OSWER/OSRTI 

Washington, DC 20460 

NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST (NPL) 

*** Final Site*** September 2011 

FALCON REFINERY Ingleside, Texas 

San Patricio County 

 Site Location: 

Falcon refinery occupies approximately 104 acres in San Patricio County, Texas, and is located on FM 2725 at the 

northwest and southeast corners of FM 2725 and Bishop Road. Another portion of the site, connected by underground 

pipeline, includes a dock facility on Redfish Bay where materials were transferred between barges and storage tanks. 

The site is bordered by wetlands to the northeast and southeast, residential areas to the north and southwest, an 

abandoned refinery to the northwest and a construction company to the southwest. 

 Site History: 

The Falcon Refinery a.k.a. National Oil Recovery Corporation (NORCO) site (the "site") consists of a refinery that has 

operated intermittently since 1980 and is currently inactive. When in operation, the refinery operated at a 40,000 

barrels per day capacity with primary products consisting of naphtha, jet fuel, kerosene, diesel and fuel oil. 

 Site Contamination/Contaminants: 

The findings of the Expanded Site Inspection, completed in November 2000, revealed releases of fluoranthene, pyrene, 

benzo(a)anthracene, chrysene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo(k)fluoranthene, benzo(a)pyrene, indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene, 

benzo(g,h,i) perylene, dibenz(a,h)anthracene, barium, manganese and mercury into the nearby wetlands, the Redfish 

Bay fishery and potential habitat areas for State and Federal threatened or endangered species. 

 Potential Impacts on Surrounding Community/Environment: 

In November 2000, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), formerly the Texas Natural Resource 

Conservation Commission (TNRCC), completed an Expanded Site Inspection (ESI) report of the site. The ESI 

findings indicated that chemical releases from the facility have affected sediments in Redfish Bay, sediments in the onsite wetlands and the on-site soils. 

 Response Activities (to date): 

The Falcon Refinery site was proposed to the National Priorities List (NPL) on September 5, 2002. The Potentially 

Responsible Party for the site, NORCO, entered into an “Administrative Order on Consent” with the U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on June 9, 2004, to perform and finance the removal action and Remedial 

Investigation and Feasibility Study (RI/FS) for the site. The removal action planned to address the wastes from the 

tanks, equipment and piping. To date, the removal action has included the disposal of liquid waste, highly 

contaminated soils and asbestos wrapping on pipelines and recycling of on-site metals and used oil and oil filters. The 

removal action is ongoing. The EPA approved the RI/FS Work Plan, Field Sampling Plan and Quality Assurance 

Project Plan on October 22, 2007; and Addendum 1 on May 8, 2009. On March 28, 2011 EPA issued work take over 

letters to the PRP for the RI/FS. The RI/FS is expected to be completed in 2013. 

 Need for NPL Listing: 

The site was proposed to the NPL in September 2002. EPA is adding this site to the NPL to ensure future site clean-up 

because financial limitations may prevent NORCO from performing cleanup activities beyond the RI/FS. EPA 

received a letter from the state supporting listing of the site on the NPL. 

[The description of the site (release) is based on information available at the time the site was evaluated with the HRS. The description may 

change as additional information is gathered on the sources and extent of contamination.] 

For more information about the hazardous substances identified in this narrative summary, including general information regarding the effects of exposure to 

these substances on human health, please see the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) ToxFAQs. ATSDR ToxFAQs can be found on 

the Internet at http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxfaq.html or by telephone at 1-888-42-ATSDR or 1-888-422-8737.