Holly to spend $17 million on pollution controls

Holly Refining & Marketing Co. has agreed to spend more than $17 million on upgraded pollution controls at its refinery in Woods Cross, averting a federal lawsuit accusing the company of violating the Clean Air Act.

Holly, a subsidiary of Dallas-based Holly Corp., also will pay $120,000 in civil penalties as part of the settlement, announced Monday.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Justice Department, and the Utah Attorney General's Office had drafted a lawsuit this month accusing the company of violating the Clean Air Act and other environmental laws by failing to control emissions of organic compounds such as carbon monoxide, as well as nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and particulate matter, all of which can contribute to respiratory disorders such as asthma and reduced lung capacity. The pollutants also cause damage to the ecosystems and reduce visibility, the EPA and Justice Department said in a news release.

"This settlement demonstrates our continuing commitment to reducing air pollution throughout the refining industry and to providing cleaner air for the citizens of the Salt Lake City area," said Ronald Tenpas, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division.

The agreement requires new pollution controls to be installed that would reduce annual emissions of sulfur dioxide by approximately 315 tons per year and nitrogen oxides by 107 tons per year when fully implemented, said Holly environmental manager Mike Astin. Annual sulfur-dioxide emissions would be reduced by approximately 60 percent, with nitrogen oxides reduced about 30 percent.

"We're going to install a scrubber to remove sulfur dioxides, nitrogen oxides and particulate matter," said Astin. "That means one of the major stacks that come out of the refinery is going to have additional controls on it to take pollutants out of it before they're emitted into the atmosphere."

The proposed equipment improvements are expected to lower air pollution by more than 420 tons in emissions annually, according to the EPA and Justice Department.

A spokesman for the Utah Attorney General's Office said the Holly refinery had been under investigation for a few years. The state of Utah will share a portion of the civil penalty with EPA.

"This was an acceptable resolution of some possible violations that the federal government was investigating," said Christian Stephens, assistant Utah attorney general. He said by entering into the agreement, Holly avoided a potentially costly legal battle and instead will use its resources to reduce air pollution near its facility.

The Woods Cross refinery — which produces gasoline, diesel fuel and jet fuel — can refine approximately 24,700 barrels of oil per day at full capacity.

In addition to the $17 million in control upgrades, Holly will spend $130,000 on a supplemental environmental project to help fund the purchase of new emergency response equipment for the South Davis Metro Fire Agency.

The settlement with Holly is the 22nd in a series of comprehensive, companywide settlements under an EPA initiative to reduce air pollution from refineries nationwide.

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