I used to work for a leak ceiling company, 

21 where we would go in and fix all types of leaks 

22 on the lines. Sometimes it would take days for 
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1 the parts that were measured and ordered to come 

2 in, so the product would leak and blow through 

3 the neighborhood. So I know why we smell the 

4 scents that we do. 

5 In our neighborhood, my wife and I have 

6 gone door to door talking to the people about 

7 their experiences in our area. One half of the 

8 homes are dealing with cancer or have dealt with 

9 cancer in the past. Most of the children seem to 

10 have mental health issues of all kinds. Then 

11 there are a lot of birth defects and woman unable 

12 to have children or miscarry. Why does it take 

13 so long for people who deal with these issues to 

14 admit there is a problem and do something about 

15 it? 

16 We come to meetings like this hoping big 

17 industries would stop compromising people's 

18 lives. What about the next generation? This is 

19 not just a local problem. 

20 I would like to add I worked for a 

21 company. We used to go in and fix leaks in these 

22 plants out there. The things that we used to do 
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1 out there in the middle of the night would make 

2 your hair stand up. We almost blew up -- I 

3 almost died once a week. 

4 One time, we were working on a leak, and 

5 I told this guy, I said, "Why don't you all shut 

6 down? It's liable to kill one of us," and he 

7 allowed me to understand that we had another 

8 crew, that we were expendable. Needless to say, 

9 I quit at that point. 

10 When I have seen so much in these plants 

11 out there, what goes on, other than just doing 

12 these monitoring -- we have a monitoring station 

13 at the end of our street there, and there's 

14 actually six of them in there. TCEQ and other 

15 agencies have these monitors down there. We 

16 never hear anything about it. They are tearing 

17 down a plant at the end of our street that has 

18 contaminated our neighborhood, and that stuff 

19 keeps blowing across our neighborhood. Sometimes 

20 they stop because the wind gets going too much. 

21 So what? It's still blowing over here. 

22 What about the monitoring? Who does 
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1 anything about it? I still don't understand that 

2 part. Every time we come to a meeting like this 

3 right here, I appreciate that you all are taking 

4 it farther. 

5 And I'll tell you what, when you got 

6 grandchildren that come to you -- and my grandson 

7 had so much contamination in him, and he came to 

8 me and asked me if he was going to die. We have 

9 children and grandchildren. Do something about 

10 this. The children are having such a hard time 

11 with this, and people that live in the fence line 

12 or on the fence line should be removed from that 

13 area right there. It is a nation problem. 

14 Everything is going everywhere. The fracking in 

15 Texas and the air pollution, where is our country 

16 heading? 

17 I thank you all for hearing me today. 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Placker. 

19 [Applause.] 

20 MR. THOMPSON: Before you go, I do want 

21 to extend an invitation to my colleagues to ask 

22 questions, but I do have one question for Mr. 
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1 Placker. 

2 You said that you have gone from one to 

3 six refineries since you moved in your community. 

4 What was that time span? What was that? How 

5 many years? 

6 MR. PLACKER: Well, I'm fixing to be 51 

7 right now, so it's been a long span. 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. 

9 MR. PLACKER: And I know that the newer 

10 ones as they come in, I know that they are doing 

11 more and more things to supposedly protect us out 

12 there, but the things that we used to do to keep 

13 them from shutting down so they would not lose 

14 their money is unreal. And to be out there and 

15 working out there and knowing and then later on 

16 finding out what I found out, it makes it kind of 

17 hard. 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you 

19 again. 

20 Any additional questions? 

21 [No audible response.] 

22 MR. THOMPSON: Gentlemen, thank you both 
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1 for your testimony. Thank you very much. 

2 [Applause.] 

3 MR. THOMPSON: Donald Smith? 

4 [No audible response.] 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Is Donald Smith here in 

6 the room for testimony? 

7 [No audible response.] 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. Well, I guess that 

9 concludes our testimony before lunch. Let me do 

10 a time check here, folks. It is 12:50. How 

11 about that? 

12 Let's take a lunch break. I am not sure 

13 how long that break is going to be, but we were 

14 supposed to reconvene at one o'clock originally. 

15 So let's shoot for, let's say, 1:15 until further 

16 notice. All right? Thanks, folks. 

17 ATTENDEE: You mean 1:15? 

18 MR. THOMPSON: I mean 1:15 until I can 

19 walk outside, figure out what's going on, and 

20 come back. Okay? All right, thanks. 

21 [Break taken from 12:50 to 1:21 p.m.] 

22 MR. THOMPSON: Okay, ladies and 
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1 gentlemen. If everyone could please just take a 

2 seat. We'd like to get started. Thank you. 

3 [Pause.] 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Again, I would like to 

5 just thank all of you for joining us for today's 

6 hearing. I'm just going to go over the logistics 

7 for the day, and then we will proceed with our 

8 testimony. 

9 The way those logistics are going to 

10 work, I will call the scheduled speakers to the 

11 table in pairs, which is located right here in 

12 front of me. When it is your turn to speak, 

13 please state your name and your affiliation 

14 before you begin your testimony. It would help 

15 the court reporters if you could also spell out 

16 your name, and they are sitting here in front of 

17 me. 

18 In order to be fair to everyone, we would 

19 like to let you know that we are going to limit 

20 your testimony to 5 minutes each and ask that you 

21 remain at the table until both speakers have 

22 completed his or her testimony. After you finish 
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1 your testimony, members of the panel may ask 

2 clarifying questions. If you would like to 

3 provide us with a copy of your testimony, please 

4 give that to the staff at the registration desk 

5 in the lobby before you leave today. 

6 If any questions arise throughout the 

7 day, please see the staff at the registration 

8 desk for assistance. 

9 Again, thank you for joining us, and I 

10 would also like to say if you have not signed up 

11 to speak and would like to do so, you should do 

12 so now. 

13 So, with that, at this time, I would like 

14 to ask Brett Perkison and Rebecca Bruhl to please 

15 come forward for testimony. 

16 [Pause.] 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon to the both 

18 of you. Thank you for joining us. 

19 So please state and spell your name for 

20 the court reporter. 

21 DR. PERKISON: Okay, sure. Hi. I'll go 

22 first. My name is Dr. Brett Perkison. It's 
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1 B-r-e-t-t; Perkison, P-e-r-k-i-s-o-n. 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. 

3 DR. PERKISON: I am Assistant Professor 

4 of Family Community Medicine at Baylor College of 

5 Medicine. I am board-certified in family 

6 medicine as well as occupational and 

7 environmental medicine. The Medical Director of 

8 Baylor is soon to open an Environmental Medicine 

9 Clinic here in Houston. 

10 I have had 15 years of clinical 

11 experience treating patients in primary care in 

12 the Houston area, and I have worked as an 

13 occupational and environmental medicine 

14 physician, both in academics and in industrial 

15 setting on the Houston Ship Channel. 

16 I appreciate the opportunity to speak to 

17 you today about the EPA's proposed petroleum 

18 refinery rule and applaud the EPA's efforts to 

19 reduce air toxics emissions from refineries. 

20 Air pollution is a serious concern here 

21 in Houston. We have chemical and refinery plants 

22 in close proximity to more than 2 million people, 
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1 and despite the many controls that have already 

2 been put in place by industry, some neighborhoods 

3 still have outdoor concentrations of air 

4 pollution high enough to pose a health risk. 

5 Medical problems related to air toxics 

6 exposure are not only devastating to individuals 

7 and their families but are a huge economic burden 

8 to Houston in terms of lost productivity and 

9 increased health care costs. 

10 There's two air toxics I was wanting to 

11 mention today of particular concern, given the 

12 high levels repeatedly on the outdoor air 

13 monitors in the Houston area, and that is benzene 

14 and 1,3-butadiene. The link between occupational 

15 exposure to these chemicals and the development 

16 of both pediatric and adult cancers is well 

17 established, and benzene and 1,3-butadiene are 

18 only two examples of really thousands of 

19 different chemicals that would be further 

20 controlled if the EPA fully implements this rule. 

21 I think one of the implementations for 

22 EPA rules would be the releases, the controlled 
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1 releases that sometimes momentarily can cause 

2 exceedance in these rather than sort of the 

3 annual averages, that I think your rules would 

4 help control that. 

5 I am going to let Dr. Rebecca Bruhl now 

6 discuss several important new studies that are 

7 out, sort of more cutting-edge, and particularly 

8 relevant to the proposed rule, and most of these 

9 studies examine health effects associated with 

10 air pollution mixtures at outdoor concentrations, 

11 that previously the individual concentrations 

12 were thought to be safe. 

13 DR. BRUHL: My last name is B-r-u-h-l. 

14 So I am Rebecca Bruhl, and I am an Assistant 

15 Professor of Medicine at Baylor College of 

16 Medicine and Associate Director for Baylor's 

17 Environmental Health Service. 

18 Because our time is limited, I just 

19 wanted to talk directly to EPA's request for 

20 comments regarding the effects of early life 

21 exposures to emissions from petroleum refineries. 

22 As you are aware, early exposures often 
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1 result in lifelong and sometimes devastating 

2 health consequences. So, according to this rule, 

3 EPA doesn't believe that environmental health or 

4 safety risk addressed by the action represents a 

5 disproportionate risk to children, but I just 

6 wanted to highlight some recent studies that 

7 suggest that levels of air toxics we experience 

8 every day, and they are often even higher in some 

9 of the neighborhoods close to the refineries, 

10 increase the risk for childhood cancers, birth 

11 defects, and other major health problems in our 

12 children. 

13 So, for example, there is growing 

14 evidence of a link between early childhood 

15 cancers, such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia, 

16 acute myeloid leukemia, bilateral retinoblastoma 

17 with greater exposure to traffic-related 

18 pollution during the mother's pregnancy, and 

19 there's a new case control study based on records 

20 of children under age 6 from the California 

21 Cancer Registry that found that the risk of acute 

22 lymphoblastic leukemia was significantly elevated 
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1 from increased exposure during the third 

2 trimester of pregnancy, and so this was exposure 

3 to benzene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, 

4 arsenic, and some other air toxics. 

5 The risk of acute myeloid leukemia is 

6 also elevated with increased exposure to benzene, 

7 chloroform, and two other traffic-related toxics 

8 during the third trimester. 

9 So these studies suggest that the 

10 exposure during the third trimester and early 

11 life may be critical to the development of cancer 

12 later in life, and these kind of windows of 

13 disproportionate effects are well established and 

14 should be addressed. 

15 Similarly, a study published in 2011 by 

16 Lupo and associates using the Texas Birth Defects 

17 Registry found that mothers living in census 

18 tracts with the highest levels of benzene during 

19 their pregnancy were significantly more likely to 

20 have children with spina bifida, which is a 

21 devastating birth defect. 

22 An article that is soon to appear in the 
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1 widely respected Journal of Epidemiology suggests 

2 that in utero exposure to ambient air toxics, 

3 which includes 1,3-butadiene, benzene, toluene -- 

4 benzene, xylene, formaldehyde, lead, and 

5 chlorinated solvents from traffic and industry 

6 emissions increased the risk of autism in 

7 children. 

8 So because there are high correlations 

9 among the pollutants and ambient air, it is 

10 difficult to disentangle the effects of single 

11 substances. It could be the mixtures of ambient 

12 air pollution, rather than single pollutants or 

13 related to the specific health endpoints, 

14 possibly synergistic effects. So cumulative or 

15 concurrent exposures, the mixtures, environmental 

16 agents, as well as the non-chemical stressors 

17 like noise and stress, can modify the effects of 

18 single chemicals. 

19 So although EPA has been studying 

20 cumulative and multi-pollutant effects, the 

21 proposed rule is still somewhat weak in this 

22 regard. 
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1 Although there are still many 

2 uncertainties in the medical literature related 

3 to the impact of air toxics on reproductive and 

4 developmental outcomes, what we do now is -- that 

5 our community is burdened with high levels of 

6 pollution and multiple stressors that increase 

7 the susceptibility to health-related disorders, 

8 and so recent studies suggest that children may 

9 be at especially high risk. 

10 So, in my opinion, you need to do a 

11 better job of accounting for and minimizing the 

12 impact of air toxic emissions on children's 

13 health and protect our already-overburdened 

14 communities. 

15 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

16 Let me ask, are you planning to submit 

17 written testimony? 

18 DR. BRUHL: Yes, yes. 

19 MR. THOMPSON: Because the studies, I'm 

20 interested in learning more about this. 

21 DR. BRUHL: Yep. I have all the 

22 references. 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Great. 

2 Are there any questions? 

3 [No audible response.] 

4 MR. THOMPSON: All right. Well, thank 

5 you both. Thank you very much. 

6 At this time, I would like to invite Andy 

7 Zellinger and Dr. Beverly Wright to please come 

8 forward for testimony. 

9 While they are making their way to the 

10 front of the room, on deck we are going to have 

11 Katie Moore and Craig Beskid. 

12 [Pause.] 

13 MR. ZELLINGER: I believe I saw Dr. 

14 Wright in the foyer right there. 

15 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. Well, if she 

16 transitions in, we will save her a seat. How 

17 about that? 

18 All right. So, Mr. Zellinger? 

19 MR. ZELLINGER: Yes. My name is Any 

20 Zellinger. A-n-d-y. Zellinger is 

21 Z-e-l-l-i-n-g-e-r. I am the Monitor and 

22 Coordinator with the Louisiana Bucket Brigade. 
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1 Good afternoon. I will start by thanking 

2 you and your colleagues at the EPA for taking the 

3 time to prepare this proposed rule, which will 

4 improve health outcomes for many residents living 

5 near petroleum oil refineries. 

6 I am here today to represent Louisiana 

7 Bucket Brigade, an environmental health and 

8 justice non-profit based on New Orleans. Our 

9 vision, Louisiana as a healthy, prosperous, 

10 pollution-free, and just state where people and 

11 the environment are valued over profit. 

12 Our mission, the Bucket Brigade uses 

13 grassroots action to create an informed healthy 

14 society with a culture that holds the 

15 petrochemical industry and government accountable 

16 for the true cost of pollution. 

17 Bucket Brigade reviews accident reports 

18 which have been self-reported by Louisiana's 17 

19 refineries to the State Department of Environment 

20 Quality. These facilities pollute the air in 

21 nearby communities with a toxic soup of 

22 carcinogens, neurotoxins, and hazardous metals. 
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1 This toxic air pollution means increased risk of 

2 cancer, respiratory problems, hospitalizations, 

3 and premature death. 

4 Specifically, in Louisiana, our 

5 communities are plagued by both ongoing emissions 

6 of hazardous air pollutants from refineries and 

7 upsets and accidents. Our refineries averaged 

8 six accidents per week in 2012, according to 

9 their own self-reports. These pollutants which 

10 are released make people sick and are linked to 

11 increased cancer, asthma, and respiratory 

12 diseases. 

13 On to the proposed rule, which although 

14 we do support the EPA's efforts, we encourage the 

15 EPA to strengthen the final rules in the 

16 following areas. 

17 Residual risk assessment. The current 

18 risk assessment most likely underestimates the 

19 residual risk to communities. A new assessment 

20 is needed. Evidence that the risk is higher than 

21 expected can be extrapolated from Toxic Release 

22 Inventory data from 2013 from the Louisiana 
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1 refineries. According to this TRI data, 

2 refineries in Louisiana emitted over 5 million 

3 pounds of toxic air pollutants in 2013, including 

4 over 180,000 pounds of benzene, over 166,000 

5 pounds of hydrogen sulfide, and nearly 2 million 

6 pounds of hydrogen cyanide. 

7 Like one of the speakers earlier 

8 mentioned, to reduce NOx would in turn also reduce 

9 hydrogen cyanide, so I would encourage the EPA to 

10 focus on that in the rule. My main point here is 

11 risk that has been found acceptable for 1:10,000 

12 is clearly unacceptable to communities. 

13 On to storage tanks, although once again 

14 the EPA has made groundbreaking efforts here to 

15 upgrade controls and regulate more types and size 

16 of tanks and vessels, we need more rules that 

17 don't allow loopholes and exemptions for older 

18 grandfathered tanks. Part WW of the proposed 

19 rule which allows older tanks to be grandfathered 

20 in should be stricken from the proposed rule, and 

21 I hope the final rule does not offer any 

22 exemptions for existing tanks and all tanks are 
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1 held to the new increased standards. 

2 On to flares, I once again applaud the 

3 EPA's efforts to establish more stringent 

4 operating requirements to ensure good combustion, 

5 and this includes the flow and content being 

6 measured, but I will highlight the reasons why 

7 just measuring the flow and content is not 

8 enough, and we also need to measure the outputs, 

9 what is coming out of the flare. 

10 I do understand that the FTIR monitoring 

11 flare emissions was one of the things that helped 

12 influence this rule, but that was when you were 

13 writing the rule, but there is nothing in the 

14 rule that includes continued FTIR monitoring for 

15 future flare emissions. 

16 So my first point on flares is that flare 

17 efficiency needs to be based on specific 

18 conditions, not assumed percentages, and right 

19 now, facilities can assume a flare combustion 

20 efficiency between 98 and 99 percent, but what is 

21 the data availability for the outputs? Clearly, 

22 the proposed rule will track base flow and 
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1 content, which is very important; however, there 

2 are several factors accorded by EPA's own 2012 

3 Flare Technical Report prepared by the U.S. EPA 

4 Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, 

5 which detail when flare efficiency is 

6 significantly decreased. 

7 From the report, they mentioned 

8 over-steaming, excess aeration, high winds, and 

9 flam liftoff as four factors that could decrease 

10 flare efficiency, so I hope that the FTIR data 

11 can be used in ongoing flare emissions, not just 

12 when this rule is created. 

13 Secondly, flare use in non-emergencies 

14 and overuse of flaring frequency and duration, 

15 flares are reportedly being used less frequently 

16 due to current regulations, but there are still 

17 abuses of flaring where there are flaring events 

18 occurring over multiple days, rather than simply 

19 for an emergency release. To make the abuses of 

20 flares as routine emission points rather than 

21 emergency control devices, there needs to be the 

22 FTIR data to also allow for, my third point, 
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1 enforceability. 

2 If we are able to offer the EPA any 

3 advice, it is that these rules should be 

4 enforceable, so the State DEQ can actually go in 

5 and catch the polluter when they are abusing a 

6 flare device. 

7 I am going to close now with my last 

8 point. It is that we need real-time data 

9 availability and preferably through a website the 

10 community can access very easily. 

11 Unfortunately, one of my colleagues, Ms. 

12 Velma White -- she is the President for Residents 

13 for Air Neutralization. She has been the 

14 Founding Director of that organization for the 

15 last 20 years. She has worked around the Calumet 

16 facility in Shreveport, Louisiana. She is unable 

17 to make it today because her children have 

18 chronic health issues, so that is just the 

19 perfect example of why people that should be here 

20 to testify are too sick and burdened with the 

21 pollution from refineries to be here today. 

22 Thank you for your time. 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 

2 testimony. 

3 Dr. Wright, welcome. 

4 DR. WRIGHT: Thank you. 

5 My name is Dr. Beverly Wright. I am 

6 Director of the Dillard University Detox Center 

7 for Environmental Justice in New Orleans, 

8 Louisiana. 

9 I have worked with fence-line communities 

10 for over 20 years and have experienced firsthand 

11 the detrimental impacts of toxic releases on 

12 these communities. I have seen the mental 

13 anguish, the physical harms, the overall 

14 diminished quality of life, the noxious smells, 

15 and the overwhelming environmental insult to 

16 people living in close proximity to these 

17 refineries. 

18 I have witnessed the devastating to the 

19 health of families potentially due to the release 

20 of toxins from these plants. I understand 

21 fence-line communities. I understand their fears 

22 of environment accidents, their fears of death, 
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1 and their fears that their voices are too small 

2 to be heard. It is that understanding which has 

3 led our Center to work with EPA on behalf of 

4 fence-line and other environmental justice 

5 communities over the years. 

6 I strongly support EPA's proposed 

7 refinery rule. For the first time, EPA would 

8 require refineries to monitor concentrations of 

9 benzene in the air. EPA has set a benzene level 

10 of 9 micrograms per million as an acceptable 

11 level. Louisiana air pollutant ambient air 

12 standard for benzene is currently 12 micrograms 

13 per million. This difference can potentially 

14 translate into a greater improvement in air 

15 quality for our citizens. 

16 We understand that the rule would require 

17 the installation of 12 to 24 monitors of the 

18 perimeter, the collection of air samples at 

19 2-week intervals, and that this raw data would be 

20 made available to the public. 

21 The DSCEJ, the Deep South Center for 

22 Environmental Justice, has conducted an air 
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1 quality study funded by EPA focusing on air 

2 emissions during and immediately after the BP 

3 Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill 

4 entitled "Clearing the Air: An Analysis of Air 

5 Emissions from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill." 

6 This study conducted in 2013 involved obtaining 

7 and analyzing publicly available air quality data 

8 associated with the spill. Stationary monitors, 

9 because of the methods used to collect samples, 

10 completely missed this event. I think that this 

11 is telling as we move forward. 

12 The Deep South Center strongly supports 

13 the elimination of exemptions from air pollution 

14 regulations during startup, shutdown, and 

15 malfunctions. A constant complaint from 

16 fence-line communities with which the Center has 

17 worked over the last 20 years was that incidence 

18 of continuous flaring and accidental releases 

19 occurred over weekend periods when LDEQ offices 

20 were closed. Even LDEQ hotline calls coming in 

21 over the weekend were generally not responded to 

22 until the following Monday or even Tuesday, by 
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1 which time the evidence was gone. This has been 

2 our experience over the years working with the 

3 Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, 

4 and we do not have much confidence in their 

5 ability to work more closely with us to protect 

6 our communities. 

7 States should be required to enforce the 

8 regulations when excess pollution occurs during 

9 any of these processes at an oil refinery. 

10 States should also be prohibited from issuing 

11 permit waivers which allow increased air 

12 pollution. Not closing the permit waiver 

13 loophole would only serve to dramatically reduce 

14 the practical effectiveness of the proposed rule. 

15 Finally, in this rule, EPA would not 

16 require any changes to oil refinery emissions or 

17 operations based on its assessment that cancer 

18 and non-cancer health risks from exposures are 

19 acceptable. Risk assessment is not an exact 

20 science. In fact, by some, it's called "voodoo 

21 science." Louisiana's cancer rate is 19 percent 

22 higher than the national average. Given the 
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1 alarming statistics, we find the acceptable 

2 cancer risk from oil refinery pollution 

3 unacceptable. 

4 I will close at this point. We have 

5 brought a full contingency of people from 

6 Louisiana. We tried to divide up our comments, 

7 so we wouldn't take all the time on one issue. 

8 Thank you. 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Dr. Wright. 

10 Thank you for your testimony. 

11 Are there any questions for Mr. Zellinger 

12 or Dr. Wright? 

13 [No audible response.] 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Well, thank you both 

15 again. 

16 MR. ZELLINGER: Thank you. 

17 DR. WRIGHT: Thank you. 

18 MR. THOMPSON: So Katie Moore and Craig 

19 Beskid. 

20 And while they are setting in, next would 

21 be Marcelo Norsworthy and Makela Elvy. 

22 Good afternoon. 
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1 MS. MOORE: Hi. First, I'd like to thank 

2 you for this opportunity to comment. We really 

3 do appreciate it. My name is Katie Moore, and I 

4 work with the Louisiana Bucket Brigade. 

5 As Andy said, we are an environmental 

6 justice non-profit working in Louisiana with 

7 communities that live around oil refineries 

8 across the state. 

9 I would like to start by reiterating a 

10 point that several others have made and Dr. 

11 Wright just made that we live in a state where we 

12 can't rely on the state agency to adequately 

13 regulate and enforce refinery pollution. EPA 

14 Inspector General's report stated that Louisiana 

15 has the lowest enforcement activity level in 

16 Region 6, and that this was partly due to a, 

17 quote, culture image the state agency is expected 

18 to protect industry. That is from EPA's own 

19 report, and I think that that is powerful and 

20 indicative of what the state is in, in Louisiana. 

21 We rely in Louisiana and Texas on the 

22 EPA's regulations, so this rule is critically 
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1 important for us, and we appreciate the rule, and 

2 we are really excited about it. 

3 I didn't grow up in a refinery town or 

4 even in a remember state, so when I moved to 

5 Louisiana, I was really shocked by the reality. 

6 I was shocked by how often you drive down the 

7 highway and see flares with smoke coming out of 

8 the stack. I was shocked by the rate of 

9 emissions and by how close these communities are 

10 to these facilities, often as close as 20 feet 

11 away. 

12 Most importantly, I had been continually 

13 shocked by the stories that I have heard from 

14 communities that we work with. One that sticks 

15 out in particular, a man living near ExxonMobil 

16 in Baton Rouge told me that he wears a mask every 

17 time that he goes outside in his yard. Whether 

18 it is to cut his grass or to play with his 

19 grandkids or to wash his car, every time that he 

20 is outside, he wears a mask to protect himself 

21 from this pollution. 

22 He also said that Exxon had an explosion 
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1 that rained toxic debris down on his yard, and 

2 that the facility sent out a cleanup crew in full 

3 hazmat suits while he and his wife were there 

4 unprotected. 

5 I know that we have heard a lot of people 

6 speak to the horrifying realities of living next 

7 to these facilities, but I think it is really 

8 important that we keep that in mind, because that 

9 is the goal of this rule, is to lessen that risk 

10 and to protect people's health. 

11 So we are going to submit a series of 

12 written comments, but all of our comments are 

13 based on the idea that we want for the regulation 

14 at the federal level to really have an impact on 

15 the ground. Certain parts of this rule will do 

16 that and go a long way in protecting communities. 

17 In particular, we believe that the 

18 startup, shutdown -- the elimination of the 

19 startup, shutdown, and malfunction loophole is 

20 critically important. Refineries in Louisiana 

21 routinely exploit this loophole to emit 

22 over-permitted levels. So we support that 
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1 regulation. 

2 We also support updates on regulations to 

3 delay coking units, storage tanks, flares. All 

4 of these will translate into less emissions and 

5 into better health for communities. 

6 However, there are sections of the rule 

7 that need to go further. In particular, the 

8 regulations for fence-line monitoring must be 

9 strengthened. We believe really firmly that 

10 fence-line monitoring is one of the best ways 

11 that we can empower communities and protect 

12 community health. We know that communities often 

13 have very little information about what is going 

14 into the air. Many people have spoken about that 

15 today, and especially in the case of accidents 

16 and emergencies which happen frequently in 

17 Louisiana -- a refinery just had an explosion on 

18 Sunday -- it is critical that the communities and 

19 enforcement officials have information about what 

20 is in the air as it happens. 

21 We would ask that EPA would require a 

22 system that measures a range of hazardous air 
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1 pollutants, not just benzene. We ask that the 

2 monitoring system measures in real time, so that 

3 communities can have information as they need it. 

4 We ask this because asking communities to wait 6 

5 months between when a sample is taken and when 

6 they can access data on it is simply 

7 unacceptable. 

8 Communities are living in a state where 

9 they are in fear of these accidents, and so they 

10 need to have real-time data, and it needs to be 

11 widely and publicly available. 

12 Refineries don't have to operate this 

13 way. We have, as Andy said, six accidents a week 

14 at the 17 refineries across the state, and that 

15 doesn't have to be the case, but it is through 

16 sensible regulation and really making sure that 

17 all regulation will translate into real measured 

18 results for communities that we can move away 

19 from that. 

20 Thank you again. 

21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Moore. 

22 Mr. Beskid. 
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1 MR. BESKID: Good afternoon. 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon. 

3 MR. BESKID: My name is Craig Beskid, and 

4 that is C-r-a-i-g, B-e-s-k-i-d. I am Executive 

5 Director of the East Harris County Manufacturers 

6 Association. 

7 The East Harris County Manufacturers 

8 Association appreciates the opportunity to 

9 present comments on EPA's proposed refinery risk 

10 and technology rule. 

11 We represent 89 member companies, with 

12 131 facilities, including 5 of the largest U.S. 

13 refineries that will be directly impacted by this 

14 rule. Our members conduct business in a manner 

15 that protects that environment as well as the 

16 health, safety, security of employees, 

17 contractors, and the communities in which we 

18 operate. Our members take that responsibility 

19 very seriously. 

20 Here are EHCMA's specific comments on the 

21 proposed rule now. 

22 First, EPA justifies the requirement for 
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1 fence-line monitoring based on concern for the 

2 perceived uncertainty and emission factors for 

3 refinery emission source and the assumed lack of 

4 monitoring data in areas surrounding refineries. 

5 However, the Houston area has a long-term 

6 continuous record of air monitoring and history 

7 of air monitoring that complies with EPA 

8 protocols for measurements, location, and quality 

9 assurance. This monitoring network has collected 

10 a robust set of air quality measurements 

11 including benzene over its now-more-than-30-year 

12 history. 

13 Because of this 30-year history of 

14 measurement, a diverse set of meteorological 

15 conditions, economic conditions, emissions 

16 conditions, operating conditions, transportation, 

17 and population conditions are represented. 

18 Furthermore, because of the proposed 

19 monitoring method in the rule in the fence-line 

20 monitoring portion that EPA proposes, that 

21 proposal will be less effective in accomplishing 

22 what Houston's existing air monitoring network 
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1 already does quite well, which is to measure 

2 representative air quality, yet the rule doesn't 

3 allow any flexibility to do anything other than 

4 what EPA prescribes for fence-line monitoring. 

5 Additionally, the proposed rule offers no 

6 alternative to continuing fence-line monitoring 

7 data, even if extensive data measurements show 

8 that benzene levels or other levels never even 

9 approached the action level. 

10 Therefore, Houston area refineries should 

11 be allowed to use existing air monitoring 

12 networks in lieu of the proposed fence-line 

13 monitoring. 

14 The measured data from this network has 

15 consistently shown annual average values that 

16 have been well below EPA's proposed action level. 

17 We believe that the measured data from this 

18 network speaks for itself. Average annual 

19 benzene measurements for the network have dropped 

20 43 percent from the year 2006 to 2013, and these 

21 are values reported both by TECQ and Houston 

22 Regional Monitoring. 
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1 Next, flares and atmospheric relief 

2 valves are safety devices, which are used 

3 infrequently, but when they are used, they are 

4 designed to maximize safety and minimize harm to 

5 people and equipment. The proposed rule requires 

6 flares to meet flare tip velocity and visible 

7 emissions limits at all times when flaring, 

8 including events at the hydraulic limits of the 

9 flare design. This is concerning because flares 

10 at not designed to meet these limits under full 

11 hydraulic load but are designed to relieve 

12 pressure and maximize safety in cases of 

13 emergencies. The proposed requirements would 

14 make the usual intended operation of flares and 

15 safety devices a knowing and willful violation. 

16 In order to comply with these proposed flare 

17 requirements, industry will have to retrofit or 

18 construct additional flares and possibly boilers 

19 and added steam-assist capacity that can meet the 

20 proposed requirements. 

21 The new prohibition on safety relief 

22 valves releasing into the atmosphere will compel 
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1 industry to route these atmospheric relief valves 

2 to flares. However, most current flare systems 

3 are not designed to handle the load from relief 

4 valves. It is likely that these relief valve 

5 requirements will result in construction of new 

6 flares and potential new emission sources when 

7 EPA is actually discouraging the use of flares 

8 and/or the elimination of flares. 

9 In closing, I just would like to 

10 reemphasize that for areas that have a robust air 

11 monitoring network like Houston, flexibility 

12 should be provided in the rule to be able to use 

13 historical and existing data in lieu of proposed 

14 fence-line monitoring systems, and for flares and 

15 atmospheric relief valves, they should be 

16 recognized as safety devices which are designed 

17 to maximize safety and minimize harm to people 

18 and equipment. Restricting the way that it can 

19 be operated may result in increased safety risk 

20 and increased emissions. 

21 EHCMA, East Harris County Manufacturers 

22 Association, appreciates the opportunity to 
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1 provide these comments. We will provide detailed 

2 written comments by August 29th or the final 

3 closing date of the comment period. 

4 Thank you. 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Beskid and 

6 Ms. Moore. 

7 Are there any questions? 

8 [No audible response.] 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Again, thank you both for 

10 your testimony. 

11 Our next speakers, again, are Marcelo 

12 Norsworthy and Makela Elvy. If you are in the 

13 audience, please come forward. 

14 [Pause.] 

15 MS. ELVY: Thank you. 

16 MR. THOMPSON: And following these two 

17 speakers will be Erica Moll and Cindy Spoon. 

18 Good afternoon, folks. Thanks for 

19 joining us. 

20 Marcelo Norsworthy, we will start with 

21 you. State and spell your name for the court 

22 reporter, and then begin your testimony, sir. 
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1 MR. NORSWORTHY: I am Marcelo Norsworthy. 

2 That is M-a-r-c-e-l-o. Last name is 

3 N-o-r-s-w-o-r-t-h-y. I am a Research Analyst 

4 with Environmental Defense Fund, EDF, a 

5 non-partisan environmental organization with over 

6 750,000 members nationwide. 

7 For over two decades, EDF has been 

8 working to secure cleaner air and cleaner water 

9 for communities and families in Texas, and we 

10 strongly support the proposal in front of us 

11 today. 

12 The proposed rule for petroleum 

13 refineries is vitally important in improving the 

14 public health of communities, ensuring that all 

15 families are protected from hazardous air 

16 pollutants discharged from petrochemical 

17 refineries, and addressing the longstanding 

18 environmental justice burdens. 

19 On promoting healthy communities, oil 

20 refineries are a major source hazardous air 

21 pollutants that can cause lung disease, skin 

22 cancer, headaches, and immune system ailment, and 
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1 other health issues as well as increase the risk 

2 of cancer. 

3 This proposal is critical to 

4 strengthening our nation’s protections against 

5 these serious ailments. Of particular importance 

6 is the proposal to add fence-line monitoring of 

7 benzene. The entire stakeholder community will 

8 benefit from a measure which improves 

9 understanding of how much of the cancer-causing 

10 compound is emitted at a facility. Neighbors 

11 especially have a strong and abiding right to 

12 know about the toxic air pollutant discharges and 

13 to ensure safeguards are adopted to protect human 

14 health. 

15 On protecting our communities and 

16 families, the concentration of hazardous air 

17 pollutants from industrial facilities in Texas 

18 has serious impacts on human health and the 

19 environment. 

20 For the approximately 60,000 residents of 

21 La Marque, Texas, and Texas City, Texas, three 

22 adjacent petroleum refineries have a total 
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1 operating capacity of 760,000 barrels of crude 

2 oil per day. That represents more than 4 percent 

3 of domestic capacity that is handled in this 

4 small community. 

5 Further up the coast at three refineries 

6 near Port Arthur, Texas, the approximately 55,000 

7 residents live in a community that houses more 

8 than 1.1 million barrels of crude oil operating 

9 capacity per day. That represents nearly 6.5 

10 percent of capacity nationwide in this community. 

11 At the same time, The Texas City area 

12 refineries reported emitting 118,558 pounds of 

13 cancer-causing benzene in 2012, while the Port 

14 Arthur refineries reported emitting 44,093 pounds 

15 of benzene in the same year. 

16 Even Representative Olson noted that the 

17 Gulf has 48 percent of refining capacity 

18 nationwide; however, 48 percent of the population 

19 does not reside in the Gulf Coast. 

20 Fence-line communities across Texas and 

21 the nation, such as here in Galena Park, face the 

22 disadvantage of the health risks associated with 
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1 refinery emissions. These clean air standards 

2 are essential to protect their health. 

3 Administrator McCarthy has made a 

4 steadfast commitment to pursuing EPA action on 

5 environmental justice. Strengthening and 

6 finalizing this refinery rule proposal is a 

7 tremendous opportunity to take action on that 

8 commitment and advance the Agency’s dedication to 

9 improve the health and environment of 

10 overburdened communities. 

11 EPA’s own demographic analysis conducted 

12 for the rulemaking shows that more than half of 

13 those most at risk from refinery pollution are 

14 racial and ethnic minorities. The analysis also 

15 notes that people of lower incomes are 

16 overrepresented in communities near refineries 

17 compared to the national average. 

18 Dr. Bullard mentioned earlier the 

19 refiners are not refineries are not randomly 

20 distributed, and we know from the analysis that 

21 there are communities that are overrepresented in 

22 terms of health risks. 
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1 The health risks associated with refinery 

2 pollution are an environmental injustice, and 

3 these communities have needed further 

4 environmental protections for many years. This 

5 proposal is an opportunity for EPA to seize the 

6 moment on environmental justice and afford 

7 fence-line families the health protections they 

8 deserve. 

9 We look forward to EPA finalizing strong 

10 health-protective standards in the coming months. 

11 EDF will be submitting further technical comments 

12 on the proposal, including sections of the 

13 proposal that should be strengthened. 

14 Thank you for the opportunity to testify 

15 here on the front lines of the environmental and 

16 public health concerns. 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Norsworthy. 

18 Thank you very much. 

19 MS. ELVY: Hello. My name is Makela 

20 Elvy, M-a-k-e-l-a, E-l-v-y, and I am an intern 

21 with Air Alliance Houston. Thank you for this 

22 opportunity to speak today. 
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1 This summer, I have been doing some 

2 research to really understand the risks of living 

3 in EJ communities, and they are way too high, 

4 especially considering the demographics of places 

5 like Pasadena and Galena Park. For example, 

6 right here in Galena Park, 40 percent of the 

7 population is either under 5 or over 65, so we 

8 are talking about an extremely sensitive 

9 population that is inhaling these 20,000 tons of 

10 hazardous air pollutants. That is not 

11 acceptable. 

12 In Texas, 17.4 percent of the population 

13 of Texas is below the poverty line, but here in 

14 places like Pasadena, Baytown, and Galena Park, 

15 it is up to 20 percent. These communities are 

16 low-income communities of color that are burdened 

17 with multiple refineries and plants right next 

18 door to their schools. That is not acceptable. 

19 I took some census data and did some 

20 analysis to find out that within a half-mile 

21 radius of the ship channel right over there, 

22 there is 100,000 people affected by air 
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1 pollution, and about a quarter of them, a little 

2 over 25,000, are also affected from pollution 

3 coming from one or more of their local 

4 neighborhood refineries because they live within 

5 a half mile of those as well, and that is 

6 unacceptable. 

7 The proposed rule is good, and these 

8 modifications are needed, and I support them, but 

9 the truth is more can be done to protect these 

10 people, and more needs to be done to protect 

11 these people. You guys have the power to do 

12 that. 

13 I am not an expect, but a Senegalese 

14 conservationist once said, "In the end, we will 

15 only conserve what we love, and we will only love 

16 what we understand. How can you fully protect 

17 the lives of these people and measure their risks 

18 when they are not fully understood? I know that 

19 part of the rule requires fence-line monitoring, 

20 and I think these communities deserve real-time 

21 fence-line monitoring data because these people 

22 live in real time. They work in real time, and 
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1 they breathe in real time. That way, a true 

2 analysis and maximum benefits can be achieved 

3 through this rule. They have a right to clean 

4 air, and they can't wait any longer. 

5 So thank you. 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Elvy. 

7 I do have one question for you. You 

8 mentioned a percentage earlier, and I missed it. 

9 Regarding the residents in Galena Park, under 5 

10 and over 65, what was that? 

11 MS. ELVY: Forty percent of the 

12 population -- 

13 MR. THOMPSON: Forty percent. Thank you. 

14 MS. ELVY: -- is under 5 or over 65. 

15 MR. THOMPSON: Are there any questions 

16 from my colleagues? 

17 [No audible response.] 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both for your 

19 testimony. 

20 [Applause.] 

21 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon. Thank you 

22 for joining us. 
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1 Let's start with Erica Moll. 

2 MS. SPOON: That's Eric. 

3 MR. MOLL: Eric. 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Eric? 

5 MR. MOLL: Yeah. 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. They have "Erica." 

7 All right. We'll strike that. 

8 So for the court reporter, could you 

9 state and spell your name, and then begin your 

10 testimony, sir. 

11 MR. MOLL: Yeah. Eric Moll, E-r-i-c, 

12 M-o-l-l. I live in the east end of Houston. I'm 

13 a journalist. I have a background in 

14 environmental science, and I want to start by 

15 thanking you all but only within a very narrow 

16 context. That's kind of the global context. I 

17 will start with a few facts about the oil 

18 industry. 

19 For example, in Nigeria, where the oil 

20 industry isn't curbed by something like EPA, they 

21 have spilled between 13 million and 100 million 

22 barrels over the last 50 years, and when the 
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1 people were upset about that and tried to stop 

2 those excesses, the oil industry, Shell and 

3 Exxon, paid the government to massacre about 

4 2,000 people and displace about 100,000 more. 

5 So, in that context, I thank you all for 

6 preventing that kind of [expletive removed] from 

7 happening here, but based on any other metric, 

8 you are doing a bad job. 

9 Here's some examples. From 2005 to 2007, 

10 the Baytown Refinery didn't monitor sulfur. I'm 

11 sure you know about that, didn't monitor sulfur 

12 for 2 years, and you fined them $6 million for 

13 that. They process $58 million of crude oil 

14 every day. You fine them one-tenth of 1 day for 

15 2 years of not even measuring sulfur. What's up 

16 with that? Okay? Sorry. 

17 We've also got the Valero Refinery. Let 

18 me grab up these stats right here. In 1 year, 

19 2009, the Valero plant in Manchester violated the 

20 Clean Air and Water Act 397 times. In just one 

21 of those events, they reached 12 percent of their 

22 annual limit for sulfur dioxide, which is 24,000 
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1 pounds of sulfur dioxide. If a private 

2 individual dumped 24,000 pounds of sulfur dioxide 

3 somewhere, I mean, that's like terrorism, right? 

4 These are terrorist corporations. The people who 

5 came here to represent them are representing 

6 terrorist corporations that kill people every day 

7 all around the world and here in the United 

8 States. 

9 In that same event, they released all 

10 that sulfur, 12 percent of the annual limit. 

11 That released 1,000 times the legal limit of 

12 particulate matter, and the thing about 

13 particulate matter that people don't really get 

14 is that it is just based on the size of the 

15 particles. You don't even know what it is. It 

16 is just particulate matter. It is something 

17 underneath a certain size limit. We don't even 

18 know what we are being poisoned with every day. 

19 So thank you for having these fence-line 

20 monitors that are going to be put in, but I don't 

21 really have much faith in the fact that they are 

22 actually going to do anything since they are only 
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1 going to be monitoring benzene when there's 

2 dozens of other chemicals that are also killing 

3 people, and I don't really trust your standards 

4 because these chemicals are carcinogenic at any 

5 level, and then you set some standard and claim 

6 that it's okay. 

7 We have no actual firm understanding of 

8 cumulative effects of these chemicals. We have 

9 some studies for occupational exposure for an 

10 8-hour day for a healthy adult. We don't 

11 [expletive removed] know what this stuff is doing 

12 to people every single day, and the pollution is 

13 going to get worse. 

14 Tar sands are pumped here. Tar sands 

15 refining produces more toxins. We don't know 

16 exactly how much because it's not well studied, 

17 but we already have 500,000 barrels per day 

18 coming through Keystone South right now to Port 

19 Arthur. They are going to finish the Houston 

20 lateral extension and become additional 

21 refineries too. We don't even know what we are 

22 being poisoned with, and you need to do a lot 
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1 more. 

2 You need to understand that fence-line 

3 monitors are good. You need to have more of 

4 them, but the human beings in these communities 

5 are fence-line monitors. If people have cancer 

6 in a community that is a higher level than 

7 elsewhere, there's a problem, and your levels are 

8 too high. So I don't care what the numbers say. 

9 Your numbers are not important. Human life is 

10 important. Cancer is important. Asthma is 

11 important. And you need to walk through these 

12 communities, and you need to fund health surveys. 

13 You need to fund health care for all these 

14 people, and if you can't those cancer levels down 

15 to what they actually are for the rest of the 

16 country, what they should be -- it is not like 

17 one person getting cancer is okay. And if you 

18 can't get it down to those levels, you need to 

19 pay to relocate all these people. 

20 I know that you work within an incredibly 

21 inefficient bureaucracy, and you all waste 

22 incredible amounts of money every day, but maybe 
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1 you could spend some of that to actually provide 

2 basic health care and human rights needs to the 

3 people who are actually being poisoned by the 

4 industry that you work for, more or less. 

5 [Applause and cheering.] 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 

7 testimony. 

8 Ms. Spoon. 

9 MS. SPOON: Okay. My name is Cindy 

10 Spoon, C-i-n-d-y, S-p-o-o-n. 

11 I will start by saying that I definitely 

12 support stronger regulations on refineries for 

13 fence-line communities. 

14 Right now, I am going to use my time that 

15 you all are really listening, really hearing what 

16 people have been saying all day long. 

17 So I want to ask you all. I know you all 

18 aren't going to answer, but what have you heard 

19 today? 

20 I know what I've heard today. I heard 

21 the woman who said that she traveled all the way 

22 down here from Detroit, that she's a cancer 
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1 survivor, that eight members of her families have 

2 died from cancer, that she lives in a refinery 

3 community. And she is pleading with you all to 

4 please pass these regulations. 

5 I heard someone from the Steelworkers 

6 Union representing workers in these refineries 

7 saying these regulations will support workers, 

8 that workers are on board with this, that they 

9 are the first affected by these carcinogens. 

10 This one is crazy. I heard people from 

11 the Houston refinery community saying that there 

12 are eight carcinogens in their air at any time. 

13 At any given time, there are up to eight 

14 carcinogens that they are breathing. I heard 

15 them say that living in Manchester along the 

16 refinery fence line, their kids are 56 percent 

17 more likely to get cancer than just 2 miles away. 

18 And I heard them say that there are 86 schools in 

19 Houston that are in the top 5 percent of the 

20 nation's most toxic schools. 

21 I heard someone from Houston say, "We are 

22 literally dying for you to help us." 
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1 I also heard that youth, that brave young 

2 woman that came up here from Louisiana, asking 

3 you all, questioning if her generation could look 

4 forward to a livable, breathable future. So she 

5 is relying on and depending on the EPA to pass 

6 these regulations. 

7 If you have hearings like this and you 

8 have people traveling and telling their stories 

9 and talking about their trauma and what it is 

10 like to live in these communities and we all walk 

11 away from this whole thing and you all end up 

12 siding with industry and not passing these 

13 regulations, it will be shameful. It will be 

14 disgusting, and it will be a slap in the face to 

15 all of those people, to everyone here. 

16 I also heard -- he is not here anymore. 

17 I can see that he left, but some joker in this 

18 audience say that Houston is already in 

19 compliance with EPA standards. Now, you all must 

20 know that that is just a joke, that Houston has 

21 never, not one single day, ever been in 

22 compliance with the EPA clean air standards. 
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1 That's not true. 

2 Yeah. I think that if you do not pass 

3 these regulations, you will be upholding systemic 

4 racism. Most of these communities that live by 

5 these refineries are brown and black people, some 

6 undocumented people. 

7 I think community fence-line monitors are 

8 the bare minimum of what you must do. People 

9 have the right to know what's in their air and 

10 what they are being forced to breathe. 

11 As far as flaring goes, I think the EPA 

12 needs to set hard limits on flaring. 

13 I guess I would just close by saying we 

14 need the EPA to stand up for communities in 

15 places like Texas and Louisiana where our 

16 politicians are completely in the pocket of oil 

17 and gas, and that even right now, like I said, we 

18 are not in compliance with the standards they 

19 already have, so we are going to need you all to 

20 actually fight for people that live here, knowing 

21 that our state is not going to. 

22 That's all. 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you for 

2 your testimony. 

3 Before you go, let me just ask my 

4 colleagues if there any questions. 

5 [No audible response.] 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. Again, thank you 

7 both for your testimony. Thank you very much. 

8 [Applause.] 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Our next speaker are 

10 Arturo Blanco and Hillary Corgey. 

11 [Pause.] 

12 MR. THOMPSON: And following these two 

13 speakers is Neil Carman and Ying T. Gao. 

14 Good afternoon. 

15 [Technical interruption.] 

16 MR. THOMPSON: Our apologies. Good 

17 afternoon. 

18 MR. BLANCO: Good afternoon. My name is 

19 Arturo Blanco, A-r-t-u-r-o, B-l-a-n-c-o. I am 

20 the Chief of the Bureau of Pollution Control and 

21 Prevention in the Houston Department of Health 

22 and Human Services. 
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1 I am here today on behalf of the National 

2 Association of Clean Air Agencies, or NACAA, of 

3 which I am a past president. NACAA members 

4 include 42 states, 116 local air pollution 

5 control agencies that partner with EPA to 

6 implement and enforce the Clean Air Act. I am 

7 pleased to have the opportunity to testify and to 

8 provide some initial reactions to EPA's recently 

9 proposed risk and technology review standards for 

10 the petroleum refinery sector. 

11 NACAA has long been concerned about 

12 emissions of hazardous air pollutants from the 

13 refineries. According to EPA, refinery emissions 

14 include benzene, 1,3-butadiene, naphthalene, and 

15 other compounds which are associated with a 

16 variety of adverse health effects, including 

17 cancer, neurological effects, blood disorders, 

18 damage to the liver, skin illnesses, the 

19 depression of the immune system, and other 

20 serious disorders. 

21 Additionally, because of their locations, 

22 many petroleum refineries pose special 
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1 environmental justice concerns. NACCA believes 

2 these sources should be well controlled, and the 

3 public health should be afforded the maximum 

4 protection the law provides. 

5 In light of the serious public health 

6 concerns and because the current standards for 

7 these source categories are outdated, NACAA fully 

8 supports EPA's efforts to address emissions from 

9 petroleum refineries. We are pleased that EPA 

10 has proposed a rule that calls for additional 

11 measures for these sources, which include 

12 requirements related to fence-line monitoring, 

13 flaring, startup, shutdown, malfunction, storage 

14 tanks, and delayed coking units. 

15 During the comment period, NACAA will 

16 continue to review the proposed rule and submit 

17 more complete written comments by the deadline. 

18 However, based on our preliminary review, today I 

19 would like to raise issues for further 

20 consideration and offer some suggestions to 

21 ensure that the proposed rule is successful. 

22 A couple of points, fence-line monitoring 
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1 and risk assessment. On fence-line monitoring, 

2 EPA's proposal would require it specifically 

3 includes an annual average benzene concentration 

4 to be measured using 2-week passive samples 

5 placed at the refinery's perimeter. NACAA fully 

6 supports a fence-line monitoring requirement. 

7 However, our member agencies have concerns about 

8 the use of passive monitoring over a 2-week 

9 period rather than using real-time monitoring. 

10 For example, it could be difficult to 

11 determine when a spoke in emissions actually 

12 occurred, or worse, emission spikes may not be 

13 flagged at all if they are average within 2 

14 weeks' worth of data. Additionally, there would 

15 be a lifetime in the availability of the data to 

16 regulatory authorities and the public. We 

17 recommend EPA more thoroughly analyze the 

18 benefits and costs of real-time versus passive 

19 monitoring before issuing a final rule. 

20 NACAA urges EPA to opt for the strategy 

21 that provides the best information that is most 

22 accessible for the public, the regulators, and 
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1 for the facilities themselves, and provide a 

2 means to approve alternative, equivalent 

3 fence-line monitoring. 

4 While NACAA supports a benzene national 

5 level, we have concerns about the actual level of 

6 9 micrograms per cubic meter that EPA proposed. 

7 Benzene is a carcinogen associated with serious 

8 health effects. 

9 Houston conducted a study that concluded 

10 that average benzene concentrations and all 

11 monitors, including those in industrial areas 

12 near petroleum refineries, are considerably below 

13 the proposed actual level, even before the 

14 background adjustment. So NACAA members are 

15 concerned that the proposed actual level is too 

16 high and will not provide any significant health 

17 protection to the public. We encourage EPA to 

18 examine all available data and reconsider what 

19 the best actual level should be. 

20 On risk assessment, NACAA shares EPA's 

21 goal of protecting public health. However, the 

22 proposal states that using MACT allowable 
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1 emissions, the estimated maximum individual 

2 lifetime cancer risks are up to 100 in 1 million, 

3 and that the risks are acceptable. We have 

4 serious concerns with this level of risk. 

5 Moreover, NACAA has repeatedly 

6 recommended improvements to EPA's risk assessment 

7 methodologies during numerous rulemakings. If 

8 conducted properly, an improved risk assessment 

9 could show that the risk are even higher than the 

10 already unacceptable levels EPA has estimated. 

11 We strongly recommend that EPA reevaluate 

12 the risks related to petroleum refinery emissions 

13 based on our recommended perimeters and ensure 

14 that the final rule adequately protects public 

15 health, consistent with the mandates of Section 

16 112 of the Clean Air Act. 

17 I thank you for this opportunity to 

18 testify. As I stated earlier, these are NACAA's 

19 preliminary reactions, and the association will 

20 submit additional comments by the deadline. 

21 I am happy to answer any questions you 

22 have. 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Blanco. 

2 Ms. Corgey. 

3 MS. CORGEY: My name is Hillary Corgey. 

4 H-i-l-l-a-r-y. Last name, C-o-r-g-e-y. I am a 

5 researcher at Public Citizen, and we will be 

6 submitting comments before the deadline period. 

7 A little bit about myself, I am a native 

8 Houstonian , grew up in Aldine. Although Aldine 

9 is far away from the Houston Ship Channel, it 

10 still has some of the worst air quality in 

11 Houston, with 2012 readings for PM2.5 above 

12 readings for Baytown, an area that is actually in 

13 the Ship Channel. 

14 Due to the poor air quality, I grew up 

15 with moderate to severe asthma. I frequently had 

16 to be rushed to the emergency room as a child, 

17 often every year. Some nights, I had to sleep 

18 sitting up, because when I laid down I felt like 

19 I was suffocating. I had to use an albuterol 

20 breathing machine every day, and the school 

21 wouldn’t let me carry my inhaler around, even 

22 though I often had asthma attacks on the 
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1 playground. If I got sick, another child or a 

2 teacher had to go to the other side of the school 

3 and get the nurse, because the school said that 

4 the inhaler I used, it could be used to save my 

5 life, but it could be used as a recreational 

6 drug. 

7 When I was growing up, my family didn’t 

8 know why I had such severe problems with asthma, 

9 and it is a condition that I still have to do 

10 treatment for. I didn’t know for most of my life 

11 that it might be connected to the pollution 

12 coming from the Ship Channel. As I have done 

13 research on the pollution in the Houston area, I 

14 have found out that the chemicals being emitted 

15 from refineries are affecting the health of 

16 Houstonians far away from the Ship Channel. A 

17 huge chunk of the northern portion of Houston has 

18 high rates of respiratory disease. The reason 

19 for this might be because it is upwind from the 

20 Houston Ship Channel. 

21 Although we are pleased to see new rules 

22 emerge around refineries, a lot more needs to be 
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1 done about the current situation. Last year the 

2 Healthy Ports Communities Coalition, or HPCC, did 

3 a survey of residents living in the Port of 

4 Houston area. Twenty-nine percent of residents 

5 from Pasadena self-reported that they had asthma 

6 or another respiratory disease, and 21 percent of 

7 respondents said they had a child in the 

8 household with asthma or another respiratory 

9 disease. Other studies confirm this high 

10 respiratory disease burden on the residents of 

11 northern and central Pasadena. 

12 There are three refineries that cause 

13 concern to community members in Pasadena, a city 

14 south of here that is host to over a hundred 

15 chemical plants and refineries. These refineries 

16 include Houston Refinery, Shell Deer Park, and 

17 Pasadena Refinery. These refineries have had 41 

18 upset events recorded by TCEQ since 2013 that 

19 have released more than 3.9 million pounds of 

20 toxic chemicals into the air of Pasadena 

21 residents. We have received preliminary data on 

22 how these events affect children in the area. In 
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1 three Pasadena ISD schools near refineries -- the 

2 De Zavala Middle School, Kruse Elementary, and 

3 Pasadena High School -- we see a consistent trend 

4 of absences on the day of and day after upset 

5 events. Children are more prone to getting sick 

6 from chemical exposure, and this may lead them to 

7 miss school. We need to keep the students of 

8 Pasadena safe from toxic chemicals by 

9 strengthening current rules and reducing 

10 emissions. 

11 Earlier, you heard about the effect of 

12 1,3-butadiene on cancer rates in the Ship 

13 Channel. I won't go over that, but it should be 

14 noted that there is no safe level of exposure of 

15 cancer-causing chemicals like 1,3-butadiene, and 

16 children are especially susceptible to these 

17 chemicals. 

18 The EPA must take corrective and timely 

19 action against violators that actually results in 

20 better processes and improves public health. For 

21 Pasadena Refinery, the amount of fines issued by 

22 the EPA for Clean Air Act violations within a 5- 
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1 year period amounted to less than 30 seconds of 

2 profit for their parent company during fiscal 

3 year 2012. This is not an effective deterrent 

4 against polluting. 

5 Pasadena Refinery continues to be on an 

6 EPA watch list for high-priority violations that 

7 have gone on for years. The EPA needs to be more 

8 proactive when it comes to refineries that 

9 violate the law for years and damage public 

10 health. 

11 The amount of chemicals that have 

12 unstudied health impacts and are found from 

13 emissions in refineries in the Houston area is 

14 absolutely appalling. There are tens of 

15 thousands of chemicals of which little is known 

16 even though the study of them is mandated by 

17 federal law. The EPA’s own site lists health 

18 impacts of certain chemicals, and those have 

19 various gaps in knowledge. Even commonly found 

20 chemicals at refineries have unknown health 

21 impacts on children, fetal development, organs 

22 and systems in the human body, and no information 
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1 on whether it causes cancer. Even less is known 

2 about when these chemicals are combined together 

3 in a toxic soup, and people are exposed to them 

4 on a short- or long-term basis. 

5 The EPA needs to do an up-to-date health 

6 risk and impact assessment of the cumulative 

7 effects of these refinery chemicals on 

8 communities and children. These people have a 

9 right to know. 

10 The EPA needs to mandate safer 

11 technologies and systems for refineries. Safer 

12 systems need to be required, as well as leak 

13 detection and repair requirements. Dangerous 

14 chemicals like hydrofluoric acid needs to be 

15 phased out or concentrations need to be lowered. 

16 According to a recently released report 

17 that analyzed vulnerability zones, Pasadena 

18 Refinery’s stockpile of hydrofluoric acid puts 

19 over 756,000 people living within 9.3 miles at 

20 risk should an accident occur. This means that 

21 people who go to a baseball game at Minute Maid 

22 Park in Downtown Houston, 9 miles away, can be 
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1 put in danger. The 49,000 students that go to 

2 the University of Houston and Texas Southern 

3 University can be put in danger. 

4 I will wrap this up. 

5 Remember that as regulators, you have a 

6 duty to protect public health, and federal law 

7 mandates that you protect the health of 

8 underserved communities from polluting 

9 refineries. 

10 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Corgey. 

11 Are there any questions for Mr. Blanco or 

12 Ms. Corgey? 

13 [No audible response.] 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both for your 

15 testimony. 

16 [Applause.] 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Hello again, and thank you 

18 for joining us. 

19 Mr. Carman? 

20 MR. CARMAN: My name is Neil Carman. I 

21 am the Clean Air Program Director for the Lone 

22 Star Chapter of the Sierra Club. My name is 
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1 spelled N-e-i-l, C-a-r-m-a-n. 

2 I have been dealing with issues of 

3 refineries for over 34 years, 12 years as a state 

4 officially here in Texas, and 22 years with the 

5 Sierra Club. 

6 I am very concerned about the rulemaking 

7 that EPA proposed. For example, the flares, I 

8 believe that flares are open-tipped incinerators. 

9 They are not designed to adequately combust 

10 benzene and many of the aromatic hydrocarbons, 

11 especially when we see smoking from flares. The 

12 evidence of smoking is extensive, not just here 

13 in Houston but in Texas, Louisiana, many of the 

14 refineries I've visited through Sierra Club and 

15 when I was a state official, a long time ago. 

16 But anyway, flaring and smoking is a big problem. 

17 This rule says that visible emissions 

18 from the flares are acceptable up to so many 

19 minutes. There should be zero visible emissions 

20 from the flares. If the flares are smoking, they 

21 are emitting too much unburned waste gases, and 

22 when you see smoking, you can have the production 
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1 of aromatic hydrocarbons, from benzene to the 

2 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, many human 

3 carcinogenic agents. But the fundamental problem 

4 with the flares is there is no real-time 

5 monitoring of any of the organic hazardous air 

6 pollutants, whether it's benzene or butadiene or 

7 the PAHs that are being emitted. 

8 So I think it's inexcusable that any 

9 visible emission should be allowed. If they were 

10 not allowed, then the industry would be forced to 

11 use things like flare gas recovery systems, which 

12 there are several refineries here in Houston and 

13 some in Port Arthur that are using this 

14 technology, but that could be very useful to 

15 prevent a lot of the flaring. 

16 Also, in consent decrees that the Sierra 

17 Club Environment Texas got with Shell Deer Park's 

18 refinery, with the Chevron Phillips Chemical 

19 plant, those plants agreed to do, in the consent 

20 decree, a flare mapping, which the state had 

21 required for over 10 years ago but had not been 

22 properly done and also flare minimization 
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1 studies, and to reduce the emissions from upsets 

2 and the flaring. 

3 The companies did that compliance with a 

4 consent decree in an expeditious manner, less 

5 than the 5 years that we had agreed to, and it 

6 basically proves that these companies, these 

7 refineries have the engineering knowledge. They 

8 have the resources and the skills and money to 

9 reduce their upsets dramatically in a very rapid 

10 way. 

11 But this rule, I don't think goes far 

12 enough, and there is not real-time monitoring, 

13 either from the flares or along the fence lines, 

14 and I did a lot of monitoring myself when I 

15 worked for the state around large refineries. 

16 There is definitely issues about the benzene and 

17 all the organic HAPs, butadiene, and all the 

18 other chemicals that are being emitted, but yet 

19 there is no monitoring required. 

20 Even though there has been some 

21 monitoring here in the Houston area, that 

22 monitoring, in my view, is badly flawed. The 
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1 monitoring either by the state or by industry is 

2 often sited at locations that might be too far 

3 away from those facilities to basically reduce 

4 the levels that might show up, the peak levels, 

5 and also, I think that the monitoring is flawed 

6 because there's a lot of averaging that's done. 

7 That's one of the concerns I have about 

8 this proposed MACT rule with the passive 

9 monitoring. I don't think this long-term 

10 averaging over several weeks -- in my experience 

11 of 12 years with the state, anytime you average 

12 over 30 minutes to an hour, you are going to see 

13 a dramatic reduction in the peak concentrations. 

14 I have a very dim view of any kind of 

15 monitoring that averages more than 30 minutes to 

16 an hour. So you want real-time data if you are 

17 going to get the best estimates of what might be 

18 occurring at the property line. 

19 Finally, I want to emphasize that we know 

20 from aerial flyovers here in the Houston Ship 

21 Channel over 10 years ago that all of these 

22 refineries and chemical plants were vastly 
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1 under-reporting their estimated organic chemicals 

2 by a factor of 6 to 12 times, and that has been 

3 suspected for years, even though their TRI 

4 numbers were declining, but those were aerial 

5 flyovers as part of the Texas air quality ozone 

6 studies along the Houston Ship Channel. They 

7 didn't stop at Houston. They went to 

8 Beaumont-Port Arthur. They went to Corpus 

9 Christi, Texas City. Everywhere they went with 

10 those flyovers, they found vast underreporting, 

11 and it is easy to do if there's no real-time 

12 monitoring of benzene and these organic HAP 

13 pollutants, because the refineries, the chemical 

14 industry is not required to do it. 

15 They need to be required to do it, and 

16 that's what needs to be in this rule, is 

17 real-time monitoring on the flares and also 

18 fence-line monitoring. 

19 Thank you. 

20 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

21 State your name, and spell it for the 

22 court reporter. Then you can give your 
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1 testimony. 

2 MR. GAO: Good afternoon, everybody. My 

3 name is Ying Gao. First name, Ying, Y-i-n-g. 

4 Middle initial T. Last name, Gao, G-a-o. 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

6 MR. GAO: I work for Camsco, C-a-m-s-c-o, 

7 as the Science Director, and the Camsco 

8 manufactures sorbent tubes for fence-line 

9 monitoring of benzene. We make our products here 

10 in Houston. 

11 Of course, we have business interest in 

12 the new regulation, but I am not here to talk 

13 about that today. For those who are interested 

14 in monitoring devices, I will be collecting 

15 business cards at the gate after this. But I am 

16 here to talk as a scientist and also as a 

17 resident in Houston. 

18 As a scientist, I think the choice of 

19 passive sampling sorbent tubes on fence line 

20 makes so much sense. It is reliable, economical, 

21 an scientifically sound. It uses no electricity 

22 during sampling, and it is easy to handle and 
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1 shop. All of these merits have been recognized 

2 and utilized by other countries, especially 

3 countries in EU and in Asia. 

4 I understand that different monitoring 

5 methods or habits, pluses and the minuses, but at 

6 this moment, we are glad to see EPA's movement in 

7 favor of the passive sorbent tube monitoring. 

8 Now let me talk as a citizen in Houston. 

9 Two weeks ago, I took two guests to the Sam 

10 Houston Board Tour along the Ship Channel. The 

11 smell was so bad and so strong that it literally 

12 ruined the trip, and I had to comfort my guests 

13 by saying, "Well, it's only 2 hours. We will be 

14 okay." See, there are people working here 24 

15 hours a day, living here, but it makes me think 

16 what happens to those people who work on the site 

17 and live by the site. 

18 The Sam Houston Boat Tour is supposed to 

19 provide a sense of pride, but now it provides 

20 more of a sense of shame. 

21 I have personally traveled to Texas City 

22 to visit refineries. I don't need a scientific 
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1 instrument to tell the pollution. My nose is 

2 more than adequate. 

3 Actually, I have friends who are oil 

4 engineers who quit their jobs just to move away 

5 from that area. We constantly hear that the 

6 population in Houston is booming, people are 

7 attracted by this oil and gas industry and the 

8 high-paid jobs, but we also have moving away 

9 because of the fear. We need to listen to those 

10 people. 

11 To wrap up, I hope that we do more 

12 monitoring on more compounds, in more industrial 

13 processes, and in more residential areas. How 

14 about the fracking sites? How about the Ship 

15 Channel? How about the Keystone Pipeline 

16 terminals? Just because we have big industry 

17 here doesn't mean we have to have big pollution. 

18 I hope we bring back our pride and grace 

19 the next time we take somebody to a Ship Channel 

20 Tour or through Texas City. 

21 Thank you. 

22 [Applause.] 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Gao and Mr. 

2 Carman. 

3 I have no questions. Are there any 

4 questions? 

5 [No audible response.] 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Gentlemen, thank you both 

7 very much. 

8 Our next speakers are Sparsh Khandeshi 

9 and Ron S-e-i-f-e-r-t, Seifert. 

10 [Pause.] 

11 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon, gentlemen. 

12 Mr. "Khandeshi." Is that correct? 

13 MR. KHANDESHI: That's correct. 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. I would like to 

15 begin with you, if you will state and spell your 

16 name for the court reporter, and then begin with 

17 your testimony, sir. 

18 MR. KHANDESHI: Sure. My name is Sparsh 

19 Khandeshi. It's spelled S-p-a-r-s-h. Last name 

20 is Khandeshi, K-h-a-n-d-e-s-h-i. 

21 First, thank you all for coming out to 

22 Houston to hear from the community and advocates 
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1 on the refinery rule. We appreciate all the hard 

2 work that EPA has put into this rule, and 

3 hopefully, it finalizes a very strong rule to 

4 protect the community. 

5 I want to draw, I guess, attention to 

6 four main points about the rule. First is I 

7 believe EPA's risk analysis underestimates 

8 exposure to toxic pollution and total risk. 

9 Second is EPA needs to prohibit routine flaring 

10 and all flaring full stop. Third, the fence-line 

11 monitoring proposal, while a good, positive first 

12 step, needs to be improved to protect the public 

13 health, and four, EPA needs to address the 

14 hydrogen cyanide emissions problem that EPA 

15 learned about through the ICR coming from fluid 

16 catalytic cracking units. 

17 To start, EPA's risk analysis is based on 

18 the ICR, Information Collection Request, that it 

19 conducted in 2010 and 2011. EPA required 

20 refineries to submit emissions based on an 

21 updated emissions protocol, but it is unclear to 

22 me -- and you can correct me if I am wrong -- 
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1 that EPA knows which emission factors exactly 

2 refineries used to report the emissions. In many 

3 cases, it may be that refineries relied on 

4 inaccurate emissions factors that underestimate 

5 emissions. 

6 One course, I believe, that emissions are 

7 significantly underestimated from are refinery 

8 heaters and boilers. The AP-42 emission factors 

9 and L&E emission factors assume that refineries 

10 burn natural gas, but that is not the case. The 

11 refinery fuel gas that these facilities burn have 

12 much higher levels of hazardous air pollutants in 

13 the gas than regular natural gas, and that could 

14 easily result in much higher emissions. 

15 Additionally, a prior study by the 

16 Environmental Integrity Project shows that even 

17 when refineries apply these emission factors, 

18 they don't apply them correctly and report 

19 emissions much lower than -- 

20 [Technical interruption.] 

21 MR. KHANDESHI: I'm sorry. 

22 -- much lower than what the emission 
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1 factors would predict. 

2 The second source of underestimated 

3 emissions from refineries are tanks. A recent 

4 study from the South Coast Air Quality Management 

5 District found that emissions from refineries are 

6 severely underestimated, and they determined that 

7 the sources underestimation was tanks. Their 

8 final conclusion was that part of the reason for 

9 the underestimated emissions is poorly maintained 

10 and operated tanks, but also that the emission 

11 factors themselves do not predict emissions from 

12 properly functioning tanks accurately. 

13 Third, the ICR emissions inventory, 

14 emissions for flares, are significantly 

15 underestimated. Currently, flares are not 

16 monitored for flow, and when they are monitored 

17 for flow, it is not clear that the flow monitors 

18 are accurate. The emissions submitted are based 

19 on those flow monitors and other engineering 

20 estimates. 

21 While we appreciate EPA taking action now 

22 to improve monitoring of flares, the ICR does not 
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1 have the benefit of that data, and therefore, EPA 

2 needs to take into account this uncertainty and 

3 adjust the missions accordingly. 

4 On to my second point about prohibiting 

5 routine flare. Flaring is when there is excess 

6 gas at a process unit and needs to be taken care 

7 of safely. Currently, refineries route that gas 

8 to a flare, but when a process unit is producing 

9 excess gas, that is an indication of improper 

10 design or practices. EPA knows that there are 

11 proven technologies in work practice standards to 

12 prevent this flaring either through flare gas 

13 recovery units and strict work practice 

14 standards. When flaring is absolutely necessary, 

15 EPA should take care of that through their 

16 enforcement discretion. 

17 On the third point, it is fence-line 

18 monitoring. While we appreciate EPA's innovative 

19 fence-line monitoring, it has not been designed 

20 to protect public health primarily. Instead, it 

21 has been designed to ensure that facilities are 

22 complying with current and the proposed 
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1 standards. We believe that EPA needs to 

2 reconsider the purpose of the fence-line 

3 monitoring project or program and reformulate the 

4 program for public health. 

5 Second, the fence-line monitoring program 

6 allows facilities to subtract essentially the 

7 background concentration of benzene, but it is 

8 not clear that the way it is set up fully 

9 encapsulates what is background concentration and 

10 what is actually concentration from refinery. To 

11 be more specific, during the 2-week average that 

12 the passive sampler is out there, the refinery is 

13 allowed to subtract the lowest reading from the 

14 highest reading. During some of that time, the 

15 lowest reading may be picking up emissions from 

16 the refinery itself, and that would then be 

17 subtracted from the highest reading, thereby 

18 inflating the baseline or background levels of 

19 benzene. And EPA needs to correct this problem. 

20 MR. THOMPSON: Mr. Khandeshi, your final 

21 thoughts. Your time has expired, sir. 

22 MR. KHANDESHI: I guess the rest, I will 
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1 put into the record through written comments, but 

2 I appreciate the time and the hard work that EPA 

3 has put into this rule. 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

5 MR. SEIFERT: Hi. 

6 MR. THOMPSON: Hi. 

7 MR. SEIFERT: My name is Ron, R-o-n, 

8 S-e-i-f-e-r-t. I organize a grassroots group 

9 called the Tar Sands Blockade. 

10 I will be brief. I won't take up all my 

11 time. I do really appreciate the things I have 

12 heard today from so many powerful voices about 

13 how this rule, and you all being here is very 

14 much rooted in community health, and I would also 

15 just like to suggest that there is another 

16 powerful group here that isn't getting names 

17 directly, and that is racism. 

18 The energy industry is systemically 

19 racist. What might get lost in these 

20 testimonies, given that it is just being written 

21 down, the folks that testify on behalf of 

22 industry are white man. The overwhelming 
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1 majority of community voices you heard are people 

2 of color. This industry targets low-income 

3 working-class neighborhoods, predominantly 

4 communities of color to build these petrochemical 

5 plants. All over the country, you all and your 

6 colleagues that tour around, where are the 

7 refineries in upper class white neighborhoods? 

8 They don't exist, right? 

9 It is the refinery rule. Do it. It's 

10 mitigating damage. Great. Let's have it. It's 

11 not nearly enough. There's no defining language 

12 in it that refers to the patterns of racism and 

13 the racial justice issues that this needs to be 

14 focused on. 

15 I don't know necessarily where EPA folks 

16 like you all come from as far as your backgrounds 

17 and what your defining commitments are, but 

18 really, as important as defending the clean air 

19 and water are, if the EPA does not have as a 

20 defining commitment, the deconstruction of 

21 institutional racism and racial justice as its 

22 primary commitments, these rules are always going 
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1 to be milk toast and are going to continue to 

2 disproportionately impact people of color that 

3 have borne the brunt of the worst parts of our 

4 society throughout history. This rule does not 

5 adequately address these issues and name them 

6 directly, and by not naming them, we only 

7 continue to allow perpetual systems of white 

8 supremacy, and racial divisions in this country 

9 perpetuate. 

10 I think that says enough. Cheers. 

11 [Laughter and applause.] 

12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 

13 testimony. 

14 Are there any questions from my 

15 colleagues? 

16 [No audible response.] 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Again, gentlemen, thank 

18 you both for your time and your testimony. 

19 Our next speakers are Katy Rowe and Chris 

20 Goetzman, and following these two speakers are 

21 going to be Perry Graham and Hilton Kelley. 

22 [Pause.] 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Katy Rowe. 

2 MS. ROWE: Hi. 

3 MR. THOMPSON: Hi. 

4 MS. ROWE: My name is Katy Rowe, K-a-t-y, 

5 R-o-w-e. I am with the Texas Campaign for the 

6 Environment. 

7 First, I wanted to thank you all for 

8 having this hearing today and receiving the 

9 testimony from folks. Thank you for that. 

10 I am here to say when it comes to matters 

11 of public health, the just and moral thing for 

12 the EPA to do is to protect people over corporate 

13 profit. It is unjust and unmoral to continue to 

14 allow the health of people living near refineries 

15 to be considered collateral damage for the way 

16 the multi-billion-dollar companies do business. 

17 The people of Houston have long been 

18 overburdened by the toxic industry emissions, as 

19 you've heard time and time again today. 

20 I am here to support the stronger 

21 responsibilities that EPA has proposed, and I 

22 also urge you to take them further to ensure the 
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1 protection of the people that live near these 

2 communities. 

3 You must close the loopholes that allow 

4 the refineries to release as much pollution as 

5 they want, with little to no accountability. You 

6 have to end non-emergency gas flaring, actually 

7 monitor emissions in fence-line communities, and 

8 alert them when they are in danger in real time. 

9 And you must take into account the people in the 

10 communities when deciding on and enforcing 

11 regulations on refineries and weigh that higher 

12 than the profits of the polluting industries. 

13 Thank you. 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Rowe. 

15 MR. GOETZMAN: Hi. My name is Christ 

16 Goetzman. It's C-h-r-i-s; Goetzman, 

17 G-o-e-t-z-m-a-n. 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

19 MR. GOETZMAN: So what I wanted to really 

20 comment on is that a lot has been talked about 

21 today in regards to the health costs of petroleum 

22 refineries in the area, and that's a really 
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1 important interpretation of these new regulatory 

2 measures, namely how they protect the people in 

3 the area. 

4 But another thing that we could comment 

5 on that's not really being commented on -- and I 

6 hate when these discussions devolve into this. 

7 The most important thing is the health outcomes. 

8 But another thing that we can think about 

9 is the way that we subsidized fossil fuel 

10 industries in America right now, there's numerous 

11 direct financial mechanisms that have this 

12 effect. There's other things that are less 

13 commented on, though; namely, these sort of 

14 externalizing costs. So it's the people around 

15 the Valero Refinery in Manchester that make the 

16 Valero Refinery so successful in a bad way. 

17 That's how it works. 

18 Right now, the context of this 

19 conversation is that there is a great burgeoning 

20 industry waiting in the wings right now in 

21 America to take control of energy needs; namely, 

22 renewable resources. Renewable energy, solar, 
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1 wind. A lot of experts have wondered why they 

2 are not more successful and why right now they 

3 are kind of a side show. A lot of the talk has 

4 been about the subsidies that the fossil fuel 

5 industry receives both direct and through these 

6 externalities. 

7 So the point is any attempt to connect 

8 the externalities of these companies with their 

9 actual profits, the market doesn't do it. It is 

10 a market failure. It is a step towards the right 

11 direction. It makes renewables much more 

12 competitive and makes our economy more diverse. 

13 It is really the future of the world, as many 

14 experts speculate. 

15 So when I hear that it's a bunch of 

16 values-oriented people against an economic 

17 industry and that's the argument, that's not 

18 really true. We highlight the human cost of 

19 these things, but we shouldn't forget that job 

20 creation can be a real outcome out of this. The 

21 renewable sector is being stifled by fossil fuels 

22 right now. Anything that makes fossil fuels 
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1 reflect its actual cost is going to really lead 

2 to a lot of economic boom in the United States, 

3 and we should think about that more. 

4 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 

5 testimony. 

6 Are there any questions? 

7 [No audible response.] 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Again, thank you for your 

9 time and your testimony. Thank you very much. 

10 [Applause.] 

11 MR. THOMPSON: Perry Graham and Hilton 

12 Kelley, if you are in the room, please come 

13 forward. 

14 [Pause.] 

15 MR. KELLEY: Sit here? 

16 MR. THOMPSON: Yes, sir. 

17 MR. KELLEY: I have a visual. 

18 MR. THOMPSON: Tilt it up just a little, 

19 the screen. That's perfect. That's perfect. 

20 That's perfect. Thank you. 

21 MR. KELLEY: As you are going to bear 

22 witness, these photos that you are going to be 
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1 watching is from Port Arthur, Texas. 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. And are you Graham 

3 or Kelley? 

4 MR. KELLEY: Excuse me? 

5 MR. THOMPSON: Last name? 

6 MR. KELLEY: Kelley. Last name, Kelley. 

7 First name, Hilton. And that's K-e-l-l-e-y. 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. 

9 MR. KELLEY: Is anybody else coming up? 

10 MR. THOMPSON: No, sir, not as of yet. 

11 So please begin your testimony. 

12 MR. KELLEY: Well, first of all, I'd like 

13 to say good evening. 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Good evening. 

15 MR. KELLEY: Thank you all for this 

16 opportunity. 

17 It is always a pleasure to come before 

18 the Environmental Protection Agency and educate 

19 you on what's happening on the ground in the 

20 various communities around our nation when it 

21 comes to pollution. 

22 About 3 years ago, I served on a National 
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1 Environmental Justice Advisory Council for EPA, 

2 and at the present time, I am serving on the 

3 Regional Health Equity Council under the Office 

4 of Minority Health to look at ways in which we 

5 can eliminate health disparities in low-income 

6 people in color communities that are 

7 disproportionately exposed to dangerous chemicals 

8 and other toxins. 

9 Port Arthur, Texas, is located on the 

10 Gulf Coast. It is about 100 miles from here. It 

11 is located right on the Louisiana-Texas border, 

12 and Port Arthur, Texas is home to one of the 

13 largest oil refineries in the world, Motiva. 

14 Motiva produces 620,000 barrels of oil 

15 per day. They went from 285,000 barrels of oil, 

16 maybe about 2-1/2 years ago, and because of this 

17 expansion, our residents are being more exposed 

18 to dangerous chemicals like you have heard today. 

19 Benzene, 1,3-butadiene, both of these chemicals 

20 are known carcinogens. They are being exposed to 

21 high levels of sulfur dioxide, sulfuric acid, 

22 xylene, and other dangerous chemicals that are 
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1 emitted off of the petroleum that is being 

2 processed around the clock. 

3 Motiva is the largest oil refinery in the 

4 Northern Hemisphere. Right next to Motiva, we 

5 have Valero. Valero is another major oil 

6 refinery. Then next to Valero, there is Chevron 

7 Chemical Plant. By the way, they just had a 

8 major emission event at their facility about 2 

9 weeks ago where one of their units or a pipeline 

10 to their ethylene unit blew up, and there was 

11 fire on the ground level. Then the flares went 

12 off, and the flares flared for more than 10 days. 

13 The black soot and smoke and fire that you see 

14 here, this is what we dealt with, with Chevron 

15 Chemical for more than 10 days. 

16 Then to the east of our community, which 

17 is only 52,000 people strong, there is Total Oil 

18 Refinery in Port Arthur. Next to Total Oil 

19 Refinery, there is BASF Chemical Plant. Down the 

20 road from them, we have the Veolia Incineration 

21 Facility in which, by the way, they just received 

22 the Syrian waste, chemical weapons waste. Before 
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1 that happened, they tried to bring in VX nerve 

2 gas waste from Indiana. They were successful in 

3 doing that. The United States Army, we fought 

4 them on it, but it is very difficult to win 

5 against the U.S. Army. 

6 Then the same Veolia Incinerator Facility 

7 tried to bring in 20,000 tons of polychlorinated 

8 biphenyls, PCVs, from Mexico to incinerate in the 

9 City of Port Arthur. 

10 Then we have our Ship Channel where we 

11 have ships up and down the channel all day long 

12 spewing diesel. 

13 Now, one of the reasons why I am kind of 

14 educating you guys on the number of industries we 

15 have in our communities, because there is a 

16 disproportionate number of industries located in 

17 Port Arthur, Texas. Port Arthur, Texas, is only 

18 about maybe 3 miles long and about a mile and a 

19 quarter wide, and we are sort of horseshoed in, 

20 and the open end, that's where our back is up 

21 against the Ship Channel. On a daily basis, we 

22 are smelling various odors and different types of 
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1 scents coming from our refineries or the chemical 

2 plant or maybe even the ship channel. 

3 We have one out of every five households 

4 that has a child or someone in it that has to use 

5 a nebulizer to breathe. We have to take 

6 breathing treatments, our kids, before they go to 

7 bed and when they wake up in the morning to 

8 remove the mucus from their sinuses. I kid you 

9 not. 

10 Lisa Jackson has visited our community. 

11 We fought to get a health clinic on the west side 

12 of Port Arthur, and we were victorious in doing 

13 so because of fine money that was imposed against 

14 one of the local refineries. The EPA worked with 

15 us on making this happen. We are very excited 

16 about that. We are appreciative of that. 

17 But it's one thing to have a clinic in 

18 your community, but yet you are still in the same 

19 danger and being pre-exposed every day. What 

20 good does the clinic do when you put the child, 

21 when you put the people right back in the same 

22 toxic conditions over and over and over again, 
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1 and then they go to the clinic and take medicine 

2 that is not going to work because they are 

3 constantly being exposed? 

4 There are technologies out there which 

5 can help to eliminate a lot of the health 

6 disparities that are plaguing our communities not 

7 only in Port Arthur, Texas, but right here in 

8 Galena Park, in El Paso, Texas, where there are 

9 refineries there. Richmond, California; 

10 Philadelphia; and further up north in Birmingham, 

11 Michigan, all those areas are being pre-exposed 

12 to dangerous toxins. 

13 What we are saying is this. When you 

14 have the smoking gun and then you have people 

15 displaying the illnesses that correlate with what 

16 they are being exposed to, it's a no-brainer as 

17 to what needs to be done. 

18 I have been fighting the environmental 

19 justice fight now for more than 14 years. I came 

20 up from the grassroots level with this. I never 

21 thought in a million years that I would be doing 

22 this sort of work. 
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1 I moved back to Port Arthur, Texas, from 

2 California. I am from Port Arthur. I moved to 

3 California. I joined the United States Navy. 

4 When I got out of the service, I decided to stay 

5 in California, but I went on to Port Arthur just 

6 to visit in 2000, and then I noticed that the air 

7 still smelled the same way from when I was a 

8 little kid. And my cousins would talk about the 

9 number of people that have died, and usually, we 

10 always anticipate that whenever someone dies, 

11 it's cancer-related. That's always the case. 

12 I just lost my first cousin's husband, 

13 who was a really good friend of mine. He just 

14 died 2-1/2 weeks ago. Cancer. And we watched 

15 it. It was a slow death. Hospice came to the 

16 house. He was still walking around, and they 

17 said there was nothing else they could do for 

18 him, so they sent him home. So he is sitting 

19 there watching television. We're laughing. 

20 We're having fun. Two days later, my cousin 

21 called me up and said, "You guys need to come and 

22 pay your respects. He's not going to make it 
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1 through the night." Well, he made it through the 

2 night, but he died like 7:30 in the morning. He 

3 was gone, and he was only 58, 59 years old. 

4 Paula Dodd. You guys don't know who I've 

5 mentioned, but Paula Dodd, there was a story on 

6 Al Jazeera America about 2 months ago, and the 

7 story depicted a family in Port Arthur, Texas, 

8 whom I hooked up this news reporter with, and her 

9 name was Paula Dodd. Paula Dodd lost her 

10 daughter to cancer, and Paula Dodd is my age. I 

11 am 53 now. If she was alive today, she would be 

12 53, going on 54. She lost her mother to cancer, 

13 and when she did the story for us, she told us 

14 about what had happened to her daughter. She 

15 herself was afflicted with cancer and never said 

16 a word about it. After that interview was done, 

17 I think it was about maybe 9, 10 months later. 

18 She passed away, as well. 

19 We know what we're being exposed to. We 

20 know the causes of the deaths, of the health 

21 conditions, but yet what are we going to do about 

22 it? All we are asking is to get these guys to 
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1 obey the Clean Air Act laws, the laws that are 

2 presently on the books. Enough money, you can't 

3 pay enough money to put someone, loved one, in 

4 harm's way when it comes to dangerous toxins. 

5 They can never come back. Money doesn't pay for 

6 a person's life. All the fines in the world -- 

7 "Well, my cousin died." "Okay. Well, we will 

8 give you $100,000, $500,000." No. We want a 

9 safe, clean environment to live in, and we are 

10 asking the Environmental Protection Agency once 

11 again to do the right thing. Help us to help 

12 ourselves and to protect our families. 

13 Thank you. 

14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Kelley. 

15 Thank you very much. 

16 [Applause.] 

17 MR. THOMPSON: Mr. Kelley, just one 

18 moment. Let me see if my colleagues have any 

19 follow-up questions for you, sir. 

20 [No audible response.] 

21 MR. THOMPSON: So, again, thank you. 

22 MR. KELLEY: And thank you all for the 
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1 opportunity. 

2 MR. THOMPSON: Yes, sir. 

3 [Applause.] 

4 MR. THOMPSON: At this time, I would like 

5 invite Brian Butler and Paige Powell to please 

6 come forward. 

7 [Pause.] 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Beginning with you, Mr. 

9 Butler. Good afternoon. 

10 MR. BUTLER: Good afternoon. Thank you 

11 all for coming here to Galena Park. Again, my 

12 name is Brian Butler. I am with Air Alliance 

13 Houston as well as the Healthy Port Communities 

14 Coalition, and my role with Air Alliance and the 

15 Healthy Port Communities Coalition is community 

16 outreach, so you all can imagine my involvement, 

17 my interactions as it relates to the refinery 

18 rule and how it really impacts people. 

19 I guess before I say anything, I just 

20 want to thank you for being courageous enough to 

21 consider refinery rules of this sort, fence-line 

22 monitoring. I'm not naïve about what that means 
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1 and the challenges that it will present to you 

2 all. 

3 But in saying that, passive monitoring is 

4 not what people need. It's not. People need to 

5 know what they are being exposed to, when they 

6 are being exposed to it, so they can limit their 

7 exposure. 

8 In the long time that I worked in Galena 

9 Park and Pasadena and Manchester and Deer Park 

10 and Pleasantville, when you are talking about 

11 refineries, the Ship Channel, the train and truck 

12 traffic, all these things are connected. 

13 I heard someone earlier today say 

14 something about, "We want to know where it's 

15 coming from, if it's this refinery." I think it 

16 is someone from the industry that mentioned 

17 something along the lines of, "Well, it's not 

18 from us. It's from them." We want something 

19 that tells us that. For folks in the community, 

20 it doesn't make a difference where it comes from, 

21 and that's my perspective, and that's what I am 

22 impacted by. 
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1 There is a doctor who shared a story with 

2 some of us about a young girl. She is about 5 

3 years old, lives near one of the refineries, not 

4 too far, and she takes a host of medications. 

5 When you see pictures of her, she's always riding 

6 her bike, but it's always indoors when she's 

7 riding her bike. Some of the medicine actually 

8 has adverse effects to her growth. It is going 

9 to stunt her growth, et cetera, et cetera. 

10 As Dr. Bullard so eloquently laid out 

11 before you guys about the social justice aspects 

12 of this, unfortunately, a lot of the folks who 

13 live along the fence line of refineries are 

14 low-income minorities, people who oftentimes 

15 don't have the political currency or the time or 

16 energy to really advocate for themselves, and so 

17 I, to a large extent, do that for them on a daily 

18 basis, keep them educated. 

19 Again, I am proud of the EPA for 

20 venturing into this territory of a rule, the 

21 fence line, one component of the rule being the 

22 fence-line monitoring, but it's not enough. We 
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1 need live, active monitoring. We need to measure 

2 things beyond benzene. That is not the only 

3 thing that is causing health impacts, and 

4 ultimately, we need to make the fines and 

5 penalties of industry not adhering to the laws 

6 significant enough where it is a part of the 

7 bottom line, "Well, we are going to make X 

8 amount. We can take 10 percent off of that 

9 because of the fines we will have to pay." 

10 As a kid from California, I come to 

11 Texas, and the political climate here is scary 

12 sometimes, where the powers that be in the 

13 regulatory bodies that are supposed to be 

14 monitoring things are so industry-oriented, and 

15 at the end of the day, public health is at the 

16 core of all this. Young kids like Hennessee and 

17 grandparents that you will see here in Galena 

18 Park or Pasadena or Manchester, that's at the 

19 core of it. 

20 I will finish with this one analogy or 

21 this one idea that I have. It is far-fetched as 

22 lofty, but I just wonder what things will look 
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1 like if the health of the surrounding communities 

2 of refineries were -- or I should say the bottom 

3 line or the profits that refineries make were 

4 connected to the health of the communities 

5 around, I wonder what that would actually look 

6 like. I just wonder what that would look like. 

7 Again, thank you for your time. 

8 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Butler. 

9 Ms. Powell. 

10 MS. POWELL: Hi. My name is Paige 

11 Powell, P-a-i-g-e, P-o-w-e-l-l. I work with Air 

12 Alliance Houston. I am an Administrative 

13 Assistant there. 

14 I don't go out into the communities and 

15 see everybody or do the monitoring. I don't know 

16 all the facts, the numbers, but I do know my 

17 experience. I know why I work there. 

18 I've lived in Houston for 30 years. This 

19 is my home. I had asthma as a child, and now I'm 

20 a mother, and I'm concerned for the health of my 

21 daughter. 

22 I have been fortunate enough to not live 
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1 in any of these sort of fence-line communities, 

2 but now that I'm trying to provide for my family 

3 as a single mom looking into buying a home, I 

4 can't afford to live in Montrose. I'm looking at 

5 places like Pasadena, and I cannot in good 

6 conscience move my child to that toxic town. I 

7 want to see, have a vision of Houston where all 

8 of the neighborhoods are like living in a home 

9 then and not be afraid for our health. 

10 Houston is the "petro metro," and we put 

11 all of our hopes in our economy on this petroleum 

12 industry. I want so much to be a part of that 

13 and to be proud of that, because it's what we've 

14 based our city on, and if we could just clean 

15 that up and make them more accountable, I really 

16 think this fence-line monitoring is a great way 

17 to go about that, but when we do see images of 

18 events, when we see all of this, like chronic 

19 toxicity and all of these cancerous gases being 

20 put out there, to really put those fines on them 

21 -- like the guy was saying they refine, one-tenth 

22 of one day's production, that is no deterrent to 
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1 doing these things. They know what they're 

2 doing. They know that they are putting these 

3 things out there, and there is just not enough of 

4 a financial deterrent for them. It's like, 

5 "Well, okay. No, we can pay $6 million or $30 

6 million or whatever it is because we're going to 

7 make billions next year," and it's not even an 

8 issue. 

9 So we need to like really rein in all of 

10 these externalities and make them pay for it. 

11 Once we pollute our world, once we poison our 

12 children, there is no going back from that. We 

13 only have one world, and I don't know how if we 

14 destroy our planet, we will destroy ourselves. 

15 When we were talking about the 

16 accessibility of the information, I have been to 

17 the TCEQ website, and I have pulled some 

18 monitoring data before. And it's not easy to do, 

19 so if and when this actually does get available 

20 to citizens, let's make it user friendly. I 

21 don't know who is going to be on the technology 

22 side of that, but that really is important 
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1 because knowledge without accessibility is none 

2 at all. 

3 Three of my grandparents have died from 

4 cancer. Everybody is, "Oh. Well, Anderson, we 

5 have the best cancer facility in the country." 

6 That's because we have the most cancer in the 

7 country, you know? If we could use those 

8 resources for renewables and if we weren't 

9 poisoning ourselves, we wouldn't have to create 

10 the solution, so let's just stop the problem in 

11 its tracks, and we know exactly where the problem 

12 is coming from, and you all are the ones to hold 

13 them accountable. 

14 So I please beg you to do so, and thank 

15 you for your time. 

16 MR. THOMPSON: And thank you for your 

17 time and your testimony. 

18 Are there any questions from the panel? 

19 [No audible response.] 

20 MR. THOMPSON: Again, sincerely, thank 

21 you both. 

22 [Applause.] 
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1 MR. THOMPSON: Our next speaker is going 

2 to be Sara Zarate, Z-a-r-a-t-e. 

3 MS. ZARATE: First of all, I want to 

4 thank you all for being here and being able to 

5 listen to us, and second of all, my name is Sara, 

6 S-a-r-a, Zarate, Z-a-r-a-t-e. 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 

8 MS. ZARATE: I think I've been hearing 

9 some of these people talking right now. I'm 

10 going through a lot. I'm one of the persons that 

11 I really need you to hear out, because right now, 

12 I don't know what I have. They have put me 

13 through so many machines already, and I'm having 

14 to try to find somebody to help me pay for all 

15 those bills. Why? Who brought these companies? 

16 Who is supposed to be responsible for that? 

17 I've got my husband. He's a kidney 

18 patient. Do you know how many? I can count 

19 seven people on my street that has cancer and 

20 died. Am I going to be the next one? 

21 And why should I have to be paying for 

22 these bills? I need some help. I mean for them 
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Toll Free: 888-445-3376

1 to be held responsible for our health. I am a 

2 housewife. He was my supporter. He had kidney 

3 failure. Somebody has to help him. Somebody has 

4 to attend him, and now me. When is anybody going 

5 to wake up and not hold us responsible for their 

6 doing? 

7 I can't count on my fingers how many 

8 machines they have put me through, and they can't 

9 give me an answer what I have. Why? Because 

10 they don't want to. Because it's going to be 

11 another person with either cancer, kidney, or 

12 something, and you all know it. 

13 Right now, I have my niece that lives one 

14 block from me, 8 years old for the same thing. 

15 She is in emergency room right now. They don't 

16 know if it's her kidneys. There's three people 

17 that I know of suffer from kidney, seven people 

18 cancer, and I need something. 

19 That's why I got out of bed and came over 

20 here to this meeting because you really need to 

21 hear, and we really need your help. Somebody 

22 somewhere in these companies have to pay for my 
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Toll Free: 888-445-3376

1 medical bills, because I shouldn't be having to 

2 pay for those medical bills. Somebody has given 

3 them the -- being able to provide those companies 

4 here, so why should I have to pay for that? I 

5 think the company should be held responsible for 

6 all our health problems that are here. 

7 It is pretty sad when you turn around and 

8 you have your neighbor, and, oh, tomorrow, she's 

9 gone because it's cancer. You go two houses 

10 down; they're gone because of cancer. Come on. 

11 Okay, I can understand one person, but seven 

12 persons down my block? And then they can't find 

13 what I have yet? 

14 I'm having difficulty breathing. I'm 

15 having lots of things going on, and they can't 

16 give me an answer, but yet they want me to pay 

17 the bills. Who is going to help me there? That 

18 is why I made it very, very -- I've made myself 

19 strong. I have to get up, and I have to go to 

20 this meeting, and I have to let them know what I 

21 am going through. I am one of these persons that 

22 you're seeing right now that has that health 
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1 problem, and he's one. 

2 So I hope you all really take into 

3 consideration, and I hope there is somewhere that 

4 somebody can open the doors and help me with all 

5 these bills that we can't afford. They are 

6 giving them the license to be able to work here, 

7 their factories, and they should be held 

8 responsible. 

9 I was the first one here before these 

10 companies. That's where it hurts. I was the 

11 first one here, and now, yeah, I could probably 

12 move, but who is going to give me the money to 

13 move to a better environment? Nobody is out 

14 there telling me, "You know what, you can go 

15 here. Will this help? You can go here, so we 

16 can remove you, so at least you could survive a 

17 little bit longer to take care of your husband." 

18 Thank you. Thank you, sir. 

19 MR. THOMPSON: Ms. Zarate, thank you 

20 also, and thank you and your husband for coming 

21 out today. We really appreciate it. 

22 MS. ZARATE: Well, you all really need to 
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1 see the part of the people that are right here. 

2 I have 36 years living in this area. I paid all 

3 my taxes, never been late. I think I deserve 

4 something from these companies, and what I'm 

5 asking is they need to pay those bills that I 

6 shouldn't have to pay. 

7 MR. THOMPSON: Well, again, we thank you. 

8 MS. ZARATE: Thank you, sir. 

9 MR. THOMPSON: Yes, ma'am. 

10 [Applause.] 

11 MR. THOMPSON: At this time, we are going 

12 to take a recess. We currently do not have any 

13 speakers signed up to speak. So, as soon as 

14 another speaker signs up and wants to testify, we 

15 will reconvene. 

16 Thank you. 

17 [Recess taken from 3:15 to 4:34 p.m.] 

18 MS. LASSITER: Good afternoon. I am 

19 going to reconvene the hearing for a few minutes, 

20 since we do have some speakers who would like to 

21 testify. 

22 Welcome to the hearing. My name is Penny 
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1 Lassiter. I am the Group Leader for the Refining 

2 and Chemicals Group, and here with me on the 

3 panel today, we are all with the U.S. 

4 Environmental Protection Agency. 

5 I am out of the Air Quality Office in 

6 North Carolina, as is Brenda Shine, who is 

7 sitting next to me and who is the Technical Lead 

8 on the refinery rule. 

9 Also representing EPA from Region 6 is 

10 Ruben Casso here. 

11 Just real quickly, I am going to hit a 

12 few highlights before I ask our next speakers to 

13 come up. We did propose this rule on June 30th, 

14 and it is currently open for public comments. 

15 The comment period closes on August the 29th, and 

16 just so you'll know, we do have court reporters 

17 here today. So there will be transcripts of 

18 these meetings, and they will be entered into the 

19 public record. 

20 In addition, you may submit public 

21 comments in writing until August the 29th. The 

22 comments that you submit in writing will be given 
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1 the same weight as the comments that you present 

2 orally today. 

3 Just a few logistics. We are asking our 

4 speakers to please limit your testimony to 

5 approximately 5 minutes. If you need another 

6 minute or two, since we don't have anybody 

7 waiting at this point, that will be okay. But 

8 there will be a light up here that will help you 

9 keep track of your time. So when you see the 

10 light go from green to yellow, you will know that 

11 you have got a minute left. 

12 Also, we will be taking a break here for 

13 dinner from five until six and then reconvening 

14 after six, and we do have speakers signed up at 

15 that point. 

16 With that, I am going to ask our next 

17 speakers if they would please come to the table 

18 together. Mr. Frank Borrego and Ms. Janette 

19 Sexton. Thank you. 

20 [Pause.] 

21 MS. LASSITER: So, Mr. Borrego, if you 

22 would go first, please, and if you wouldn't mind 
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1 for the benefit of our recorders behind you, if 

2 you would please spell your name. And if you are 

3 affiliated with a particular group, if you would 

4 let us know that, as well. 

5 MR. BORREGO: All right. My name is Fran 

6 Borrego. Frank, F-r-a-n-k. Borrego, 

7 B-o-r-r-e-g-o. I am a TOP member, but I am here 

8 on my own. I didn't coordinate anything with 

9 them. 

10 Go on? 

11 MS. LASSITER: Yes, please. 

12 MR. BORREGO: Well, I realize what I am 

13 about to discuss is not necessarily under the 

14 purview of EPA, but it does deal with a chemical 

15 plant, and I just wanted to convey my experience 

16 with this. 

17 Back in November of 2012, I started to 

18 experience -- it felt like a vibration. It 

19 didn't really have too much of an audio quality 

20 to it, but it was something I could feel in my 

21 ears. I go outside, and there is what sounds 

22 like a jet airplane, stationary, on the horizon 
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1 where the chemical plants are. I live 2 miles 

2 away from the chemical plants in Pasadena. I 

3 live like 2 miles south of it, south of the 

4 source. 

5 At the time, I didn't think too much of 

6 it, but by the next day, it was starting to 

7 irritate me, so I called it in to the Pasadena 

8 Action Line. I reported it. I asked when it was 

9 going to stop. It was disturbing. 

10 Well, once I did that, I tried to let it 

11 go and just be in my home and bear with it. 

12 About a week and a half had gone by, and my 

13 hearing starts to develop a real sensitivity to 

14 it, and my ears start to ring. It had gotten to 

15 the point where I was being woken up out of my 

16 sleep. I was dizzy in my own house, dizzy and 

17 nauseous. I was in pain. I was experiencing 

18 actual ear pain. 

19 So this time, instead of just leaving it 

20 to the Action Line to find the source, I went out 

21 and found the source myself. It was air products 

22 at 225 and Red Bluff. I was standing at the gas 
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1 station, far outside of their facility. It was 

2 what I know now as their hydrogen facility. It 

3 was a massive amount of vibration. I've never 

4 experienced vibration like that without actually 

5 being in contact with an object, and this 

6 facility must have been like three or four 

7 football fields away, 9- to 1,200 yards. 

8 So then I know the source. It sounded 

9 like a yet airplane when I was there, a massive 

10 amount of vibration. I go back home. I call the 

11 next day into the hotline, and I report it, tell 

12 them I am experiencing pain, my ears are ringing. 

13 I tell them the story, and that same afternoon, 

14 there is a change in sound. For the first time 

15 in the last week and a half, I am much more 

16 comfortable in my house. It had gone away. 

17 Basically, it had gone away. It was the first 

18 relief I had in a week and a half. 

19 So I'm very ecstatic that they've done 

20 something about it, but then the next day, the 

21 noise comes back, and that afternoon, I go to see 

22 what's going on. The noise is still there. 
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1 There was a sound of air venting, and the air 

2 venting had gone away, but the rest of the 

3 mechanical sound and the vibration and just kind 

4 of an oscillating sound -- it sounded sort of 

5 like a horn, a low-tone horn -- was still there. 

6 So I go back, I report it again on 

7 Friday, and again, the noise goes away. In my 

8 home, I'm comfortable again for that night, and 

9 then the next morning, it's back. So it did come 

10 back. I went back to the plant. I noticed that 

11 their vibration had diminished more, and their 

12 noise had come down some. So I'm letting it go. 

13 Then I get a visit from Code Enforcement 

14 6 days later from my initial reporting of it, 

15 Tuesday of the next week. She's there. She's 

16 asking me why I called. I'm like, "What do you 

17 mean why I called? You've been the plant. The 

18 plant has showed noticeable response to it." She 

19 tells me, "I don't know anything about that. Why 

20 did you call?" She was rude, and she seems 

21 irritated, and I just kind of went with it. I 

22 didn't want to agitate her more, and by the end 
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1 of the conversation, she seemed to be telling me 

2 it's just me. I told her, "No. I've talked to 

3 neighbors, they told me it was the compressor." 

4 Then she said, "Who do you work for?" and I found 

5 that a strange response. I go, "I don't work for 

6 anyone. My neighbor told me. I don't work for 

7 chemical plants, and my neighbor told me it was 

8 their compressors." She tells me, "Well, it 

9 doesn't matter because they don't fall within a 

10 noise ordinance, anyway." 

11 That's where it was left with that. I 

12 went into December, probably mid-December, and it 

13 was still bothering me really bad. So I wrote a 

14 detailed letter to the head of Code Enforcement, 

15 Sergeant Severs. He tells me -- well, actually, 

16 he doesn't respond at all. I sent it into him. 

17 He doesn't respond. 

18 Later on, I cc'd it to a Council person, 

19 and she contacted me then again in January to see 

20 if I was still having the issue. I told her yes, 

21 and I told her what it was like. I told her she 

22 could go to this gas station at the corner of 
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1 Strawberry and Harris, and if she thought it 

2 wasn't wrong, that would be it. But she went 

3 there, and she witnessed the noise. 

4 At this point, it's already -- that's 

5 probably a mile away from the plant, and she 

6 experienced this, so she went directly to the 

7 plant and told them. 

8 Later on, I was at the PCAC meeting. I 

9 am being informed that that was the first time 

10 they were ever notified of my complaint was when 

11 the councilperson showed up there. So I tried 

12 dealing directly with the people from this plant, 

13 and they have done nothing but deny it and 

14 stalled. They have never acknowledged that they 

15 were ever contacted until the councilperson did. 

16 They have been in violation for 2 years. 

17 I ha e recorded it. I have witnesses. I have a 

18 spectrum analyzer on my tablet that can show 

19 their frequencies. They are not supposed to be 

20 in excess of 5 decibels over ambient, and they 

21 are in the neighborhoods. 

22 The plant hired their own noise expert to 
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1 measure, because they wouldn't act on what I was 

2 telling them. When they hired their own noise 

3 expert and this took just until this last year 

4 for them to get the results together. The noise 

5 expert comes back with his results, and he is 

6 saying that they weren't in violation, and yet 

7 all the data the noise expert took was in an LEQ, 

8 which is averaging noise over time. The law, 

9 noise ordinance, calls for peak, instantaneous 

10 sound. So they constantly deny it. 

11 I suspected it was their compressor the 

12 whole time. This last summer, they had an OSHA 

13 reportable for a man working on their air 

14 compressor, and at the time, at the PCAC meeting, 

15 we were notified that they were doing maintenance 

16 on their compressor. Later, when we met with the 

17 noise expert, I inquired about that incident 

18 again, and they told me they were doing an 

19 overhaul on the compressor. I told them, well, 

20 maintenance and overhaul are two entirely 

21 different things. What happened? And then they 

22 tried to shift the blame to the worker, "Well, he 
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1 came in drunk, and he got dehydrated." I go, 

2 "Why do you have a drunk man working for you?" 

3 that being that. 

4 Anyway, in my dealing with this 

5 particular chemical plant, they have been 

6 dishonest. They have never acknowledged 

7 anything. They have gone around to the council. 

8 One of the councilmen that sits there now is a 

9 former employee of this company, and they have, 

10 as an employee, an ex-Mayor of La Porte. They 

11 will send that Mayor to the councilmembers, 

12 telling them, "Hey, we don't have any issues, but 

13 we're fixing it." It has just gotten very 

14 strange, the way they talk about this. 

15 Right now, they are in pre-shutdown, and 

16 they are saying -- they don't acknowledge any 

17 issue, but they are saying they are going to shut 

18 down and repair it, however they can manage to 

19 say both things at the same time. 

20 From the city side, I have never -- from 

21 asking questions about this plant, I found out 

22 they have had unreported spills, and they have 
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1 had injuries that have gone unreported with 

2 contractors. I found out about their nitric acid 

3 release back in 2010 that they released a cloud 

4 of nitric acid flowing over the 225, and the 

5 Pasadena police dispatcher was calling in. And 

6 even when she called in, she couldn't get them to 

7 acknowledge that this was an issue. 

8 MS. LASSITER: Excuse me. I'm sorry to 

9 interrupt you, but I do need to let Ms. Sexton 

10 speak. We are actually taking comments today 

11 specifically on the refinery rule, but -- 

12 MR. BORREGO: Well, my whole point is 

13 that it has been a horrible -- I mean, I 

14 understand that my situation doesn't deal with 

15 that specifically, but if they can get away with 

16 something, they will, and they need to be 

17 monitored. I don't believe that they are honest 

18 brokers or honest neighbors in what they do. 

19 MS. LASSITER: Okay. And if you would 

20 like, after we take a break, Mr. Casso is in our 

21 Dallas office here, and he may be able to provide 

22 you someone at the Federal EPA that you could 
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1 talk to. 

2 MR. BORREGO: I understand. Thank you. 

3 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

4 Thank you, Ms. Sexton. If you would 

5 please just spell your name for our recorders, 

6 and if you're affiliated with someone, please 

7 tell us that before you begin. 

8 MS. SEXTON: All right. My name is 

9 Janette Sexton, and that's J-a-n-e-t-t-e, 

10 S-e-x-t-o-n. I'm not affiliated with anyone. 

11 I'm just a private citizen. I really won't take 

12 very much of your time. 

13 I wholly support the EPA's proposal to 

14 add or increase fence-line monitoring of these 

15 plants. We really do need this. It's a matter 

16 of social justice. 

17 I have lived in the Pasadena-Deer Park 

18 area for the last 32 years, and before I moved to 

19 this area, I didn't have any respiratory 

20 problems. I didn't have any allergies. Since 

21 living in this atmosphere and this environment -- 

22 I live probably a couple miles south of Highway 
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1 225; it's called "Refinery Row" -- I have 

2 developed allergies. I have to take allergy 

3 medication, and this is all very foreign to me, 

4 very new. 

5 At one time, I was a member of the 

6 Pasadena Citizens Advisory Council, and it became 

7 very frustrating to me, because each month, I 

8 would go in and the plants would tell about all 

9 of the wonderful community services that they 

10 were providing, and at the same time, they were 

11 not reporting honestly their emissions, their 

12 flares and things that are harmful to the 

13 citizens of this area. 

14 So I wholly support the increased 

15 regulation, and I hope that you are able to 

16 really put it in place and really make a 

17 difference in our lives. 

18 Thank you so much. 

19 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

20 MR. BORREGO: Thank you. 

21 MS. LASSITER: Before you leave, I would 

22 ask Ruben or Brenda, do you have any questions 
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1 for our speakers? 

2 [No audible response.] 

3 MS. LASSITER: Okay, thank you. 

4 MR. BORREGO: Can I say one more 

5 observation? It can be off the record. 

6 I've been going to the PCAC meetings, and 

7 yes, they are very pro-industry. They are 

8 conducted by industry. The lady that runs them 

9 is hired by industry to hold those meetings, and 

10 they have a CAROLINE system here, and they barely 

11 started logging their incidents on their website. 

12 On their website, they will log maybe two 

13 activities. It's not even a page long. I have 

14 been tracking the RSS feed from the CAROLINE, and 

15 they will have like four or five reportings each 

16 day, but they disappear off the website, so you 

17 don't know what's going on. 

18 In the last month, there could have been 

19 50. I think I saw something like 70 RSS feeds 

20 from that website, but yet, if you go to the 

21 website and look at what's on there, it's only 

22 like two or three. So there is no real 
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1 transparency with the public. 

2 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. Thank you so 

3 much. 

4 [Recess taken from 4:52 to 6:03 p.m.] 

5 MS. LASSITER: Good evening. I am going 

6 to go ahead and reconvene the public hearing. My 

7 name is Penny Lassiter. I am the Group Leader 

8 for the Refining and Chemicals Group at the U.S. 

9 Environmental Protection Agency. 

10 Joining me this evening on the panel are 

11 Brenda Shine and Ruben Casso, also from EPA. 

12 This is the Public Hearing for the 

13 proposed refinery risk and technology review and 

14 resource performance standards. 

15 The EPA proposed these refinery rules on 

16 June 30th of this year, and the public comment 

17 period is open until August the 29th. 

18 Those presenting at today's hearing will 

19 be recorded. We have recorders here, and there 

20 will be a transcribe of everyone's testimony 

21 placed into the public record for this 

22 rulemaking. 
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1 In addition, if you would like to submit 

2 public comments in writing, you may do so until 

3 the close of the comment period, which is August 

4 29th. If you are interested in submitting 

5 written comments, please see one of the people at 

6 the desk in the lobby where you check in, and 

7 they can provide you with a paper of information 

8 on how to do that. 

9 With that, just real quickly, we are here 

10 to hear the comments that you have on the 

11 proposed rule. What you present orally today 

12 will be given the same weight as any written 

13 comments, and we will review and consider all of 

14 the comments that we receive when we finalize 

15 this rulemaking. 

16 In terms of logistics, I will call people 

17 in pairs. I will be asking you to come up and 

18 take a seat at the table. You will have 

19 approximately 5 minutes to present your 

20 testimony. We do have a light up here to help 

21 you keep track of your time. When you see the 

22 light go from green to yellow, you will know that 
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1 you are at the 4-minute mark. 

2 With that, I am going to go ahead and 

3 call the first two people that we have to speak 

4 this evening. That is Ms. Rosario Martinez and 

5 Mr. Steve "Holverson" or "Halverson." 

6 [Pause.] 

7 MS. LASSITER: Are you Ms. Martinez? 

8 MS. MARTINEZ: Yes. 

9 MS. LASSITER: Please. 

10 And so that our reporters can get your 

11 name correctly, if you would please speak your 

12 name and spell it. If you are representing a 

13 group or if you are a public citizen, if you will 

14 just let us know kind of who you are affiliated 

15 with, if anyone, that would be great. 

16 With that, I will ask Ms. Martinez if you 

17 would please begin. 

18 [Maria Rosario Martinez's comments were 

19 spoken via an interpreter.] 

20 MS. MARTINEZ: My name is Maria Rosario 

21 Martinez, and I represent Texas Organizing 

22 Project, TOP. Should I begin? 
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1 MR. CASSO: Yes. 

2 MS. MARTINEZ: I was a person that lived 

3 in the State of California. I was raised there 

4 half my life, and I had very good health. I had 

5 three children, that they were very healthy. 

6 Until the moment I thought I would -- I 

7 had a thought of improving our lives, and I 

8 thought of coming here to Texas to improve our 

9 lives and for them to be raised here and for them 

10 to be able to live here with a better life. So 

11 my life changed. The type of life was more 

12 labor. It was more like farmers for work. 

13 So the change was -- very quickly, I 

14 noticed the change as soon as we got here to 

15 Texas, the State of Texas. The climate was 

16 different, the pollution. The four children that 

17 I have, have lots of issues with allergies and 

18 issues with their skin. 

19 So I personally have lots of health 

20 issues. My heart, I've had three heart attacks. 

21 I have thyroid tumors on my throat. Serious 

22 allergies. Also, my vision. So also cholesterol 
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1 issues with my skin, very sensitive, and a lot of 

2 problems with the breathing, also lots of 

3 itching. Also, I have asthma. I have 

4 bronchitis. I have issues. It's all regarding 

5 the contamination. 

6 I take lots of medication. I don't know 

7 what else to put into my body. Instead of 

8 improving, every day I have worsened more and 

9 more. The medication doesn't help totally, 100 

10 percent, because I breathe this air day and 

11 night. 

12 So I want Pasadena to be like California. 

13 I'm making a comparison, for it to have clean 

14 air, for there to be a moment so that -- so what 

15 you can do for me, you can do for many other 

16 people because there's lots of sick people. 

17 I was a volunteer at MD Anderson for 2 

18 years, and nobody can tell me that there are no 

19 other people that are suffering the same things 

20 that we are suffering here. Children, pregnant 

21 women, elderly, adolescents. Your heart breaks 

22 when you go in there. You come out crying. 
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1 But the problem is not in the hospital. 

2 The problem is outside, out here where we live. 

3 So I want for you guys to listen, to pay 

4 attention, because every day, someone does with 

5 the same issues that I'm suffering. 

6 And I thank you so much for listening to 

7 me, but not only to me, to all the voices, to all 

8 of us. Thank you. 

9 [Applause.] 

10 MS. LASSITER: Mr. Halvorson. 

11 MR. HALVORSON: Hi. I am Steven 

12 Halvorson, S-t-e-v-e-n, H-a-l-v-o-r-s-o-n. I am 

13 a member of the Texas Organizing Project, and I 

14 am on the TOP Board. I also live in the Pasadena 

15 area. I've lived in Pasadena since 1998. I've 

16 been here 16 years. I've been in the area. I 

17 lived in Galveston beforehand. I moved here in 

18 1990 to the area. 

19 I noticed my personal problem with health 

20 occurred about 2 years after my son was born. I 

21 got my first migraine, and I thought it was 

22 something seasonal or happening randomly. So I 
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1 took a nap. The migraine went away. 

2 But as I got older, the migraines 

3 increased. I moved into Pasadena, and my 

4 allergies started to get bad. My wife actually 

5 grew up in Pasadena. She's 40 years old right 

6 now, and she's lived her whole life here. She's 

7 lived on allergy medications, and she's had 

8 migraines all her life, off and on, periodically. 

9 She takes Benadryl and over-the-counter allergy 

10 medications. Since I moved in there, she was 

11 giving me allergy medications, and it helped for 

12 a period of time. Over the years, though, those 

13 kind of wear off, and you have to change to a 

14 different medication. 

15 My migraines generally happen when we get 

16 wind shifts and changes. The predominant wind is 

17 coming from the south, off the Gulf. I don't 

18 generally get a migraine, because I am on the 

19 south side of the refineries, but when we get the 

20 north wind and it comes back on to the Pasadena 

21 side where I live, over by 225 and Scarborough 

22 Lane, in that area, then my migraines will kick 
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1 in. 

2 Generally, it lasts for a day or two, and 

3 then if I get some rest, the migraine passes. 

4 Somehow, it equilibrates. 

5 I also get rashes and skin issues around 

6 my neck and things like that. That's just 

7 occurred recently. So something seems to be 

8 changing. 

9 One of the concerns I have in addition to 

10 health -- oh, also, the Bayshore Hospital is our 

11 only hospital in the area that's local. We have 

12 the Texas Medical Center. That's where I work. 

13 I work at Baylor College of Medicine, and they 

14 have a really great facility, but that's not 

15 where they are going to send you if an ambulance 

16 comes. For example, if a refinery has an issue 

17 or a spill, they are taking you to Bayshore 

18 first. 

19 I talked to a guy on the phone in the 

20 community, because we do some canvassing in the 

21 community, and he said that mostly Bayshore is 

22 always at capacity. If it's at capacity, how can 
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1 it do anything if a refinery has an explosion or 

2 a spill? I think the next one is Baytown. They 

3 go to a hospital there. And if Baytown and 

4 Bayshore are full, then they will actually take 

5 you to the Texas Medical Center, which we have 

6 42-plus medical institutions in that area. 

7 We have some pretty good care there, and 

8 I don't know why we can't get that care here in 

9 Pasadena or at least have some emergency response 

10 teams that are capable of taking you somewhere 

11 that's actually going to have beds available for 

12 people if they have a spill, if we have a 

13 release. 

14 The other issue when I was talking and 

15 canvassing with folks is they don't get the 

16 communications they used to get. We used to have 

17 a Thursday alarm from the plants, either Lyondell 

18 or one of the other corporations, Kinder Morgan. 

19 They would do testing. We hear alarms now, but 

20 we don't know what those alarms mean, where they 

21 are coming from. The CAROLINE reports are kind 

22 of vague. 
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1 The City of Pasadena decides when and if 

2 they are ever going to report to us. They have 

3 little lines you can subscribe to, but we don't 

4 really get reports. My wife actually gets 

5 reports from my hometown, Wichita Falls, Texas. 

6 We get more reports from the Nixle Report from 

7 Wichita Falls, Texas, which is out in the middle 

8 of Texas. They don't have a problem with 

9 reporting. They have a problem reporting here 

10 because they don't want to give information to 

11 the public that could be later called into 

12 question and brought to legal. 

13 The other concern I have is with the port 

14 expansion, Panamax, with the big cargo ships 

15 coming in. I have seen businesses popping up all 

16 over the place around North Pasadena. Where this 

17 used to be a thriving blue-collar community, that 

18 thriving blue-collar, middle-class community is 

19 turning Hispanic. That's fine. A lot of houses 

20 are being demolished and taken down, red-tagged, 

21 and when they do that, that makes opportunity for 

22 businesses to come in. 
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1 They call our area in North Pasadena a 

2 "light industrial district," and what I think 

3 will happen in the future is as real estate 

4 becomes available, it will actually go down in 

5 price first. It will be blighted. The next step 

6 will be for them to take that green zone, because 

7 they say it's green spacing, and that becomes 

8 real estate banking. Then they can go ahead and 

9 clear off a whole neighborhood. Since we don't 

10 have zoning, we don't have neighborhood 

11 associations, and we've also attempted to have 

12 neighborhood associations on the Northside. 

13 The Mayor of Pasadena does matching money 

14 for people on the Southside that's more affluent. 

15 We don't, on the Northside, have that ability to 

16 get matching funds because our folks that live 

17 there don't have the income level to pay for 

18 homeowners' dues or homeowners' associations. 

19 We have attempted. My wife has the 

20 Sunset Terrace Neighborhood Association. We put 

21 it on the books. We tried to work with the City. 

22 The City has stalled and pushed us. We have 
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1 members here in this audience here today that are 

2 trying to start up communities also on their side 

3 of town, and they are also being stalled. 

4 So if it's Northside Pasadena, we get 

5 stalled for our neighborhood association. So we 

6 can't improve our neighborhood. We can't get 

7 Code Enforcement out. We can't get cars that are 

8 parked in the dirt that are dripping oil from 

9 moving. We can't really discuss our issues with 

10 the City. When we do, the Mayor always shuts us 

11 down and treats us like little children. 

12 And many times -- I won't get up and 

13 speak. My wife does. I am very upset with him 

14 in the way he acts as a human being, and he's not 

15 very democratic. If he's not going to accept 

16 democracy as we know it and listen to the public, 

17 what's the point of speaking? 

18 So I like to come to places like this 

19 where we can have a panel and actually be 

20 listened to, because a lot of times, you don't 

21 get that in Pasadena. I feel like I'm going back 

22 into 1960s-something, when I was a little boy. 
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1 I lived in Selma, Alabama, for a while. 

2 I lived there in 1978, and it was pretty racist 

3 back then. I feel when I'm going to the City 

4 Council meeting here in Pasadena, I feel like I'm 

5 going back in time. I don't want to go back to 

6 those days, and I don't think we should have to 

7 go back to those days. We need to have 

8 transparency. 

9 The ports and refineries, we understand 

10 they need to make money. Also, we would like to 

11 have them hire our local people on the Northside. 

12 We have a lot of capable young people that are 

13 graduating from high school. They are going to 

14 need jobs. I said we'd like to have those folks 

15 have the preference for those jobs. Instead of 

16 getting somebody from the North, the United 

17 States, we have folks right here. So get the 

18 training, get the local folks trained, and the 

19 communities would thrive and be just like they 

20 were back in the '60s when blue-collar workers 

21 were working, the neighborhoods were thriving. 

22 That's what I'd like to see in the future. 
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1 Thanks for the opportunity. That's 

2 really about all I have to say. 

3 MS. LASSITER: Okay. Well, thank you. 

4 MR. HALVORSON: Okay. Thank you. 

5 MS. LASSITER: Appreciate it. 

6 [Applause.] 

7 MS. LASSITER: Next, I would like to call 

8 Ms. Patricia Gonzalez and Ms. Tiffany Hogue. I'd 

9 like to invite both of you to please come to the 

10 speakers table. 

11 I failed to say this earlier, but if you 

12 would both remain at the table until both of you 

13 complete your testimony, that would be great. 

14 I am going to ask Ms. Gonzalez if you 

15 will please go first. 

16 MS. GONZALEZ: I am Patricia Gonzalez. I 

17 am with the Texas Organizing Project. I am also 

18 a community activist. I sit on the Board of the 

19 Texas Organizing Project. I am also the 

20 President of the Pasadena Chapter for the Texas 

21 Organizing Project. I am a mother of two, and 

22 like me, we breathe the polluted air every day. 
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1 These are my children. I have a 

2 23-year-old and myself, and I have two 

3 16-year-olds that have to -- they have been on 

4 breathing machines, and they have been on 

5 breathing medications. They each are on three 

6 different types of breathing medications. That 

7 is not fair to them. That's not a life that they 

8 should live, because not only on those three 

9 types of medicines, but they're also on allergy 

10 medications. That is not fair. 

11 I am on breathing medication, myself. I 

12 am also on a breathing machine from time to time 

13 because I have asthma attacks at times, depending 

14 -- like Mr. Halvorson says, depends which way the 

15 wind blows in Pasadena. I end up having to be on 

16 that machine too. 

17 I also now suffer from -- I went to my 

18 ear, nose, and throat doctor and got the bad news 

19 that now I have three nodules in my vocal chords, 

20 and that's why I no longer have a nice sweet 

21 voice anymore. I have a hoarse, horrible voice, 

22 and it affects my job. It affects the way I talk 
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1 at my job. People think I'm a man when they hear 

2 me talking on the phone because I've got those 

3 three nodules. If I don't take them out, it 

4 could be cancerous. That's coming from 

5 pollution. That is coming from what I breathe in 

6 every day where I live. 

7 I used to live in Manchester. I was 

8 raised in Houston, off of Pecan Park, off of 45, 

9 and then from there, in my early 20s, moved to 

10 Manchester. And then from there, I moved -- I 

11 used to see green film on top of my cars and was 

12 wondering why do I get this green film all the 

13 time and why don't my plants grow. I know I am 

14 not very good. I don't have a green thumb, but, 

15 you know, hey, at least I try. 

16 I was pregnant at the time and was 

17 wondering why I was getting asthma and bronchitis 

18 all the time, and my doctor, my OB/GYN said, 

19 "It's where you live. You need to get out. 

20 You're near the refineries, aren't you?" and I 

21 said, "Yes." She goes, "You need to move." 

22 So I moved, and I moved further out, and 
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1 I moved into Pasadena off of Ritchie and Jackson, 

2 and I thought that was a pretty good distance. 

3 No, it wasn't. I was still getting sick, still 

4 having asthma attacks while I was pregnancy, and 

5 I'm having problems even talking now because I'm 

6 having a hard time breathing even when I talk. I 

7 thought that was far enough. 

8 I moved farther, farther out, and I moved 

9 to Garden and Central, and I thought that was far 

10 enough. Well, no, you come to figure out it's 

11 not far enough, because I have three nodules. 

12 I've lived there for 8 years now, and I'm still 

13 suffering from asthma. 

14 My children are suffering from asthma. 

15 They're in the band. They have to be out there 

16 breathing. They carry their inhalers in their 

17 pockets because they don't know when they are 

18 going to have an asthma attack while they are out 

19 there. That is not fair to both of my talented 

20 children that are excellent AP students that have 

21 to carry their inhaler in their pockets, because 

22 they don't know at any moment, they could be 
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1 falling on the ground because they're going to 

2 have an asthma attack. That's not fair to them 

3 or any child that has to carry an inhaler while 

4 they are out there in the band or in sports when 

5 they want to help being fit. 

6 They talk about the obesity rate. Well, 

7 they want the children out there exercising. 

8 They want them out there participating in 

9 activities and being healthy. You've got the 

10 First Lady, Mrs. Obama, saying, "Let's get kids 

11 healthy. Let's get them outdoors. Let's get 

12 them moving." How when we live in a polluted 

13 area? 

14 You know, I live within that 25-mile 

15 radius. If there is an explosion -- when we were 

16 doing the surveys that I just got through 

17 recently doing within the last 2 or 3 weeks, when 

18 I would phone bank and I would ask the people 

19 about do you have asthma in your family, do you 

20 have cancer, what ailments do you have, they 

21 said, "Yes, I have this." They said yes to 

22 almost every question I asked that had breathing 
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1 problems, the cancer. 

2 So, I mean, they had no way to evacuate 

3 from Pasadena. No one knew of any evacuation way 

4 to get out, none of them, and we have the 

5 municipal channel. The Mayor could easily tell 

6 us how to get out, out of that 25-mile radius if 

7 there is an explosion. He has yet to tell us how 

8 to get the [expletive removed] out of there. He 

9 doesn't even know how to protect the children 

10 when they are outside when the weather is bad, 

11 when it is cloudy and dusty. If you just wait 10 

12 minutes, those plumes go up. Those flares go up. 

13 The people don't even know what's happening to 

14 them. They don't even realize they are being 

15 poisoned by all the carcinogens that are being 

16 released in the air. They are oblivious to what 

17 is going on to their children. They don't 

18 realize, get indoors, because your children are 

19 getting nosebleeds. That's why their noses are 

20 bleeding. That's why their noses burn. That's 

21 why their eyes are burning. That's why their 

22 eyes are becoming red when they get home, and 
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1 they got migraines, and they're sick, and they 

2 got sore throats, or their stomachs hurt and 

3 they're nauseous. 

4 The elderly can't breathe, and they got 

5 oxygen tanks that they got to carry. That is not 

6 fair. That's not a way of living. That's not a 

7 way of life. It's not fair that we should have 

8 to live that way. 

9 The refineries are pushing into our 

10 environment. They talk about us moving into the 

11 environment of the animals, but the refineries 

12 are moving into our environment of the people, 

13 where we live, where we are residing. So how is 

14 that fair? Think about it. Really think about 

15 what they are doing to us. They are pushing us 

16 out, even though they don't want to buy us out 

17 the right way. They don't want to give us fair 

18 market for their houses when they want to buy us 

19 out. Why not buy us out at fair market and not 

20 have to pay a monitoring at where we want to move 

21 to, to where we're safe? 

22 And put monitors all along 225. Let's be 
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1 good stewards. Let's show. Let's be right. You 

2 want to say you're not polluting us? Okay, be 

3 right. Do the right thing. Be good stewards, 

4 and put monitors all along 225. Get an outside 

5 person, industry to say that they are not 

6 polluting us. We don't want the companies to 

7 tell us, to report that to us. We want an 

8 outside source to give us the reports to say, 

9 "Your community is not being polluted," and they 

10 are not giving us -- 

11 [Applause.] 

12 MS. GONZALEZ: And the carcinogens are 

13 not coming outside the fence line and that you're 

14 not breathing right, because you know what, in 

15 2012, we won the fight that Valero was not able 

16 to get that tax rebate. Why? Because we went 

17 and fought and proved to them, "You are killing 

18 us. You are making us sick," and we won that 

19 fight. And we won it fair because we showed that 

20 they were killing us. 

21 So, you know what, we need an outside 

22 source to monitor those monitors along that fence 
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1 line, and we want those readings on a monthly 

2 reading, every month from that outside source. 

3 We don't want the industry to have a hand on 

4 those reports. We want those monitors on 24/7. 

5 We want them going every day, because you know 

6 what, we don't trust the industry at all. 

7 [Applause.] 

8 MS. GONZALEZ: We need it fair. We need 

9 it right. We need the community to know that we 

10 are safe, and we need those alarm systems going 

11 all the time. We want to know why those alarms 

12 are going off. We don't want to know a month 

13 from now or 2 months from now that a spill went 

14 on and there were some carcinogens that were 

15 being released and then find out that all along 

16 225, there were children that were absent and 

17 parents were being fined because their children 

18 didn't go to school, and the parents had to pay 

19 for those fines that those kids missed school 

20 because they were sick and nauseous the morning 

21 that they were supposed to go to school the next 

22 day, and they didn't know why. Why? Because 
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1 they were oblivious that there was a toxic 

2 release of some sort the day before. That's not 

3 fair that a parent has to pay that fine because 

4 there was something that was being released and 

5 they didn't know what it was. That's not fair to 

6 that parent that they have to pay that fine. 

7 So let the companies pay that fine. Let 

8 them do that, because they need to know -- we 

9 need to know, the public needs to know when 

10 something is being released within minutes, like 

11 that fast. We don't need to know days or hours. 

12 We need to know immediately when something is 

13 being released. Immediately. Not hours or 

14 minutes. 

15 [Applause.] 

16 MS. GONZALEZ: It could be a small leak. 

17 I don't care if it's a teeny weeny, little trip. 

18 We need to know, because this affects the 

19 children, and then the kids get sick, and they 

20 can't go to school. And then the parents can't 

21 explain to the school, "My child had a headache 

22 or was nauseous, couldn't go," write the school a 
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1 note. And there's only so many school notes you 

2 get, especially -- Pasadena High School has the 

3 highest dropout rate, and the refinery is right 

4 there, and the neighborhood is right there. 

5 So, come on, people, please do the right 

6 thing when you do these reports, and you have to 

7 make these industries do what they are supposed 

8 to do. Please do right by us when you come and 

9 do these reports. Don't fail us. Please don't 

10 fail us. We don't need you to -- 

11 TCEQ failed us. They said they were 

12 appointed by the Governor. The Governor does 

13 wrong. He should have gotten rid of TCEQ a long 

14 time ago because 7 years of waiting to get a 

15 report that Valero is doing wrong to us and 

16 polluting us, and we had to go fight and win, it 

17 was too [expletive removed] long. But we need to 

18 get rid of them. 

19 But you, you're the EPA. Come on. You 

20 can do right by us. You're at the point where 

21 you can make a difference for all these lives, 

22 these millions of lives, not just in Texas but 
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1 all over the states. Please do not do wrong by 

2 us. We depend on you all to protect us. You are 

3 there in the position to protect us. Please do 

4 not let us down. 

5 MS. LASSITER: Okay, thank you. 

6 MS. GONZALEZ: Thank you. 

7 [Applause.] 

8 MS. HOGUE: My name is Tiffany Hogue, and 

9 I work with the Texas Organizing Project. Ms. 

10 Gonzalez and Mr. Halvorson are some of our 

11 strongest leaders. 

12 First, the Texas Organizing Project is a 

13 community organization that organizes 

14 neighborhoods of low to moderate income, 

15 predominantly of color. So in terms of the 

16 overlap of these EPA rules, there's significant 

17 overlap. 

18 You have seen our community leaders have 

19 been fighting for environmental protection in 

20 Pasadena for a long time, and you also probably 

21 have realized that not every state is the same 

22 when it comes to environmental protection. And 
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1 Texas is severely lacking. It puts people in 

2 real harm's way and real risk. 

3 The two points that I really want to 

4 raise from the rules that you all have already 

5 set out, one, that you deem the health risk to be 

6 acceptable. 

7 I think you have heard testimony all day 

8 and certainly from Mr. Halvorson and Ms. Gonzalez 

9 and from Rosario earlier about the health risk is 

10 not acceptable, and how you calculate it, you are 

11 missing some key factors. You don't take into 

12 account the longevity of exposure. So when 

13 children are raised in a community and are 

14 constantly exposed to pollution, carcinogens, 

15 what's the lifelong effect of that? 

16 You don't look at asthma rates. Asthma 

17 rates and respiratory illness is a huge problem. 

18 You don't look at hospital visits. Those are all 

19 things that can show maybe not direct causation, 

20 but it paints a picture of a problem, 

21 particularly in Texas where we have an 

22 Environmental Protection Agency that doesn't do 
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1 very well protecting the residents that live next 

2 to these refineries, industrial entities to begin 

3 with. 

4 The other thing is the intense need for 

5 fence-line monitoring. Ms. Gonzalez just 

6 mentioned many times the need for this. It is 

7 difficult to know how to keep your family safe 

8 when you don't know what's in the air. It's 

9 difficult to protect yourself. It's difficult to 

10 make decisions. It's difficult to get -- I mean, 

11 if you don't know what is happening and you don't 

12 know the impact to your family, if you don't know 

13 if you should shelter in place or if you should 

14 evacuate, it's a real problem. 

15 The Texas Organizing Project and our 

16 leaders really focus on how do we empower -- how 

17 do we educate and empower communities of low 

18 income and color to make the decisions to improve 

19 their lives. 

20 In Texas, I should say we're in the oil 

21 capital of the world right here. The oil 

22 industry has done, I would say, incredible 
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1 things. It's an economic engine in this 

2 community -- or I should say in this region, but 

3 frankly, the benefits of that industry do not 

4 really -- you know, as Mr. Halvorson said, you 

5 don't see the benefits of that industry in the 

6 community around the fence line, in these 

7 fence-line communities, but you see all the 

8 negative health impacts. You see the higher 

9 rates of asthma. You see the higher rates of 

10 respiratory illness. 

11 The other thing is we are looking at a 

12 population that is again lower income, minority 

13 population. Majority are uninsured because they 

14 have jobs that are in different industries that 

15 don't provide health insurance. You have the 

16 lack of hospitals or clinics, which also was 

17 mentioned earlier. So you are taking a 

18 population that is already disadvantaged and you 

19 are putting additional risk and harm on to it. 

20 I also want to mention a couple of 

21 things. We did a study in conjunction with the 

22 Healthy Port Communities Coalition, which some of 
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1 our different partner organizations have already 

2 spoken today, Air Alliance, TEJAS, Public 

3 Citizen. We did a study. We talked to about 300 

4 people in portside communities last year, and we 

5 found that compared to the average, there was 

6 twice as many. The rate was twice as high in 

7 asthma. The rate of cancer was twice as high if 

8 you compare with the regular population and the 

9 communities that we talk to. 

10 So it's an alarming statistic, but it's 

11 also what you all have heard all day, right? 

12 That health risk is not at an acceptable level. 

13 [Pause.] 

14 MS. HOGUE: I'm making sure I got all of 

15 my points. 

16 And just one final thing, because I see I 

17 am red now. EPA rules are particularly critical 

18 in Texas. We have an Attorney General who has 

19 sued you all 27 times, who fights tooth and nail 

20 to protect industry and not to protect residents 

21 in these communities. We have a Governor who 

22 appoints people to our Environmental Protection 
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1 Agency that don't do it and that stall or 

2 otherwise are sort of ineffective. 

3 So, in Texas, it is a very different 

4 reality than it was in California where you were 

5 a couple weeks ago or for the previous hearing. 

6 In Texas, the EPA rules are really all we have, 

7 which makes it so critical and so important, and 

8 that's why so many people showed up today, and 

9 that's why so many people are passionate about 

10 these rules have to go through, and not only go 

11 through, they need to be improved upon because 

12 they are sort of a starting place in the right 

13 direction. 

14 So thank you for your time, and thank you 

15 for being here all day with us. 

16 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

17 MS. SHINE: Thank you. 

18 [Applause.] 

19 MS. LASSITER: Before you leave, could 

20 you -- 

21 MS. HOGUE: A copy of the study? Sure. 

22 MS. LASSITER: Okay. Or just put it into 
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1 the public -- 

2 MS. HOGUE: Sure. Will do. Thank you. 

3 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

4 MS. SHINE: Thank you. 

5 [Pause.] 

6 MS. LASSITER: Okay. Next, I'd like to 

7 invite Ms. Juanita Torres and Ms. Manuela Garcia. 

8 So if you would please state your name 

9 and please spell it for our recorders. 

10 MS. TORRES: My name is Juanita Torres. 

11 It is J-u-a-n-i-t-a, T-o-r-r-e-s. I am here 

12 because of all these health issues that me and my 

13 family are dealing with. 

14 I have renal failure. I have a lot of 

15 problems with allergies, sinuses, and I guess the 

16 real reason why I came also is because my little 

17 cousin, she had to go to the hospital yesterday 

18 because she wasn't able to pee. That scared me, 

19 because she is 7 years old, and for her to have 

20 to go through what I go through every day is 

21 something I wouldn't want for her to go through. 

22 I don't know what caused it. I know that 
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1 she has a lot of breathing problems also. She is 

2 only 7 years old. 

3 In the house where we are living now, we 

4 have -- we don't have a central unit. We have 

5 air conditioners in the window. We have had to 

6 replace those three or four times in the past 2 

7 years because of all the dust that all these 

8 18-wheelers -- where we live at, there's an 

9 industrial road, and this company, they built 

10 there, and they have all these 18-wheelers that 

11 have dust and comes into our -- we live right 

12 behind it. I guess that causes -- ever since 

13 that started happening, they built there, we've 

14 had a lot of breathing problems, a lot of health 

15 issues. 

16 I have gone to the hospital so many 

17 times. I'm scared. I am on the transplant list, 

18 and I'm scared that when I do get a kidney, I'm 

19 scared that it's going to fail because of all 

20 this wind and climate and everything in the air. 

21 I was 21 when I got diagnosed with renal failure, 

22 so it changed my life completely. So I want an 
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1 opportunity to be able to do things that I used 

2 to do or that I get left out because of having to 

3 go to dialysis or if I am going to get sick or 

4 the amount of fluid that I drink, if my blood 

5 pressure goes up or stuff like that, that I 

6 didn't have to go through before. 

7 My grandmother has issues with breathing 

8 problems. My aunt has problems with sinus 

9 problems every day. So it's a lot of problems 

10 with all these companies that are building every 

11 day in neighborhoods that all you would see was 

12 houses and kids playing outside and stuff like 

13 that, and now all you see is 18-wheelers passing 

14 by, and all you see is pipes and stuff like that 

15 in the neighborhood. There is nobody doing 

16 anything about it. 

17 We've had to complain to the City so many 

18 times about the company that built behind us. 

19 They said it was only supposed to be a small 

20 company, and now you see at five o'clock, four 

21 o'clock in the morning, 18-wheelers parked behind 

22 where we live making noise and stuff like that, 
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1 and all this air that they said they were 

2 supposed to water down, so no air, none of that 

3 dust, and none of that gets into the 

4 neighborhood. But they're not doing anything 

5 about that. We have complained so many times. 

6 Our neighbor, he's on the computer all 

7 the time. He's complained to the City so many 

8 times. The City don't do nothing about it. So I 

9 just see that there's more and more people 

10 getting sick in our neighborhood because of all 

11 this -- the dust, the wind, and all that, that's 

12 coming from these companies. 

13 That's it. 

14 MS. LASSITER: Okay. Thank you. 

15 DAUGHTER OF MS. GARCIA: Yes. 

16 MS. LASSITER: You're speaking for? 

17 DAUGHTER OF MS. GARCIA: For my mom. 

18 MS. LASSITER: Ms. Garcia. 

19 DAUGHTER OF MS. GARCIA: Yes. And she's 

20 having breathing issues too and itching. That's 

21 about the air in our community right there too, 

22 and let at night, it's even worser. 
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1 Our plants, they are like yellowish with 

2 dots, like black dots on the leaves. So that's 

3 telling me it's in the air, whatever is causing 

4 all these issues. And the reason why I brought 

5 them was so you all wouldn't think that it was 

6 just something that was made up. There's more 

7 people here, and hopefully, we all can get to the 

8 bottom of this, because it's very important. 

9 Because once it starts affecting children, I 

10 think we should make a step up. 

11 The children, they're our next 

12 generation, and if we want them to be healthy and 

13 be able to work, we need to give them an 

14 opportunity, not like my niece in a dialysis or 

15 cancer on a machine. 

16 Was there anything else you wanted to put 

17 on? 

18 She is unable to function half of the day 

19 sometimes. I believe what you all are doing 

20 today means a lot to all of us, all of us here. 

21 That's why we came, because we don't want it to 

22 just be put on the background. We want it to be 
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1 told and helped and clear it up. Clear up our 

2 air. It's important. 

3 I think that's about it. 

4 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

5 [Applause.] 

6 MS. LASSITER: Next, I'd like to invite 

7 Ms. Cynthia Velasco and Ms. Clara Velasco. If 

8 you both would please come to the table. 

9 [Pause.] 

10 MS. LASSITER: Ms. Cynthia Velasco, if 

11 you would like to -- 

12 MS. (Clara) VELASCO: Clara. I am Clara. 

13 MS. LASSITER: You're Clara. Okay. 

14 MS. (Clara) VELASCO: My name is Clara 

15 Velasco. I live on Eastway in Galena Park. I 

16 have been living here for 24 years, and I have 

17 three children -- [speaking Spanish language]. 

18 [Clara Velasco's remarks spoken via 

19 interpreter.] 

20 MS. (Clara) VELASCO: Five years ago, she 

21 had cancer, breast cancer. The oncologist said 

22 that it was due to the environment. I suffer 
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1 lots from sinus for the same reason, for the air, 

2 the dirty air that we breathe here. 

3 I'm concerned about my grandchildren. I 

4 want for them to -- for their environment to be 

5 clean, not dirty. Healthy. 

6 I'm also concerned about the other 

7 residents. I have a grandson who has asthma. 

8 Joshua as well, the older one, as well with 

9 asthma, skin problems. 

10 MS. (Cynthia) VELASCO: Well, I am here 

11 daughter-in-law. She is nervous right now, but 

12 my sister-in-laws and I have also suffered from 

13 losing a baby while in the womb, and I have also 

14 had cancer. I'm a survivor. So is my 

15 sister-in-law. She had breast. I had uterine. 

16 I'm just worried. Sometimes like we get 

17 up early in the morning or late afternoon, and it 

18 smells like rotted eggs out here. It's horrible. 

19 You can't even breathe it in. I tell the kids, 

20 "Run inside. Run inside," and if it's not rotted 

21 eggs, it smells like a gas leak. Nobody tells us 

22 anything. We don't hear no alarm saying, "Hey, 
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1 this is okay. Don't be worried." But we know 

2 it's bad because, as soon as we breathe it in -- 

3 one time, it even woke me up. I was totally 

4 asleep, and we have air units, because our AC 

5 broke down. And it woke me up. It was so bad, I 

6 started choking on it. It was just really bad. 

7 And back in the day, it used to also wake 

8 us up when the chemical plants would turn on 

9 these loud booms. Like I don't know what they 

10 were releasing, but it would actually wake you 

11 up, because our windows would vibrate. It would 

12 go like varoom, varoom, varoom, and it's just 

13 horrible. We shouldn't have to go through this. 

14 I mean, I think they should do the right 

15 thing. Buy us out, so that we could relocate to 

16 a safer place, and I'm just worried about my kids 

17 and my grandkid. You know, it's scary, and we 

18 would like to be informed. 

19 Like they say, we don't need a 

20 month-to-month. We need daily, because this is 

21 going on daily. It's not going on 

22 month-to-month. We need to be updated daily, so 
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1 we will know where to go for help or whatever. 

2 And it's getting to the point where you 

3 can't even go outside, because sometimes we get 

4 skin reactions. 

5 As you can see, I try to do some -- I 

6 love gardening, and all of a sudden, I just -- I 

7 never have had this problem before, but I don't 

8 have insurance, so I can't see a doctor. And I 

9 started getting a rash, and my neighbor gets it 

10 all over her legs. We're like, "What is it?" 

11 She goes, "I don't know. I've never gotten it 

12 before," but now we're starting to get it. God 

13 only knows what it is. We're just like 

14 oblivious, and that's what's scary, because we 

15 are oblivious to what we are breathing. We are 

16 oblivious of our skin problems, of our kids 

17 getting cancer, all these problems, and nobody 

18 tells us nothing. Everybody is hush-hush, and we 

19 want to know why. We need more information. 

20 It was funny, because a guy came knocking 

21 on our doors selling insurance, and this was, 

22 unfortunately, before I -- I had bought into it. 
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1 I was on it for a year or two, and I couldn't 

2 afford it anymore, so I canceled it. As soon as 

3 I canceled it, I went to the doctor because I 

4 kept on bleeding a lot. A lot. It wouldn't 

5 stop, and unfortunately, I found out I have 

6 cancer, and that's the thing. These people all 

7 around -- I could name five people right now that 

8 have cancer. 

9 And one of them is your friend, her 

10 husband. He just, you know, got cancer, just 

11 because. So that's what's scary. We need your 

12 help. Our kids need your all's help. 

13 That's all I got to say. 

14 MS. (Clara) VELASCO: Why didn't we know 

15 about this before? Why wasn't this published? 

16 MS. (Cynthia) VELASCO: I didn't find out 

17 until like -- what was it? Thirty minutes ago? 

18 I saw it on TV. I saw it on TV, and I was like, 

19 "We need to go down here and find out. We need 

20 to speak," and my husband is like, "I just got 

21 off of work. I just ate." I was like, "Look, if 

22 we do not speak who is going to be our voice?" 
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1 And I called my mother-in-law. She 

2 didn't even know about this until like -- when 

3 was it? Fifteen minutes ago? 

4 MS. (Clara) VELASCO: Fifteen minutes. 

5 MS. (Cynthia) VELASCO: That is scary, 

6 guys. We need to be -- it's sad, because I tell 

7 you this. If there were signs up, this place, 

8 these doors would be open right now. 

9 I think, if you all can, reschedule it. 

10 Let us put up signs, and you will see. You won't 

11 even be able to close these doors. That's how 

12 bad it is. We need your help. 

13 Thank you so much. 

14 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

15 [Applause.] 

16 MS. LASSITER: Ms. Rosario Martinez. 

17 Ms. Martinez spoke earlier, but we are 

18 going to provide her a little extra time because 

19 she had to have an interpreter. 

20 If you would like to just continue your 

21 testimony. 

22 [Maria Rosario Martinez's comments were 
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1 spoken via an interpreter.] 

2 MS. MARTINEZ: What I'm going to say, I 

3 didn't forget about it. I couldn't say it when I 

4 was here, present. 

5 So what I want to know is how can we 

6 solve, how can we stop. There's a big project 

7 that's coming to the Port of Houston. We are 

8 already living with a very serious health 

9 problem. If we accept the plan that's already in 

10 process with the Port of Houston, it's accepting 

11 more venom in our systems, in our bodies. 

12 So we are dying slowly. Slowly, little 

13 by little, we're dying, and the cause is of this 

14 sickness due to the contaminants of these 

15 refineries. So by accepting this Port of Houston 

16 project, it is really opening to so many 

17 contaminants coming in, because with that comes 

18 many, many projects. So the project continues, 

19 the people get sick, and then they are replaced 

20 by others. 

21 My family, seven members of my family 

22 have died due to cancer after living here. I 
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1 cannot bear to see that being the issue with my 

2 children and my grandchildren. So I cannot see 

3 it with the other families, those living in 

4 Pasadena and Galena Park and Deer Park, all 

5 around. 

6 The projects with the refineries are 

7 million-dollar projects, but the price for life 

8 is priceless. With our issue, with our health 

9 issue, where can we go if we don't have health 

10 insurance that we can go heal ourselves 100 

11 percent? 

12 I know that I have serious issues, 

13 serious problems, but I do not have 100 percent 

14 coverage. So I cannot deal with my tumors and my 

15 gastrointestinal problems. 

16 I've been living here in Pasadena for 35 

17 years. It's too long living like this. Nothing 

18 has been resolved in terms of the contamination. 

19 The air, the water here in Pasadena, if I drink 

20 the water, I vomit. I cannot tolerate it. 

21 I am going to say this, even though it 

22 may not be related, but perhaps it is. It has 
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1 been a month and I have had a leak in the gas 

2 line. I personally did not know that. My dog 

3 found it digging the ground, smelling the tube, 

4 the meter tube. It was God that saved us from 

5 that peril and also the dog. 

6 But when it was going on, I was not able 

7 to distinguish this gas. It was confused, mixed 

8 with the air. The air smells the same way. What 

9 are we breathing during our lifetime? Venom. 

10 Poison. 

11 [Applause.] 

12 MS. MARTINEZ: I would like for this to 

13 be resolved, all of it. If we could all do this 

14 work, because every representative in the White 

15 House is there because of our votes. We all have 

16 the right to live a healthy live and be able to 

17 live years. It's pitiful to see dying children. 

18 It is pitiful to see pregnant women 

19 losing their children, and they don't know why. 

20 It's due to the contamination. This is not 

21 generational. It does not run in families. This 

22 is due to the pollution because the children, 
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1 there are children that are born without lips, 

2 without ears, with little hands missing fingers. 

3 That does not run genetically, but it does exist 

4 in the babies. 

5 So the air, the air pollution is 

6 damaging, not 40 percent, not 70 percent, not 30 

7 percent but 100 percent. I can confirm that, 

8 because I volunteer. I go to hospitals and 

9 volunteer, and I see it. I go help. I live with 

10 people, and they are suffering. It's due to the 

11 same reason that I am suffering, due to the 

12 pollution that we have all around us. 

13 And the refineries are millionaires, and 

14 we are dying. I lost a cousin of mine -- she was 

15 34 years old -- with breast cancer. She left 

16 three children behind. My mother died, 99 years 

17 old, and she never had breast cancer. I have 

18 tumors on my throat, in my throat. 

19 And I feel the air. I just came now to 

20 Galena Park, and right now, I am experiencing in 

21 my throat, this bitter taste, but the same in 

22 Pasadena, but I take a medication that removes 
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1 that. 

2 My cousin, 55 years old, came here with 

3 his wife and his son, and he died at 55 with 

4 colon cancer. My aunt died at 70 years old with 

5 cancer in the stomach and on the throat in the 

6 same area, here at Galena Park. 

7 I think that Pasadena and Galena Park, we 

8 can all come together and struggle in the 

9 struggle, and we can all go and present our cause 

10 at the White House. I love life, and I also want 

11 someone else, others to live long lives, as well, 

12 and more especially, children. It's the 

13 generation that's coming into the future, and 

14 they should be able to live healthy. 

15 I think with your support, we can achieve 

16 what we are looking for, because you also seek 

17 our support. Both of us together, we are able to 

18 win this struggle. So we need to express our 

19 illnesses, so I don't know. I don't know where, 

20 so that the refineries can take their 

21 contamination, and I don't know where to take it. 

22 In 2013, I don't remember exactly the 
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1 date. Something happened. That was a strong 

2 wind. It was in the morning. The two cars, my 

3 cars, were covered with like snow, but the snow 

4 was red, like red dust that covered the cars. We 

5 requested information. I personally did. I 

6 never got it. 

7 I never got the results of that, and it 

8 was not only my car. It was the entire block. 

9 MS. LASSITER: I need to ask you to wrap 

10 up your statement, because I do have another 

11 speaker, please. 

12 MS. MARTINEZ: Oh, I was wondering about 

13 the light. 

14 Nonetheless, thank you very much. I 

15 appreciate your time and the time that you have 

16 given me. 

17 [Applause.] 

18 MS. LASSITER: All right. Next, I would 

19 like to ask Mr. Juan Velasco, and I believe it's 

20 Mr. Banner Royal Stanley. If you both would 

21 please come to the table. 

22 Mr. Velasco. Yes, please. 
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1 MR. VELASCO: My name is Juan Velasco. 

2 That is J-u-a-n. Last name is Velasco, V as in 

3 Victor, e-l-a-s-c-o. 

4 First of all, I would like to thank you 

5 for having us. It was just a last-minute deal. 

6 We just found out. 

7 I would like to comment on this. I have 

8 been a resident of Galena Park since '78. I went 

9 to elementary here in MacArthur, Galena Park 

10 Middle School and also the high school, graduated 

11 in '91. 

12 Now, what I was telling them earlier, 

13 that living here, I mean being a young kid, I 

14 guess back in the days, you used to be able to 

15 sleep with the windows open and have a box fan 

16 blowing air in and stuff. I remember I was here 

17 and like flames, you know, you could see it. I 

18 didn't drive. I was just a young kid, but I know 

19 you could see the flames burning all the time in 

20 the background. At night, you would always year 

21 that varoom, varoom, you know, the flames blowing 

22 and stuff. Of course, you're just a young kid. 
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1 You think it's part of the Port of Houston and 

2 these plants that are near our house. 

3 Anyway, as the years went by, I did play 

4 sports and stuff, football, baseball, just like 

5 any other average kid. But I do recall I would 

6 have skin irritations and sometimes just some bad 

7 headaches. 

8 Anyway, I graduated high school in '91, 

9 got married to my wife, and I decided to purchase 

10 a house here too. Strongly, through the years, I 

11 believe the pollution, the air quality, the water 

12 -- I mean, I remember drinking water from the 

13 faucets here after a game of basketball, just 

14 drinking right there, no problem. You know, 

15 maybe a little bit of a pain in the stomach but 

16 nothing big. But now, of course, unfortunately, 

17 you got to purchase your own bottle, and I hate 

18 to get to the point where you have to purchase 

19 your own air. But I think strongly it is getting 

20 to a point like that. Just by waking up in the 

21 mornings, you can smell this foul smell. 

22 When it rains, it kind of leaves like a 
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1 -- I can see it on the wipers where it looks like 

2 a residue or something, like oily or something. 

3 The roads that are right here off of 

4 Clinton Drive, I mean, I know there's industrial 

5 trucks running back and forth. I've been able to 

6 work up and down Clinton Drive, everything from 

7 Junkin Red Man Pipe all the way down to the Port 

8 by Lockwood and Clinton. But through the years, 

9 I have noticed that there's been more and more 

10 pollution through the air that we breathe every 

11 night. 

12 Like my wife, she likes to be messing 

13 with the garden and stuff, and we'll be outside. 

14 And you can smell like that, just the smell going 

15 around. Sometimes we get to the point where we 

16 get kind of weary and stuff at night, "You know, 

17 what, let's go back inside. We'll worry about the 

18 yard or whatever tomorrow." 

19 Now, unfortunately, in a woman's 

20 conversation, which I don't have nothing to do 

21 with, but I have heard through my wife and some 

22 other family members how some women that will be 
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1 pregnant have had miscarriages. And it's weird. 

2 It's odd. Other family members that are living 

3 in other parts of Houston, everything -- you 

4 don't ever hear anything wrong with their 

5 pregnancy, but for some reason, here, a lot of 

6 old high school friends, the pregnant ones had a 

7 miscarriage or whatever. But there is something 

8 going on, and I honestly feel that -- unless our 

9 voices are being heard, can something be done. 

10 I know these companies. They want to 

11 expand. It ain't like some small company that 

12 mom and pop opened up. Now you have these big 

13 corporations, and of course, just like anybody 

14 else, the demand is high. We start off with a 

15 small bottle of Coke. Now everybody is buying 

16 the 32-, even the 24-ounce. Why? Because the 

17 demand is higher, make more money. Whenever I 

18 see these chemical plants, I feel that they need 

19 to really just be more responsible on their part, 

20 and especially when we're neighbors. 

21 If we're to put like a fence like anybody 

22 else in any other neighborhood, of course, you 
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1 know who your neighbor is. You don't know what's 

2 going on, on the other side of the fence, because 

3 you want that privacy, but if you were to remove 

4 it, that is still a neighbor. 

5 My thing is, I mean, do we have to 

6 basically -- instead of dressing up like normal 

7 community, running around playing soccer, 

8 basketball or whatever, I mean, do we have to 

9 like personally, our own selves, dress up like 

10 the guys that are working in the chemical plants, 

11 wearing long-sleeved shirts, respirators, safety 

12 glasses and stuff? Why do they do it? Because 

13 everything that is burning burned or anything 

14 that they're working with, it's what they call a 

15 "work zone." 

16 But if you remove that wall, which 

17 unfortunately when you are dealing with air, 

18 there is not a fence line that can block it away 

19 or anything. I mean, we are basically sharing. 

20 So if we are going to share, I might as well 

21 dress like they are, because for some reason in 

22 their safety coordination or their safety council 
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1 meeting, they are saying, "Hey, you have to dress 

2 like this because you need to meet this in case 

3 something happens." That's what it all falls 

4 down to, in case some leak, in case somebody 

5 slips, falls, or something just happens to burn 

6 up. 

7 Now, they're not using nice shirts. They 

8 are having to use flame-resistant. They are 

9 having to use -- you know, wash your eyes, but we 

10 are dealing with something that is invisible, and 

11 sometimes, unless it has foul smell, can we 

12 detect it, what about us? We don't. All we do 

13 is wake up with headaches, and I'm just having a 

14 bad day or maybe I'm having a good day. Hey, 

15 guess what? For some reason, I'm spotting all my 

16 underwear. For some reason, I am not feeling 

17 well. 

18 For some reason, when you talk to a lot 

19 of the neighbors around here, everybody is having 

20 to say, just had a kit, that had a kit. "Hey, do 

21 you have one of those machines? I got one of 

22 those. You got one of those. All those 
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1 respirators." Why? Because we have babies that 

2 are being born, and wait a minute. This ain't 

3 like a pure air you can breathe. 

4 I mean, I've been in the hospital myself. 

5 I know how oxygen smells. I know how it smells 

6 in Conroe or in other neighborhoods where, yeah, 

7 there's probably a lot more trees than chemical 

8 plants. 

9 But we go back again. Who is our 

10 neighbor? There is not a fence line right there. 

11 Unfortunately, we are having to share that air 

12 pollution, and the workers see it. But, of 

13 course, they work certain days in the week, 

14 certain hours, and you got to go get that 

15 physical, make sure you're okay to continue to 

16 work, but what about us? Does anybody ever say, 

17 "Hey, you're a mom and a dad. You're trying to 

18 raise up a family"? What future do they have? 

19 And it seems like a lot of the people 

20 here have said, What future are our kids going to 

21 have? Are they going to be around? Are we going 

22 to be around for them? 
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1 Like I said, I'm just glad the people I 

2 got to come out here and hear us out. Honestly, 

3 I wish -- believe me, we could have filled this 

4 place up. I mean, honestly. This about the air, 

5 this about the pollution, the community, all this 

6 environment -- I mean these chemical plants are 

7 expanding. Yes. We see it every day, and we're 

8 just wondering what's being done. Who knows 

9 about this? What's going on, on that? Did 

10 somebody hear something last night? Were we 

11 notified? Were we told? Unless you're somebody 

12 that works inside, do you ever really get any 

13 kind of scoop about that? 

14 But other than that, like I said, I 

15 appreciate your all's time, and thank you all. 

16 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

17 MS. SHINE: Thank you. 

18 MR. STANLEY: My name is Banner Royal 

19 Stanley. I was born and raised up in the 

20 mountains of Virginia State, coal mining area. 

21 We had the problems up there. 

22 I left there at the age of 17 and came 
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1 out here with a brother and sister-in-law to 

2 Harris County area here. 

3 I worked on the Southside of Houston, 

4 where they had a little small -- well, I at first 

5 worked downtown Houston at the First National 

6 Bank Building doing maintenance work, and I 

7 noticed at that time, I was getting migraine 

8 headaches. I didn't know it. 

9 Being outside waiting for the bus that I 

10 road back and forth to town, we was living on the 

11 Northside of town, right off of Irvington 

12 Boulevard and later on moved to Stella Lane. My 

13 brother was a barber, and he moved around. He 

14 ended up moving to Pasadena, and they had a lot 

15 of problems. 

16 I've been living over in Central City 

17 since 1975 in the same house. The thing is 

18 falling apart on me. The air conditioners, the 

19 window units we have -- my son and daughter lives 

20 with me. My wife passed away over a year ago, 

21 and she had health problems real bad. 

22 Just one right after another, we both -- 
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1 all have sinus problems over there, allergies, 

2 and I noticed the windows of the house, it's the 

3 blackish looking stuff settling on it. I can't 

4 keep the siding clean on it. It settles on the 

5 vinyl siding I had put on there 3 years ago. 

6 But anyway, it's been a mess over there. 

7 I stay up late, and I go outside, you know, and 

8 at three o'clock in the morning, I get this 

9 smell. I say, "Uh-oh. They are letting off some 

10 steam over Pasadena or somewhere over there. 

11 Some pressure." They have to do those things, 

12 because if they don't, something will set up a 

13 reaction, and you can have some explosions. 

14 See, I drive tank trucks a few years ago. 

15 I've been all over the country hauling chemicals. 

16 I've hauled gasoline. I've hauled jet fuel into 

17 the Air Force Base in this state. I've been to 

18 Fort Hood. I know about chemical companies, what 

19 the tanks that hold that stuff can do. 

20 I've seen a film. We had to go to safety 

21 school by the DOT, Department of Transportation. 

22 We were required to do that and have physicals 
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1 every 2 years. But I had some other problems, 

2 some physical problems. 

3 My career ended a little short, 1984. I 

4 was denied time off work at the company I was 

5 working for in Texas City, okay? A trucking 

6 company. We had a terminal down there, and when 

7 the trucking industry had been deregulated -- and 

8 that is when greed broke out like the measles. 

9 Everybody in the country could not open up a 

10 trucking company. You know what I'm saying? 

11 I was flatly denied time off. I came in 

12 for my solo run from Alabama, and I had some real 

13 back pains, which I ended up in the hospital 

14 sometime after. Nine days, I had two ruptured 

15 discs. That was from a childhood injury that I 

16 sustained when I was around 4 years old. I 

17 couldn't blame the company per se for my 

18 injuries, but I did talk to the terminal manager 

19 of the condition, and he tape-recorded it. At 

20 that particular time, I was denied time off. 

21 There was another drive that went to 

22 Pennsylvania, went me across the state line, 
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1 which is a no-no, you know. All that took place. 

2 I tried to get representation. I lost this. I 

3 lost that. I had insurance, long-term disability 

4 from a company I won't name, but 3 years, they 

5 paid me. Long term. How long is long term? I 

6 was still unable to go back to work. Company 

7 policy is 6 months. You are expected to go back 

8 to work at 6 months by their insurance carriers, 

9 you know, because they put out a lot of money, 

10 health and welfare, employees, you see, for the 

11 Federal Government. You got to pay out a certain 

12 amount of health and welfare. 

13 But as far as the chemicals, I've been in 

14 and out, the pollution, the filthiest places. 

15 I've been in a paper mill in North Louisiana, and 

16 you couldn't hardly breathe in there. I don't 

17 see how the employees could take it. It's just 

18 ridiculous, all these different companies, every 

19 Dick, Tom, and Harry wants to open up a chemical 

20 company. That's the thing to go for these days 

21 and create another, different product. 

22 I've been in the cigarette plant in 
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1 Louisville, Kentucky, with a loaded product, a 

2 liquid, they add to the tobacco, you see. That's 

3 just another thing. That's a filthy place, all 

4 this pollution going through in there. 

5 I understand everybody. My son, he's 

6 down now. He worked. He's only 40 years old, 

7 breathing real heavy. I suspect he's got some 

8 metal dust in his lungs. The company he worked 

9 for, a family-operated company, you know, long 

10 hours and ridiculous. Couldn't supply breathing 

11 apparatus for the people who are breathing this 

12 stuff in, you know. 

13 I have one brother and family moved to 

14 Albuquerque, New Mexico. They were moving from 

15 here in just Central City. Galena Park. They 

16 had to get out of there. They came back to 

17 visit. They got sick, had to go to emergency 

18 room. Got back to New Mexico. They said, "We 

19 got healed when we got out of there. We got out 

20 of all that pollution down there." Brothers. 

21 They moved out of Deer Park because of the 

22 pollution over there and high waters we've been 
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1 having. They moved to Georgia. I don't blame 

2 you. I understand all these things, but what are 

3 we going to do? I mean, the people just coming 

4 in, the promoters of business come to this area. 

5 We've got too much now already. 

6 I've been here since 1962, spring of '62, 

7 I came down. I was only 17 when I got here. 

8 [Expletive removed], I've had my problems. I 

9 really didn't pay attention to things until I 

10 started having these allergies. I developed 

11 migraines at the bank because I was outside 

12 having to wait, and that's diesel. Diesel fuel 

13 got me. It would knock you over from those buses 

14 I had to wait for. You know, the buses still use 

15 diesel fuel. 

16 So these things all amount to what we got 

17 now. What do we have? What kind of lifestyle do 

18 we have? 

19 If we go to church, scream and holler and 

20 get all this stuff out of our system. We go to 

21 the gym. I've noticed the difference when I 

22 breathe when I go back in that steam room they 
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1 have, hot steam room. It helps to open me up. 

2 Doctor put me on a breathing -- not a machine. 

3 One of those inhaler things to help me breathe 

4 better. 

5 I don't have the finances to move out of 

6 there. I am on Social Security disability, and 

7 it's not all that much. I just hang on. My son, 

8 he just signed up for disability. I'm anxious to 

9 see what they're going to do for him. When I 

10 signed up, he was a teenager, him and my daughter 

11 both. She's got real bad allergy problems, both 

12 of us. But when their mother passed away, she 

13 had problems. She was diabetic. I don't know if 

14 that had anything with her being diabetic, but 

15 she lived with cancer, all kinds of different 

16 allergies and things. 

17 I've had three nieces that's had to have 

18 their breasts removed that lived in Deer Park, 

19 two of them in Deer Park, and one of them lived 

20 in Central City for a long time. They live in 

21 South towards Galveston there, but they had to 

22 have their breasts removed because of cancer. 
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1 My sister had to have breasts not 

2 removed, but she had cancer. She lived on the 

3 Southside off of Stella Lake Boulevard for years, 

4 but then she moved out of here into Corrigan. 

5 She met a guy. Her husband passed away. We 

6 don't know what happened. 

7 Her mother, my late wife's mother, had 

8 heart problems. She died in her sleep. She 

9 lived over there on the other side of Interstate 

10 10, in that area. 

11 MS. LASSITER: Mr. Stanley, I need to ask 

12 you to wrap up your statement, please. 

13 MR. STANLEY: Pardon? 

14 MS. LASSITER: I need to ask you to wrap 

15 up your statement, please. 

16 MR. STANLEY: Okay, okay. 

17 Anyway, I can understand all the problems 

18 you guys hearing here, but I'm putting up with it 

19 myself. 

20 I thank you guys for trying to do 

21 something. I don't know what it's going to be 

22 like. I have no idea. But we got it now. What 
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1 are we going to do with it? 

2 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

3 MS. SHINE: Thank you. 

4 [Applause.] 

5 MS. LASSITER: Okay. Next, I would like 

6 to ask Mr. Jeff Stear if he would please come to 

7 the table, and while Mr. Stear is coming to the 

8 table, this is a time check. It is 7:30. We are 

9 scheduled to be here at eight. If anyone who has 

10 joined us would like to speak, we would ask that 

11 you please at this time go ahead and sign up at 

12 the table where you came in. 

13 Mr. Stear. 

14 MR. STEAR: Hi. My name is Jeff Stear. 

15 I am a brand-new high school teacher at Milby 

16 High School. I am semi-retired in here, been in 

17 Houston for about 10 years. The last 6 years, 

18 I've worked in the environmental business, 

19 environmental remediation predominantly, worked 

20 in a lot of the plants, done a lot of work in 

21 those places and just about a year ago decided to 

22 retire from that and go into teaching. 
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1 It's interesting. I originally didn't 

2 come here to speak. I came here because my 

3 students and I, we're part of a new learning 

4 approach with HISD, so some of the teachers and I 

5 put together a project for our freshman students 

6 this year to study this proposed ruling and 

7 education the community around Milby about the 

8 potential implications and just to kind of 

9 educate them about the complexities in their 

10 regulations and the pollution efforts to control 

11 pollution in refineries and just all those kinds 

12 of things. 

13 It is interesting for me, and part of the 

14 reason, I guess, that we did that was because -- 

15 this is my first year teaching, and this is some 

16 of the kids at Milby. A lot of these kids live 

17 on the other side of that fence or they certainly 

18 know people who live on the other side of that 

19 fence. So I knew that it would be something that 

20 would be near and dear to their hearts. We will 

21 find out in a couple of weeks, but I am pretty 

22 confident that they are all going to embrace 
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1 this. 

2 I wasn't sure I wanted to get up here, 

3 honestly, because about a year and a half ago, I 

4 don't think I would have done it because I would 

5 have been afraid for my job. So I'm kind of 

6 fortunate that I've kind of shifted out of that 

7 industry and had the opportunity to come up here 

8 and not really have to worry about it, hopefully. 

9 I don't think I do. 

10 But I do think it's important that we 

11 keep the rigor up, as we say in education, we 

12 continue to ask the refinery to toe the line. I 

13 have learned just in the last few months that 

14 I've gotten involved in looking at this program 

15 how much the air pollution in Houston has 

16 improved over the last 30 or 40 years. That's 

17 solely, probably -- not solely, but clearly, to a 

18 large extent, because of increased regulation by 

19 the EPA with TCEQ and improved enforcement. 

20 And I think it's important that we 

21 continue to have high standards and high 

22 expectations for industry in terms of the healthy 
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1 air and healthy communities. 

2 I feel pretty lucky -- or I should say I 

3 felt pretty lucky to live in an area of Houston 

4 that is pretty far removed from a lot of these 

5 petroleum facilities and chemical plants. I've 

6 done a lot of work in them. You always hear 

7 stories. 

8 Working at Milby, you start hearing a few 

9 more stories from teachers who have been there 

10 for a long time from -- yeah, people talk about 

11 is the proximity to the Ship Channel and to some 

12 of these petrochemical facilities contributing to 

13 health problems. You know, who knows? It is 

14 very difficult to prove, obviously. 

15 But to me, the fact is that you guys are 

16 here, that this is something to me at least that 

17 has just kind of fallen out of the sky. I'm sure 

18 there's a lot of people here who may have been 

19 instrumental in pushing for this for a long time, 

20 complaining and demonstrating their concern for 

21 their families and their health problems. 

22 But, to me, getting ready to spend the 
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1 rest of my career or at least the next 10 or 15 

2 years at Milby, and I'm a little concerned. 

3 Clearly, I feel like I wouldn't be there if I was 

4 -- I am smart enough -- or I shouldn't say I'm 

5 smart enough. I am fortunate enough that I can 

6 pick where I want to be, and if I really was 

7 seriously concerned about my health, I probably 

8 would not be there. But I'm not sure I'll be 

9 there if I continue to see evidence of people 

10 having problems with their respiratory health in 

11 the next 5 to 10 years. 

12 So I guess the biggest thing to me also 

13 as an engineer and as somebody who has done a lot 

14 of cost-benefit analysis and looked at projects 

15 and worked in plants, at the end of the day, the 

16 decisions that are made by industry are 

17 ultimately based on the bottom line of the 

18 dollar, and it's our job as concerned citizens, 

19 as educated citizens, to do everything we can to, 

20 again, hold that high standard. It's not 

21 necessarily fortunate or unfortunate; it's just 

22 the way it is. Business is business, and the 
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1 language that is spoken is dollars that we have 

2 to be able to -- 

3 Another thing I've learned just from the 

4 short amount of research I've done is that a lot 

5 of the progress that's been made and a lot of the 

6 technology, technological advances that I've 

7 heard in refining and various other industries 

8 has been because EPA has helped mandated air 

9 quality standards that drives the technology to 

10 help these industries meet those standards, and 

11 that provides jobs. It provides a lot of 

12 benefits to me, as well. 

13 I just wanted to say I am all for 

14 continuing to raise the bar and to keep those 

15 expectations high. I am not going to try to 

16 speak for others, but it wouldn't surprise me if 

17 there are a lot of other people who would like to 

18 be able to say that, that probably wouldn't feel 

19 comfortable saying it. So I'm glad I can be here 

20 to say it for them. 

21 MS. LASSITER: Okay, thank you. 

22 MR. SHINE: Thank you. 
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1 [Applause.] 

2 MS. LASSITER: If you would, please state 

3 your name and spell it, so I can be sure and get 

4 it for the record. 

5 MS. GOSSETT: My name is Lisa Gossett, 

6 L-i-s-a, G-o-s-s-e-t-t. 

7 I have been on the Environmental 

8 Management Faculty at the University of 

9 Houston-Clear Lake, here locally for over 10 

10 years. The views expressed are my own. 

11 I want to thank all of you for coming to 

12 listen to the community, and I will repeat what 

13 I'm sure others have said, that there has been 

14 improvement in the air quality, at least with 

15 respect to ozone levels in this area in the last 

16 15 years or so. 

17 However, that doesn't mean there isn't a 

18 need for much more improvement, improvement that 

19 is economically justified, economically 

20 reasonable, that will improve the community's 

21 health, its quality of life, and ultimately 

22 minimize the long-term risk to both the 
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1 communities and I believe the industries locally, 

2 as we look to the long term rather than just the 

3 next quarterly meeting of shareholders. 

4 I will point out my perception, having 

5 worked in the broad range of environmental 

6 issues, and that is that health assessment is 

7 done in a broad range of agency contexts. It 

8 tends to be done on what I would call a 

9 theoretical basis rather than an on-the-ground 

10 basis where they look at monitoring data or test 

11 results typically of single constituents and say, 

12 "Okay. Based on this concentration of this 

13 single chemical and this anticipated exposure 

14 route, we calculate that we don't have that big a 

15 risk." 

16 What I very seldom see and certainly have 

17 not seen in recent years or locally is what I 

18 would call on-the-ground. Let's look at the 

19 actually health in the community that has not 

20 been done that needs to be done -- 

21 [Applause.] 

22 MS. GOSSETT: -- whether it is in this 
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1 rulemaking process or in the various Superfund 

2 sites around here, referencing significant health 

3 complaints raised with respect to -- in another 

4 EPA hearing last night on a proposal to change 

5 the remedy at a nearby Superfund site. 

6 The theoretical approach does not look at 

7 synergistic effects among numerous chemicals. 

8 They do not look at cumulative effects. They do 

9 not really look at exposures from multiple 

10 sources which the residents in these areas along 

11 the Ship Channel are experiencing. 

12 I have heard industry say in the media 

13 with respect to this rulemaking that they have 

14 done a lot. They seem to take that as an excuse 

15 to prevent them from doing more. I recognize 

16 that there have been significant improvements or 

17 at least some improvements in the monitor data 

18 for ozone and certain historical hotspots. What 

19 that has shown is that when industry is motivated 

20 and when regulations are applied across the 

21 board, industry can find cost-effective ways to 

22 improve their operations. 
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1 I am old enough to remember the exposés I 

2 saw on "60 Minutes" in the '70s about vinyl 

3 chloride and how they finally -- and certainly, 

4 lots of people knew it before "60 Minutes" did, 

5 but finally were making the connection between 

6 the cancers experienced by their workers and the 

7 exposure to vinyl chloride. We have not banned 

8 vinyl chloride. Vinyl chloride is still in 

9 considerable use. We have learned to manage the 

10 exposure better in a cost-effective manner that 

11 allows it to still be used in the manufacturing 

12 process. It takes regulations, an 

13 across-the-board uniform mandate to get those 

14 changes in place. 

15 Again and again, industry has 

16 significantly overstated the costs to comply with 

17 proposed regulations. It is a continuing 

18 perpetual mantra. It is going to cost money. It 

19 is going to cost jobs. The reality in many of 

20 these regulations has been the opposite. 

21 This is a good start. I do appreciate 

22 that this regulation gathers monitoring data. 
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1 I'm a big believer in openness and transparency. 

2 I urge that you adopt the regulations and 

3 consider continuing more with evaluating what is 

4 presenting the risks to the community, what is 

5 the health of the community, and what are the 

6 reasonable approaches to address it rather than 

7 the hyperbole that is often heard. 

8 Thank you for this opportunity to speak. 

9 MS. LASSITER: Thank you very much. 

10 MS. SHINE: Thank you. 

11 [Applause.] 

12 MS. LASSITER: Okay. At this point, we 

13 don't have any additional speakers. If anyone 

14 came in late and would like to speak -- okay. Do 

15 you have some additional -- 

16 [Pause.] 

17 MS. LASSITER: Okay. At this time, I 

18 would like to ask Ms. Margarita Arantes Ligran, 

19 if you would please come forward. 

20 MS. LIGRAN: Hello. Good evening. 

21 MS. LASSITER: Hi. How are you? 

22 MS. LIGRAN: Fine. 
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1 I'm not a specialist of any kind in the 

2 oil and gas refinery. However, in my private -- 

3 in my professional life, I'm a political social 

4 worker. My undergrad is neuroscience and 

5 chemistry, so I have some knowledge. 

6 I also have the flexibility to work and 

7 come here and talk, and all I want to say is I 

8 have friends that I care for deeply that live 

9 here that are significant members of our 

10 community that may not have had the opportunity 

11 to come here and talk. 

12 My ancestry is from Chile, and it's 

13 Chilean folk-like group, and I feel that if we 

14 have the science and technology to improve the 

15 quality of the refineries, that we should do it 

16 not only for those that can speak today but for 

17 those that can't speak today, not only humans but 

18 also animals, insects, the whole love of life 

19 that we live on. 

20 I feel that we're all part of the 

21 problem, and that we all need to work together to 

22 be part of the solution. 
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OLENDER REPORTING, INC. 

1100 Connecticut Avenue NW, #810, Washington, DC 20036 

Washington: 202-898-1108 • Baltimore: 410-752-3376 

Toll Free: 888-445-3376

1 I like to run, and I see all the time, 

2 Chevron, Hermann Hospital, you know, let's run 

3 for the cure for cancer. I feel that why don't 

4 we do that for the refineries, bring the 

5 community together to say, "I'm willing to run a 

6 5K to raise money to help improve the quality of 

7 these refineries," not just for myself, but again 

8 for the people that I love and care for that live 

9 in the vicinity of Galena Park. 

10 We don't have to necessarily take our tax 

11 money. We can take some, but we can take some 

12 private funds that people are willing to share. 

13 Instead of going out to dinner, earmark some of 

14 those funds in a 5K, 10K marathon, triathlon. 

15 Very popular right now. 

16 So that's it. 

17 MS. LASSITER: Thank you. 

18 Okay. I don't believe we have any more 

19 speakers signed up at this point, so I am going 

20 to put the meeting in recess. We will be closing 

21 the meeting at eight o'clock. If anyone has come 

22 in and would like to speak, I would ask you to 
403

OLENDER REPORTING, INC. 

1100 Connecticut Avenue NW, #810, Washington, DC 20036 

Washington: 202-898-1108 • Baltimore: 410-752-3376 

Toll Free: 888-445-3376

1 please go at this time and sign up. Otherwise, I 

2 am going to keep it in recess, unless we have 

3 someone show up before eight. 

4 [Recess taken from 7:45 to 7:58 p.m.] 

5 MS. LASSITER: I am going to officially 

6 close the meeting now, as we have no more 

7 speakers waiting. 

8 So thank all of you for coming. I 

9 appreciate your participation. 

10 ATTENDEES: Thank you. 

11 [Whereupon, at 7:58 p.m., the public 

12 hearing concluded.] 

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