US oil refineries spewing cancer-causing benzene into communities, report finds | Pollution

A dozen US oil refineries last yr exceeded the federal limit on common benzene emissions.

Among the many 12 refineries that emitted above the utmost stage for benzene, 5 had been in Texas, 4 in Louisiana, and one each in Pennsylvania, Indiana and the US Virgin Islands, a brand new analysis by the Environmental Integrity Project revealed on Thursday.

Benzene is a identified carcinogen that is extremely poisonous and unstable when exposed to air. Much of the surplus emissions come through leaks from valves, tanks, pumps and different means which are hard to detect.

The Environmental Safety Company estimates 6.1 million people within the US stay within three miles of a refinery, with low-income people and folks of shade represented at rates practically twice that of the overall population.

Out of 129 operable oil refineries in 2021, 118 reported benzene concentration registered at or near the site, otherwise often known as the fence-line.

Almost half of those refineries released benzene ranges above 3 micrograms per cubic meter, which the Environmental Integrity Project defines as a long-term potential health risk.

The EPA requires facilities to take action in the event that they exceed a median 9 micrograms per cubic meter, or above “motion stage” emission of benzene.

“If [facilities] can’t get their benzene below the motion stage, 12 months after 12 months, we really have to see enforcement from the EPA,” mentioned Eric Schaeffer, the chief director of the Environmental Integrity Project, in a press conference. “You'll want to begin paying penalties when your fence-line levels persist,” he added.

Lifetime exposure to benzene at levels as little as 0.13 microgram per cubic meter might trigger a threat of up to one additional most cancers case for every one million uncovered, according to the EPA. The higher the extent of benzene, the upper the well being threat.

Marathon Petroleum’s Galveston Bay refinery in Texas City had the best common web benzene ranges in 2021, based on the evaluation of the self-reported data. Roughly 37,000 individuals dwell within a three-mile radius of the refinery. Among them, 62% are individuals of color and 47% are low-income.

“This analysis offers essential perception into why the Houston area is an industrial cancer hotspot,” said Leticia Gutierrez of advocacy group Air Alliance Houston, on the press convention.

“Folks dwelling near these amenities have larger [exposure] to lifetime cancer threat than every other a part of the state, but the regulatory businesses answerable for protecting us continue to approve permits for these services,” Gutierrez stated.

Environmental Integrity Undertaking notes that its analysis didn't measure concentrations of benzene inside neighborhoods adjacent to refineries, and doesn't mirror the precise levels of benzene inside the communities.

Marathon Petroleum and the EPA did not immediately reply to a request for comment.