Texas BP Refinery Released 538,000 Pounds of Chemicals Into Atmosphere

Just two weeks before the Gulf spill, a BP refinery in Texas released thousands of pounds of chemicals into the atmosphere. Unsurprisingly, BP did not handle the situation well (from ProPublica/Frontline):

Two weeks before the blowout in the Gulf of Mexico, the huge, trouble-plagued BP refinery [1] in this coastal town spewed tens of thousands of pounds of toxic chemicals into the skies.

The release from the BP facility here began April 6 and lasted 40 days [2]. It stemmed from the company’s decision to keep producing and selling gasoline while it attempted repairs on a key piece of equipment, according to BP officials and Texas regulators.

BP says it failed to detect the extent of the emissions for several weeks. It discovered the scope of the problem only after analyzing data from a monitor that measures emissions from a flare 300 feet above the ground that was supposed to incinerate the toxic chemicals.

The company now estimates that 538,000 pounds of chemicals escaped from the refinery while it was replacing the equipment. These included 17,000 pounds of benzene, a known carcinogen; 37,000 pounds of nitrogen oxides, which contribute to respiratory problems; and 186,000 pounds of carbon monoxide.

It is unclear whether the pollutants harmed the health of Texas City residents, but the amount of chemicals far exceeds the limits set by Texas and other states.

read the whole piece here:

www.propublica.org...

Seems like BP is hell bent on destroying the planet through their gross incompetence. I would like to say something profound, but I am at a loss for words. The only thing I can says is "oops" doesn't cut it. All the money in the world won't replace one loss of life, human or otherwise. This neglect or sabotage is criminal and heads should roll.

That sounds pretty nasty too. I believe it, as it sounds like BP is rather complacent. I'm sure their profits more than make up for the loss of life of people who don't even work there, and run up the property value to increase their taxes

Saddam made them all look like amateurs, how many wells did he set ablaze? Plus he drained an entire wetland?

oops...double post

[edit on 7-7-2010 by __rich__]

"...17,000 pounds of benzene..."

They can't be serious. Texas is starting to sound like India. How the hell did this not make the news BEFORE the oil spill?

Maybe this explains why those CEO's sold off their stock when they did, and the oil spill was just a lucky coincidence?

So many people downwind of that chemical release are screwed.

reply to post by __rich__


WHAT KIND of ODD reply was that?!!

Was that a desperate attempt to remove the ATTENTION OFF OF THE BP SCUM?!!

People may be questioning how financially involved you may be with BP to have posted something odd like that.

Edit- typo




[edit on 7-7-2010 by Baloney]

Originally posted by __rich__
Saddam made them all look like amateurs, how many wells did he set ablaze? Plus he drained an entire wetland?

He wasn't trying to make it look like an accident.

Originally posted by __rich__
Saddam made them all look like amateurs, how many wells did he set ablaze? Plus he drained an entire wetland?

What? total derail of the thread. What the hell have you been smoking and why arnt you sharing?

This;

Two weeks before the blowout in the Gulf of Mexico, the huge, trouble-plagued BP...

and this;

BP says it failed to detect the extent of the emissions for several weeks.

...

How many is several, in that case?!? They could just have found out yesterday!