2023 BP Products Clean Air Act Benzene and Volatile Organic Compounds Settlement Information Sheet

(Washington, DC – May 17, 2023) The U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposed Clean Air Act (CAA) Settlement with BP Products North America Inc., (BPP), a subsidiary of BP p.l.c., which will require it to reduce its emissions of benzene and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at its Whiting Refinery in Indiana. In addition to securing capital investments with an estimated value of $197 million, the settlement obligates BPP to pay a total financial penalty of $40 million, comprised of a civil penalty and stipulated penalties for violations of an earlier settlement.  This is the largest civil penalty secured for a CAA stationary source settlement. The State of Indiana participated in the negotiations and is a party to the settlement.

• Overview
• Violations
• Injunctive Relief
• Supplemental Environmental Project
• Pollutant Reductions
• Health and Environmental Effects
• Civil Penalty
• Comment Period
• Contact

Overview of Company

BPP engages in the development, production, and marketing of oil and natural gas, and operates another domestic petroleum refinery in Washington State. The Whiting Refinery has a refining capacity of approximately 440,000 barrels per day and is the largest refinery in the Midwest.

Violations

The complaint alleges that BPP violated the CAA National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for Benzene Waste Operations at 40 C.F.R. Part 61, Subpart FF (BWON), the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for VOC emissions from Petroleum Refinery Wastewater Systems at 40 C.F.R. Part 60, Subpart QQQ (QQQ), the NESHAP and NSPS general requirement to use good air pollution control practices, and associated requirements in the Whiting Refinery’s CAA Title V operating permit.

Injunctive Relief

Capital Projects to Reduce Benzene Emissions

• Evaluate the effectiveness of two treatment options to reduce benzene in wastewater and install the more effective treatment option by November 30, 2023
• Control a significant benzene-containing sour water stream by routing it to an existing sour water benzene stripper by December 31, 2024
• Route desalter brine and other sour water streams to a permanent benzene stripping system by October 31, 2026

BWON and QQQ Compliance

• Comply with the EPA-preferred “6 BQ” (6 Mg) compliance option of BWON
• Develop a program document that specifies the regulatory requirements applicable to each piece of covered equipment
• Use dual carbon canisters to control benzene emissions
• Complete a “no detectible emissions” (NDE) engineering assessment for each piece of waste management equipment subject to an NDE standard
• Install and use low-emission components or leak-free design components
• Conduct a root-cause analysis when detectable emissions above the NDE standard have occurred twice
• Conduct BWON and QQQ third-party audits every two years

Monitoring

• Perform more frequent monitoring than required under the existing regulations, including additional equipment that is the source of benzene emissions, and conduct repairs within specified timeframes
• Conduct breakthrough monitoring of carbon canisters and replace as required
• Conduct quarterly “end-of-line” sampling to verify benzene concentrations in waste streams

Additional Measures

• Install additional hazardous air pollutant air monitors, including one new monitor within the refinery fenceline, three new monitors at the refinery fenceline, and 10 new monitors outside the refinery fenceline in the surrounding community
• Develop a publicly available website to post sampling data from the community air monitors
• Monitor accessible connectors at the Whiting Refinery in VOC service within specified process units every two years and repair any leaks above 500 parts per million

Training

• Conduct semi-annual training on inspections, with an emphasis on visual inspections and on-the-job elements

Supplemental Environmental Project

The proposed settlement includes a diesel emissions reduction supplemental environmental project that requires BPP to spend $5 million to replace diesel transportation vehicles with cleaner fuel vehicles (e.g., electric, clean diesel, propane, compressed natural gas) in the surrounding communities of Hammond, East Chicago, Whiting, and Gary, Indiana. Community engagement committees will advise on how best to spend the money to replace diesel vehicles owned by local governments and local non-profits. Replaced diesel vehicles will be scrapped, destroyed, or otherwise removed from use. 

Pollutant Reductions

When fully implemented, the agreement is expected to result in the reduction of 372 tons per year of VOC emissions, 28 tons per year of hazardous air pollutants (non-benzene), and 7 tons per year of benzene emissions.

Health and Environmental Effects

• Benzene – Acute (short-term) inhalation exposure of humans to benzene may cause drowsiness, dizziness, headaches, as well as eye, skin, and respiratory tract irritation, and, at high levels, unconsciousness. Chronic (long-term) inhalation exposure has caused various disorders in the blood, including reduced numbers of red blood cells and anemia in occupational settings. Reproductive effects have been reported for women exposed by inhalation to high levels, and adverse effects on the developing fetus have been observed in animal tests. Increased incidences of leukemia (cancer of the tissues that form white blood cells) have been observed in humans occupationally exposed to benzene. EPA has classified benzene as a Group A human carcinogen.
• Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) – VOCs, along with NO_x, play a major role in the atmospheric reactions that produce ozone, which is the primary constituent of smog. People with lung disease, children, older adults, and people who are active can be affected when ozone levels are unhealthy. Ground-level ozone exposure is linked to a variety of short-term health problems, including lung irritation and difficulty breathing, as well as long-term problems, such as permanent lung damage from repeated exposure, aggravated asthma, reduced lung capacity, and increased susceptibility to respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia and bronchitis.
• Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) - HAP emissions increase the amount of pollutants that are known or suspected to cause cancer or other serious health effects, such as reproductive effects or birth defects, and/or adverse environmental effects.

Civil Penalty

BPP will pay a total financial penalty of $40 million, comprised of a $31,424,000 civil penalty, and $8,576,000 in stipulated penalties for violations of an earlier settlement.

Comment Period

The proposed settlement is lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana and will be subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval.  Information on submitting comments is available at the Department of Justice website.

Contact Information

Constantinos Loukeris
Environmental Engineer
Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5
77 W. Jackson Blvd. (ECA-18J)
Chicago, IL 60604
(312) 353-6198
[email protected]

Patrick W. Foley
Senior Environmental Engineer
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2242A)
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
Washington, DC 20460-0001
(202) 564-7978
[email protected]