A recently released report claims that chemical and oil and gas companies get away with illegal pollution in Texas about 97 percent of the time.
The report, called “Breakdowns in Enforcement,” was put together by Environment Texas and the Environmental Integrity Project. The groups say the findings highlight the need for stronger enforcement of pollution regulations.
According to the report, companies often get off the hook for paying penalties by blaming the incidents on complex chemical reactions and equipment. But the advocacy groups point out that the releases could be avoided with needed equipment upgrades, and argue that companies would be more inclined to make those investments if they faced tougher penalties for pollution.
Many oil and gas well operators also assert that they emit less than 25 tons of sulfur dioxide and volatile organic compounds every year, which allows them to claim a permit exemption under state law.
For the report, the groups tallied the figures from state records for 24,839 incidents between 2011 and 2016 and found that companies faced penalties in only 588 cases. All told, the incidents racked up about $13.5 million in penalties for more than 500 million pounds of pollutants.
“The State of Texas claims primary responsibility for enforcing antipollution laws, but itself rarely takes action against companies for allowing dangerous amounts of soot, sulfur dioxide, benzene and other pollutants to escape from plants during what industry calls ‘upset’ events,” the report said.
The oil fields of West Texas had the most pollution events, while the Houston area came in second.
Because Texas is the chemical and energy hub of America, the authors argue that the area provides a regulatory template for the rest of the country.
Due to the lack of stiff penalties, advocates and residents have been using courts to force companies to pay for pollution. For example, in April, a federal judge in Houston ordered ExxonMobil to pay $20 million for emitting 10 million pounds of pollutants over eight years at its Baytown refinery and chemical facility.