Harris County and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality are suing Exxon Mobil for allegedly violating the Texas Clean Air Act and Texas Water Code, during a fire that broke out at the company鈥檚 oil refinery in Baytown on Wednesday.
The fire started around 11 a.m., sending smoke into the air and injuring 37 people. The unit that caught fire at the company鈥檚 Olefins plant processed light hydrocarbons, including propane and propylene.
In a complaint filed Thursday morning, Harris County attorneys accuse Exxon Mobil of 鈥渦nauthorized emissions into the atmosphere,鈥� saying multiple air pollutants including 鈥減ropylene, LPG, propane, and associated products of combustion鈥� were released.
The county wants a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction ordering the petrochemical giant to comply with the Texas Clean Air Act, Texas Water Code and Texas Administrative Code.
Exxon Mobil tweeted Wednesday morning that the fire had been extinguished, and that the Baytown complex is operating at a reduced level, while the 鈥渋mpacted unit has been shut down and stabilized.鈥�
An update on yesterday鈥檚 incident at the Baytown Olefins Plant: 鈥� ExxonMobil Baytown Area (@ExxonMobilBTA)
Exxon Mobil said it is continuing to investigate the cause of the fire, and that air monitoring continues to show normal levels in the area.
The company also highlighted its 鈥渆nvironmental performance鈥�:
鈥淪ince 2005, ExxonMobil has spent nearly $1 billion on the Baytown complex to improve environmental performance. We have reduced total emissions by more than 29 percent and improved our air incident performance, including those that contribute to hydrocarbon flaring, by 76 percent.鈥�
In 2017, U.S. District Judge David Hittner in Houston in a pollution lawsuit filed by environmentalists, ordering the company to pay nearly $20 million for violating the Clean Air Act at its Baytown facility.
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