The Obama administration says new environmental rules for petroleum refineries will make the air around them much safer for families, but industry groups say the government is underestimating the true cost.
The regulations, announced Tuesday, will require the first so-called “fenceline” monitors at refineries to determine when harmful pollutants are released from the facilities. The rules also make emissions standards stricter for flares, pressure relief devices, storage tanks and delayed coker operations.
The EPA estimates the new regulation will result in 660,000 tons of carbon dioxide being removed from the atmosphere per year, along with 5,200 tons per year of toxic air pollutants and 50,000 tons per year of volatile organic compounds.
“This rule will significantly increase our air quality in the vicinity of our refineries and beyond,” said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy.
McCarthy said more than 6 million people live within three miles of a refinery and many of them are low-income families. By putting more controls on emissions from the nation’s 142 refineries, public health will improve and as many as 1.4 million people could experience a reduction in cancer risk.
According to an EPA fact sheet, the rule requires refineries to install three pollution-prevention measures, continually monitor flares and pressure release devices, analyze all release events to determine and fix the cause, and more emission reductions from storage tanks and delayed coking units.
“Families everywhere deserve to be safe from pollution in their own homes and backyards,” McCarthy said.
The requirements will be fully implemented in 2018 and the agency estimates the total cost for the regulation to be $283 million, or about $63 million per year. There should be no effect on the price of oil, the EPA stated.
However, industry officials believe the cost will be much higher.
Bob Greco, director of American Petroleum Institute’s downstream group, which includes refineries, said the cost could rise to $1 billion. The EPA’s own analyses say emissions from refineries are already at safe levels and the additional costs of the regulation may hurt consumers.
“Companies have already spent billions of dollars to reduce emissions by installing flare gas recovery and flare minimization systems to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and air quality continues to improve as a result of these voluntary programs and existing regulations,” he said.
Chet Thompson, president of the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, said he was disappointed in the EPA’s rules, as refineries are already taking the necessary steps to limit air pollution.
“This conclusion demonstrates that the refinery hazardous air pollutant reductions have proven effective,” Thompson said. “We therefore are disappointed by EPA’s decision to require additional expensive new emissions controls that provide little incremental health benefits.”
