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Valero Petroleum Refinery Settlement

U.S. ANNOUNCES CLEAN AIR AGREEMENTS WITH VALERO Petroleum Refinery to Reduce Emissions by 20,000 Tons Annually

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced comprehensive Clean Air Act settlements with petroleum refinery Valero that are expected to reduce harmful air emissions by more than 20,000 tons per year from 14 refineries in six states.

The states of Colorado, Louisiana, New Jersey, Oklahoma and Texas joined EPA in the settlement with Valero. The settlements are part of EPA's national effort to reduce air emissions from refineries, which has brought nearly 65 percent of domestic petroleum refining capacity into pollution reduction agreements.

A consent decree filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas will require Valero and Tesoro (purchaser of the former Valero Golden Eagle Refinery in Martinez, Calif.) to spend more than $700 million to install and implement innovative emission control technologies at their refineries. Actions under this agreement are expected to reduce annual emissions of nitrogen oxide (NOX) by more than 4,000 tons and sulfur dioxide (SO2) by more than 16,000 tons per year. Valero will pay a $5.5 million civil penalty and spend more than $5.5 million on environmentally beneficial projects to reduce emissions further and to support activities in the communities where it operates.

Enforcement Priorities

For additional information, contact:

Patrick W. Foley
Senior Environmental Engineer
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2242A)
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
Washington, DC 20460-0001
(202) 564-7978
foley.patrick@epa.gov

Civil Enforcement | Cleanup Enforcement | Criminal Enforcement

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