It's time for ExxonMobil to clean up its act

ExxonMobil has broken clean air laws at its Baytown oil refinery near Houston on more than 1,000 separate occasions during the past five years — compounding Texas' pollution problems and endangering the health of nearby residents.

With Gov. Rick Perry's environmental agency looking the other way, it's clear we need to take firm action to force one of Texas' biggest polluters to clean up its act.

A winning legal strategy

Backed by our members, Environment Texas is standing up to ExxonMobil and taking our case to federal court. Employing the same strategy that allowed us to force Shell Oil to clean up its Deer Park refinery in 2009, we're exercising our right under the Clean Air Act to demand compliance with the law.

Cleaning up our air, one polluter at a time

With our legal action against Shell Oil in 2009 and now against ExxonMobil, we're taking a powerful stand against Texas' biggest air polluters.

We're also creating precedent that will reverberate throughout the oil industry and put renewed pressure on the government to stand up for our health.

The latest in our court case

On June 7, Federal District Judge David Hittner denied a motion by ExxonMobil to dismiss a lawsuit by Environment Texas and the Sierra Club against the company for thousands of violations of the federal Clean Air Act at its Baytown refinery and chemical plant complex.

Click here to join our campaign, and urge the EPA to crack down on Texas' worst polluters.

Clean air updates

News Release | Environment Texas

San Antonio Power Plant Expected to Be Retired

SAN ANTONIO – Environment Texas hailed the expected announcement today by San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro that the city-owned CPS Energy will retire the polluting Deely power plant by the year 2018 and replace its power with additional investments in solar energy. According to research by Environment Texas, in 2009, the Deely plant emitted 3657 tons of nitrogen oxide, a key precursor to smog pollution. The two Deely smokestacks join with the two “Spruce” units to make up the Calaveras Power Station, which an April Environment Texas report found ranked 11th out of the state’s 20 power plants for mercury pollution.  And according to a study by the Clean Air Task Force, power plant pollution in Bexar County is linked to 282 asthma attacks and 11 deaths every year. Environment Texas Director Luke Metzger released the following statement:

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News Release | Environment Texas Research & Policy Center

President Obama & EPA Protect Public Health, Announce Landmark Mercury Standard for Power Plants

AUSTIN– Today, President Obama and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the first-ever nationwide standard for mercury and air toxics pollution from power plants. A record 907,000 Americans submitted comments on the standard, which is expected to cut toxic mercury pollution from power plants by 90 percent.

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Report | Environment Texas Research & Policy Center

Summer Gas Prices: Beating the Heat with Clean Cars

Rapidly rising gas prices across the country are shining a spotlight on the dire consequences of America’s dependence on oil. Our continued use of oil puts our environment, our health, and our national security at risk, and with prices across the country exceeding $4 per gallon, it is putting an incredible burden on our economy and on American families.

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Report | Environment Texas Research & Policy Center

Danger in the Air

All Americans should be able to breathe clean air.  But pollution from power plants and vehicles puts the health of our nation’s children and families at risk.  Ground-level ozone, the main component of smog, is one of the most harmful and one of the most pervasive air pollutants.  According to the American Lung Association, nearly half of all Americans – 48 percent – still live in areas with unhealthy levels of smog pollution. 

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LCRA and Austin named one of top 50 mercury emitters in U.S.

 

 

AUSTIN —Texas continues to "lead" the nation in mercury pollution, according to a new report that show Texas has six of the nation's top 10 mercury emitters, and the city of Austin and LCRA have one of the nation's top 50 emitters.

 

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