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Tesoro to Pay $1.1 Million to Resolve Clean Air Act Violations

June 12, 2013
In its complaint, EPA alleged that Tesoro failed to comply with recordkeeping, reporting, sampling, and testing requirements at its facilities in Salt Lake City, Utah; Mandan, N.D.; Anacortes, Wash.; and Kenai, Ak.

Tesoro Corp. has agreed to pay a $1.1 million to resolve violations of the Clean Air Act at several of its facilities. The settlement requires that Tesoro, a refiner and marketer of petroleum products, implement an environmental compliance and auditing plan that is designed to prevent future violations and ensure compliance with EPA’s fuels regulations.

“EPA’s fuels regulations are vital safeguards that protect our nation’s air quality,” said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “By taking action against violations of these regulations, EPA is not only protecting people’s health, but is also ensuring a level playing field for refiners that play by the rules."

EPA’s fuel regulations require that all fuel produced, imported and sold in the United States meet certain standards. Fuel that does not meet the applicable standards could lead to an increase in emissions of harmful pollutants, such as volatile organic compounds and cancer-causing air toxics.

The sampling, testing, recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the fuels program provide the foundation for EPA’s compliance program. Refiners that violate these requirements undermine the integrity of the fuel regulations and hinder the agency’s ability to ensure gasoline complies with fuel quality and performance standards, potentially leading to an increase in harmful air pollution.

The consent decree is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval.

 

About the Author

Sandy Smith

Sandy Smith is the former content director of EHS Today, and is currently the EHSQ content & community lead at Intelex Technologies Inc. She has written about occupational safety and health and environmental issues since 1990.

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