BREAKING NEWS: Large Flaring Event at Martinez Refinery on Friday Evening

Please keep checking back for updates

UPDATE: 4:14 p.m. Saturday: The Bay Area Air Quality Management District has issued an incident report on last night’s flaring. It can be viewed here.

“There have been no Notices of Violation issued at this time, but we anticipate discovery of regulatory violations as we move forward with our investigation. We will provide additional updates once we obtain further information.”

The city also issued this follow-up statement today:

“We are hearing from the community about concerns regarding a lack of timely communication from the City related to last night's flaring incident at the refinery. We understand your frustration regarding the notification process, and we want to do better.”

UPDATE: 10:43 a.m. Saturday: Here is the latest Martinez Refining Co. posted on its Facebook page last night:

UPDATE: 8:17 p.m.: The flaring incident has ended and Contra Costa health officials have determined, based on air sampling, that there is no current health risk to the surrounding community. According to Contra Costa Health Services, the flaring began shortly before 5 p.m. and ended shortly after 6 p.m.

The flaring was apparently caused by a compressor failure. It is under investigation, and the refinery is required to submit a 72-hour report by 5 p.m. Monday. It will be made available at cchealth.org/hazmat

The complete statement is below:

Here is the statement from City Hall:

UPDATE: 6:37 p.m.: Contra Costa Health Services just posted on Twitter that it is conducting air sampling right now to determine whether there are any off-site health concerns. It will update results here.

6:04 p.m. Friday, Dec. 9: Here’s what I know as of this minute about the flaring event going on at the Martinez Refining Co. on Pacheco Boulevard. I will update this post throughout the evening, so keep checking back for updates.

I just got off the phone with Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia, who is no stranger to refinery incidents in Richmond, the area he represents on the board. He’s been told by county officials that a large flaring event is going on at the refinery. A flaring event is not the same thing as a fire, which is typically out of control and of much greater risk to the surrounding community. County hazardous materials crews are responding to the incident, Gioia told me. At this moment, the county has not issued an alert through the Community Warning System advising residents to take any specific action such as sheltering in place. You can register for alerts at this link:

Here is what the Martinez Refining Co. has posted on its Facebook Page:

As many residents know, Martinez Refining Co. is already under investigation by Contra Costa Health Services and the Bay Area Air Quality Management Health District for a flaring event and emissions release of a powdery substance containing heavy metals on Thanksgiving night. In the latter case, health officials said the refinery did not alert them to the release and they only found out about it two days after the fact through social media posts. There was a lengthy presentation at Wednesday’s City Council meeting by county health officials, who were clearly displeased with the refinery’s lack of communication about the incident and suggested that they might refer the results of their investigation to the Contra Costa District Attorney if circumstances warrant. They also discussed the respiratory and other health risks to residents posed by the powdery substance, including risks of ingestion from heavy metals that fell on residential surfaces, fruits and vegetables and gardening soil (residents who garden were advised to test their soil). Several residents also expressed anger and frustration in public comments about the health risks that were posed by the release and the lack of communication by the refinery. A video of the presentation and comments can be viewed here.

The refinery is currently owned by PBF Energy, which bought it from Shell in 2020. Gioia, who is also a longtime member of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District and has long dealt with Chevron over issues at its refinery in Richmond, told me that he had more confidence in Shell’s safety record than PBF.

A quick Google search turned up this 2018 news article from the Daily Breeze about emissions violations at PBF’s Torrance refinery. Here’s a snippet:

The owner of the Torrance refinery ended 2017 the way it started, racking up five air quality violations for excess emissions and other environmental issues, according to Southern California’s air pollution watchdog.

PBF Energy paid a $50,000 fine in December for excessive flaring on Oct. 11 that the South Coast Air Quality Management District deemed a public nuisance.

Thick black smoke from huge flares visible for miles belched for about three hours from the refinery in the early morning hours that day, snarling traffic after a regional power outage knocked the plant offline. Residents were urged to shelter in place with doors and windows closed until the order was lifted after about 20 minutes. One refinery worker was taken to a local hospital with unspecified injuries.

Another article from the Daily Breeze detailed frustrations from nearby residents after PBF bought the refinery from ExxonMobil. To wit:

“A lot of people are saying they’ve not noticed this much flaring before, even when ExxonMobil was here,” said Catherine Leys, co-founder of FLARE, an acronym for Families Lobbying Against Refinery Exposures.

As a nearby resident of the Martinez refinery for over 20 years, I can say without equivocation this is largest flaring incident I’ve witnessed at the refinery in the time I’ve lived here.

Check back for updates.