Torrance ExxonMobil Refinery: What parents need to know

Torrance ExxonMobil Refinery after February 18th Explosion

Photo taken by Sara J. Romero

In the wake of the February 18th explosion of the Torrance ExxonMobil Refinery in California, a lot of information has surfaced that has residents, particularly parents, across Torrance, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, Lawndale, Gardena and Carson communities questioning the overall safety of the refinery.

February 18th Explosion
According to an August 13, 2015 press release issued by the State Department of Industrial Relations, Cal/OSHA issued 19 citations to ExxonMobil Refining & Supply Company as a result of the February 18th explosion; all but one were classified as serious. Citations are classified as "serious" when refinery employees are in direct danger of serious injury or death. Of the 18 serious citations 6 were classified as "willful;" meaning ExxonMobil intentionally failed to comply with state safety standards. (Exxon is currently contesting all of these citations.)

Up until the February explosion, the Torrance ExxonMobil Refinery processed an average of 155,000 barrels of crude oil per day and produced 1.8 billion gallons of gasoline per year according to their corporate website. It sprawls across 750 acres, employs approximately 650 employees and 550 contractors. The benefits this refinery provides to the local, state and national economies are self-evident, however, the 86-year old refinery is one of a handful in the U.S. that still use a modified version hydrofluoric acid (HF) as a catalyst in petroleum refining, despite safer alternatives..........................

Modified Hydrofluoric Acid: Why it's dangerous
In 1986, the Amoco and Allied Signal Corporations sponsored 'Goldfish' tests in the Nevada Desert. During these tests, 1,000 gallons of HF were released within two minutes, under temperature and pressure conditions similar to a refinery alkylation unit. According to a July 9, 2015 report from Sally Hayati, a member of the Torrance Refinery Action Alliance, researchers were "shocked to discover that 100% of the released HF became airborne and formed a dense rolling cloud of toxic gas that moved with the wind. Within two minutes sensors showed lethal HF concentrations 5 miles away from the release point."

The University of North Carolina department of Environment, Health and Safety issued a chemical safety information document in December 2014 for HF. It states that HF differs from other acids because the fluoride ion penetrates the skin. Deep tissue layers are destroyed down to, and including, the bone. Pain and symptoms associated with HF exposure may be delayed up to 24 hours. If HF is not rapidly neutralized, tissue destruction may continue for days and result in limb loss or death.

Maureen Mauk, a Torrance resident and mother of two said, "There are over 250,000 people, including hundreds of families with small children, within a 5-mile radius of the Torrance Refinery. We shouldn't have to live in fear when a safer solution exists."