Hundreds march on Torrance refinery calling for MHF ban
A marching protestor holds a sign marking the last incident at the Torrance oil refinery, a fire that occurred on the two year anniversary of a major explosion at the refinery. Photo
Saturday morning, two years to the day of the explosion at the Torrance oil refinery, the South Bay woke up to messages from the city’s alert system learning that the refinery had, once again, suffered an explosion and fire.
This only seemed to strengthen the resolve of the members of the Torrance Refinery Action Alliance to gather at Columbia Park on Saturday. There, hundreds of people stood in mud and marched along 190th Street to protest the Torrance Refinery Company’s use of modified hydrofluoric acid (MHF) in its refining process.
“It means everything that so many people showed up, because even with the help of regulators or politicians who are friendly toward us, only the people are strong enough to win this battle,” said TRAA President Sally Hayati. “We’ve got more than 300 people here. We shouldn’t have to be out here in the rain with our kids.”
On Feb. 18, 2015, excess pressure caused an explosion in the refinery’s electrostatic precipitator, a particulate filtration device. The explosion rocked the area, generating the force of a 1.7 magnitude earthquake according to area seismometers, and dispersing catalyst dust up to a mile away from the refinery. Two refinery workers were injured, and an storage tank containing 50,000 pounds of MHF was nearly struck by a massive piece of debris.
The facility is now managed by the Torrance Refining Company, rather than ExxonMobil, but remains one of two California refineries that use MHF as an alkalizing agent in the refining process. The second is in the Valero Wilmington refinery.
The incident on Feb. 18, 2017, was not nearly as severe, and was soon downplayed from initial reports. Follow-ups from Torrance’s Office of Emergency Services clarified that the incident was not explosion, but a fire.
That was cold comfort to protesters. Their argument is that, had an 80,000 pound piece of equipment landed on the MHF storage tank, thousands could have suffered severe injury or death. According to a report issued by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, HF “can cause severe damage to the respiratory system, skin and bones of those who are exposed, potentially resulting in death.”
When released at high temperatures, hydrofluoric acid disperses into a large, ground-hugging aerosol cloud. Modified hydrofluoric acid, as is used at the Torrance refinery, is supposed to curb the potential for a release to form a cloud by raising the chemical’s boiling point. However, Hayati notes, the current HF mixture used at the Torrance refinery is a 90 percent concentration, raising its boiling point to 73 degrees.
The average temperature of the Torrance refinery’s MHF settler tank is 105 degrees, Hayati said.
“It was an Act of God that helped prevent an 80,000 pound piece of equipment from striking and rupturing an MHF tank, which could have resulted in over 100,000 deaths or injuries,” Rep. Ted Lieu said in a statement. “On the anniversary of that explosion, we get another explosion and a fire. It is completely unacceptable to have deadly MHF at failing refineries.”
Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi, representing Torrance and much of the South Bay, agrees with Lieu, making a stand against hydrofluoric acid and for enhanced refinery safety among his chief campaign priorities.
On Saturday, he announced that he introduced a legislative package to the state assembly intended to improve safety conditions at refineries and better inform nearby communities of issues at their refineries.
“The Torrance refinery must make safety their number one priority, not just for our families and our community, but for the refinery workers,” Muratsuchi said, noting that his proposed legislation is likely to be fought by oil lobbyists.
“I want to make it clear that I’m 100 percent in support of the refinery workers,” Muratsuchi said. “Those are good union jobs at the refinery, and we want to make the refinery safer.”
Muratsuchi was joined at the rally by Hermosa Beach Councilman Justin Massey, as well as representatives from the offices of Congressman Ted Lieu and State Senator Ben Allen.
Redondo Beach Councilman Christian Horvath was also in attendance with his family.
“It’s a super important issue for me because [my district] is in the immediate area,” Horvath said. “I think the louder [the community gets], the more pressure we put on the refinery to lose MHF.”
The fight against MHF, Horvath believes, is a regional issue, and as such he’s pushing for the South Bay Cities Council of Governments to work with the South Coast Air Quality Management District and take a harder stance against the refinery.
A statement from Torrance Refining Company spokesperson Gesuina Paras said that Saturday’s fire was “pump-related” and that there was no explosion. It said that the fire was isolated to one area, and was extinguished in about 40 minutes by refinery responders and Torrance Fire Department personnel.
“Safety systems at the refinery operated properly and all personnel are safe and accounted for, with no injuries or off-site impact,” according to the statement.
The refinery, however, once again drew the ire of the SCAQMD, which released a statement on Sunday.
“I’m very disappointed in the frequency of breakdowns, flaring, accidents and fires at the Torrance refinery and I’m concord about the impact of these incidents to community residents,” SCAQMD board chairman William Burke said in a press release.
Burke went on to call for a “full hearing to investigate and resolve these matters,” noting a forthcoming announcement for a community hearing in Torrance.
“Residents have suffered too long from excess air pollution due to preventable flaring, not to mention fear of the next potential accident at the refinery,” Burke said. “At our upcoming hearing, we will discuss steps that the refinery should take now to reduce these potentially harmful incidents.”
SCAQMD’s statement is the latest salvo launched at the refinery. Last month, the agency announced plans to legislate against the use of MHF in the Torrance and Wilmington refineries. However, previous attempts at regulating HF in its various forms have stalled. A previous SCAQMD rule regarding HF was suspended in 1992, and last year, a state legislative bill banning HF died in committee.
“We have spoken to the SCAQMD in the past about the many safety and mitigation measures already in use at the Torrance Refinery MHF unit,” Paras said in the Torrance Refining Company’s statement. “The additive that is contained in MHF is only one of the many mitigation and safety measures in place at the Torrance Refinery, and we remain confident that the unit operates safely.”
Paras also defended its use of MHF as both a practical and cost-saving issue for the refinery.
“We also commented to the SCAQMD on the [technology study] they undertook last year, which severely underestimated the cost and timing of replacing the MHF unit,” Paras said. “We plan to provide information and comments during the rule-making process to ensure SCAQMD Board members consider all aspects of the critical role MHF plays in the refining process and supplying CARB gasoline, and the potential impacts rule-making could have on the refinery and the region.”
The company’s confidence was not good enough for Torrance teacher Julie Still.
“Though the Torrance Refining Company would prefer we stand silently by and just trust them, I refuse,” she said at Saturday’s rally. “I don’t trust a company that’s had so many accidents and flares throughout this school year…as a teacher, I feel it’s my duty to stand up for my students and protect them.”
The discussion will continue on Tuesday, Feb. 28, when the Torrance City Council will hear a staff report regarding the safety and continued use of MHF at the Torrance refinery.
Lieu, alongside Congresswoman Maxine Waters, has been pushing for an investigation of the Torrance refinery since the 2015 explosion, and doubled down in his statement, saying he will ask the U.S. Chemical Safety board to include Saturday’s fire in their investigation. He also praised the SCAQMD for its proposal to phase out MHF at refineries.
“I urge SCAQMD to act with urgency. Refineries are not supposed to have explosions. We need to ban MHF as soon as possible,” Lieu said. “God may not warn us again.”