Tesoro To Pay $900K Settlement For Martinez Refinery Violations

MARTINEZ, CA — Tesoro Refining & Marketing Co. reached a $915,700 civil settlement with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District over a series of 51 notices of violation of local regulations issued in 2013 and 2014 for its refinery in Martinez, district officials said Wednesday.

"Bay Area refineries are held to the strictest air quality regulations in the country to protect the health of those in surrounding communities," district executive officer Jack Broadbent said in a statement.

The violations were logged at the Golden Eagle Refinery in Martinez, which has since been renamed the Andeavor Martinez Refinery. Tesoro Refining and Marketing Co. is a sub-entity owned by Andeavor, an oil company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas.

They include two related to flares, six emission standards violations attributed to power outages, two violations caused by maintenance problems at a truck loading facility, three violations for failed seals on
gasoline storage tanks, 16 violations of emission-based standards, 13 monitoring and reporting violations, and nine failed equipment tests indicating excess emissions from engines, furnaces and boilers.

Andeavor confirmed the details of the settlement, but admitted no liability in the process.

"Andeavor takes compliance with environmental regulations seriously and strives to comply at all times," Destin Singleton, a spokeswoman for Andeavor, said in a statement. "In all cases, Andeavor responded quickly to the cited incidents once they were identified, and has taken corrective measures to avoid their recurrence."

Andeavor operates convenience stores and gas stations under a number of different brand names including Shell, Arco and Mobil, among others.

By Bay City News Service

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