|
Comment on this article |
View comments |
Email this Article
|
|
News :: Environment |
|
Hartford, Illinois Resdients Have Problems With Premcor Pollution |
Current rating: 4 |
by Jon R. Pike
Email: profpike (nospam) yahoo.com (unverified!) |
08 Sep 2002
|
|
The Premcor Oil Refinery in Hartford, Illinois, which is set to close in October claims to be a good environmental neighbor. But, resdients of Hartford, Chicago and Texas have different tales to tell. |
As you travel down state Highway 111, the smell of petroleum clings to the air. The familiar corporate logos of Shell, Amoco, and Philips 66 invade the field of vision.In the area bounded by the communities of Wood River, Roxana, South Roxana and Hartford on this side of the Mississippi. This is refinery country. The one logo that might not be as familiar is that of Premcor www.premcorinc.com), the succesor company to Clark Petroleum. But Premcor's name is familiar to the residents of Hartford and it's a name that may be losing its value to those residents.
This May, fumes in houses located across the street from the Premcor refinery prompted the residents of those houses to call state environmental officials to investigate. In an area where the smell of petroleum is a fact of life, the fumes must have been overwhelming to cause concern among the residents in this town.
This was hardly the first problem in Hartford with this refinery. In the late 1960s, several homes burst into flame because of petroleum leaking into the water table. In the late 1970's, a gasoline line rupture, spilled gasoline into the streets. In the 1980s, samples from wells set up by the refinery reveled the presence of benzene (http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts3.html) in amounts ranging from 1 to 7 parts per billion. Benzene is a known human carcinogen. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (http://www.osha.gov/ ) has set an acceptable level of benzene in the workplace of 1 part per bilion. There is no acceptable level of benzene for other environments, such as the home.
The latest problem was the previously mentioned presence of strong vapors in several houses located near the Premcor refinery. This prompted an investigation by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (http://www.epa.state.il.us/ ) that revealed a total concentration in the affected houses of what are called volatile organic chemicals in amounts ranging from 10,000 to 11,000,000 parts per billion. During some sampling that was done a couple of weeks later, the environmental chemists from the EPA found benzene in four different levels of between 10 and 12 parts per billion. The release of these findings prompted local news media like the Post-Dispatch and the Associated Press to report the existence of three-point-eight million gallons of gasoline in the water table.
In response to the complaints, the Illinois Attorney General(http://www.ag.state.il.us/ ) told Premcor that they had to increase the rate at whichthey have been removing this gasoline over the past ten years. Premcor has demured from doing this. Refinery Manager Craig Kramer says that the vacuum pumps they have are pumping at the maximum rate and to pump more would mean different and more expensive pumps. He says that right now the corporate office is 'not willing to take on that expense. ' Particularly he says, because it hasn't been proven that Premcor is reponsible for all of the gasoline beneath Hartford.
But the neighbors who live closest to the Premcor Refinery have no trouble with placing blame with the company. About seven people from that neighborhood showed at a village board meeting (http://www.hartfordillinois.net/)in early August to vent their frustration about the pollution, about Premcor and about the government that's supposed to be protecting them.
'We haven't heard boo from Premcor!' That's how Dennis Phillips characterized his attempts to get in touch with the corporate offices of Premcor about what he says are problems with benzene in his basement. Kramer, the refinery manager, does say that shortly after the problem with the fumes was reported, Premcor did move some of the residents into a motel temporarily, but that Phillips declined. Phillips says that previously it was thought that benzene would only be present in measurable amounts during wet weather when the chemicals present in the groundwater would be pushed up. Phillips says that the most recent measurements have been done when 'it's been dry as bone.' He says he's already concerned about next spring when the ground thaws, because that's when his wife is expecting to give birth. Kramer says he doesn't have a suffiicient background in environmental chemistry to provide reaction to Phillips' complaints.
Phillips says he's equally dissapointed by reaction he's received from government officials. He says that representatives from both the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the Attorney General's office have said, 'We cannot offer you any hope for the future.' He further says that one response he got from an official in the Attorney General's office was, 'I wouldn't have bought a house in Hartford.'
The residents of Hartford aren't the only people in the country who have charged Premcor with polluting their environment. The residents of the mostly African-American west side of Port Arthur, Texas have been challenging permits for Premcor to expand its operation. They says the compnay has been cited numerous times for violating existing permits. A news release from the Refinery Reform group of the Texas-based Sustainable Energy and Economic Development Coaltion, SEED, says that that on three separate occasions in 2001, Premcor has been cited for chemicals far in excess of what they are permitted for, mostly through spills and accidental discharges. SEED says that Premcor and other refining companies have been lobbying the Bush administration to allow for the release of substantially more pollutants without installing new and better pollution control measures.
Joan Silkie, who lives in suburban Chicago has been dealing with Premcor since the early 1990s. Silkie lives near a refinery that was Premcor they closed after numerous accidents. She accuses the company of engaging in only superficial activities to address health concerns. 'After an accident, they'll only selectively clean some houses,' says Silkie. 'They claim to be good neighbors and they aren't.' Silkie is currently part of a class action lawsuit against Premcor.
Her attorney, Mary Ann Pohl, says that the courts have ceritified three classes in an action against Premcor. The classes include the families of kids from a nearby high school that the suit alleges were harmed by discharges from the refinery. The families are attempting to recover medical expenses. Pohl, like the residents of HArtford, is not entirely satified with government action on her clients' behalf. She says it has taken two-and-a-half years to obtain documents from the EPA and she says she still doesn't think she has all the relevant documents.
Silkie says she's eager to help people who have had negative experiences with Premcor. She wlecomes any inquiries in care of The Good Neighbor Committee, P.O. Box 462 Chicag Ridge, Illinois, 60415. She also will accept phone calls 314-854-9696.
The residents of HArtford have received some action. The Hartford Village Board has directed its attorney to send a letter to the EPA, Department of Public Health (http://www.idph.state.il.us/ ) and Attorney General's office asking them to do all they can for the people of Hartford. The Department of Public Health is conducting an extensive survey of the health effects of the refinery on its neighbors.
Dennis Bedwell, who has lived at the same address for the past 26 years and has a daughter living at home in his basement summed up his feelings on the issue this way,' A man will fight for his country and his family. We'refighting for our families. Maybe we let this situation develop, but we have to do something about it.' |
|
An Excellent Article... |
by Michael Feltes
mfeltes (nospam) ucimc.org (verified) |
Current rating: 0
08 Sep 2002
|
|
Thanks for sharing this with us. Our water needs to be protected from pollution by corporations and municipalities that aren't willing to take on the expense of cleaning up after themselves. |
|
Re: Hartford, Illinois Resdients Have Problems With Premcor Pollution |
by tricia krause
triciacandoit (nospam) aol.com (unverified) |
Current rating: 0
28 Feb 2005
|
|
I lived two miles from Premcor Refinery in Blue Island, IL. I had a son who had leukemia and a daughter who had a brain tumor. Click on Channel 7 and Channel 2 news in Chicago, IL. Hit play video. You will see the disastrious affects this has had on our town. |
