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ExxonMobil Second Notice Letter

2010-07-02

News Release

Executive Summary

Dear Sirs:

I write on behalf of Environment Texas and Sierra Club ("the citizen groups") and their members to inform you of additional violations of Title V air operating permits, the Texas State Implementation Plan, and the federal Clean Air Act at the oil refinery and petrochemical plant complex in Baytown, Texas (the "Baytown Complex") owned and operated by ExxonMobil Corporation, ExxonMobil Chemical Company, and ExxonMobil Refining and Supply Company (collectively, "ExxonMobil"). As you know, the citizen groups previously mailed you a letter on November 30, 2009, setting forth a description of violations at the Baytown Complex.

Specifically, additional violations at the Baytown Complex are identified in ExxonMobil's "Texas Operating Permit Deviation Report Forms" - sometimes titled ''Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Federal Operating Permit Deviation Forms" - ("Deviation Reports") submitted with respect to each of the five Title V operating permits in effect at the Baytown Complex. Electronic copies of those Deviation Reports which the citizen groups have been able to obtain are on the enclosed disk (labeled "Attachment 1 to July 2, 2010 Notice Letter"), and are incorporated by reference into this letter.

For your convenience, tables setting forth the violations reported in the enclosed Deviation Reports are also attached to this letter. The tables contain the information regarding each deviation as reported by ExxonMobil, with one exception: the citizen groups have added a column entitled "Actual # of Deviations (if different)" to denote instances in which ExxonMobil reported multiple violations of permit or regulatory requirements as a single deviation. Some violations listed in the Deviation Reports overlap with violations previously identified in the citizen groups' November 30, 2009 letter. Such overlapping violations are generally those that have a "STEERS Incident #" listed in the attached tables and in the Deviation Reports.

The Texas Administrative Code defines "deviation" as "any indication of noncompliance with a term or condition of the permit as found using compliance method data from monitoring, recordkeeping, reporting, or testing required by the permit and any other credible evidence or information." 30 Texas Admin. Code § 122.10. The Deviation Reports ExxonMobil submitted to TCEQ provide sufficient information for ExxonMobil to identify, for each incident, the specific standard, limitation, or order which has been violated, the activity that was in violation, the date, duration and location of the violation, and other information regarding the violations. The deviations listed in the Deviation Reports also constitute violations of 40 C.F.R. § 60.11(d) (relating to good air pollution control practices).

The citizen groups do not have copies of all the Deviation Reports for the Baytown Complex dating back to November 30, 2004 (the statute of limitations period from the first notice letter), but ExxonMobil has them and the information contained in them is incorporated by reference into this letter.If you believe any of the above information is in error, please have your attorneys contact me as soon as possible.


Sincerely,

Joshua R. Kratka
Counsel for the Citizen Groups
Additional Legal Counsel Sending This Letter
David A. Nicholas
20 Whitney Road
Newton, Massachusetts 02460
(617) 964-1548