07 Feb Politicians and Public Want More Accountability After Refinery Fire

The fire Feb. 1 at the Martinez refinery was addressed at the Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday. (Tony Hicks / Bay City News)

By Samantha Kennedy

For Contra Costa County’s newest supervisor, Board of Supervisors Chair Candace Anderson said the Martinez Refinery Company’s fire Feb. 1 was Supervisor Shanelle Scales-Preston’s “baptism by fire.” 

Scales-Preston, who acknowledged the “frustration, fear, and anger” of Martinez residents in a statement and called for a full facility audit, said Tuesday she had been on the ground after the fire erupted at 1:30 p.m.

But that was several hours after the Bay Area Air Quality Management District received its first complaint of “an oily refinery smell” and two hours before another odor complaint. County health officials said Tuesday they didn’t receive notification of the complaints until after the fire had already started. 

Residents and some officials say that isn’t good enough. 

“My frustration with our Air District — and I sit on that board  — they seem so energized about issuing penalties and fines over public safety,” said District 4 Supervisor Ken Carlson. “They don’t make courtesy phone calls. They don’t reach out to us as a county to partner with us and protect our public.” 

The district received the first complaint around 10:45 a.m., a second at 11:56 a.m., and a third at 1:05 p.m. By 1:45 p.m. it had “already initiated an incident response,” according to a BAAQMD incident report. 

But that doesn’t mean the Martinez Refinery Company is off the hook, residents and officials said. 

“We’ve heard nothing but this dog-and-pony show from PBF MRC. Their ‘Goal Zero‘ program, which they say is worthless,” said Heidi Taylor, a founding member of Healthy Martinez: Refinery Accountability Group. “You need to advocate for us.” 

Taylor made various references to Rep. Mark DeSaulnier’s past comments calling for further accountability of the Martinez Refinery. 

“Having had 30 years of dealing with the oil industry, it is past time for every federal, state, and local regulatory agency with jurisdiction over the Martinez Refining Company to act aggressively with all the statutory authority they have to hold the refinery accountable,” DeSaulnier said in a joint statement this week.”Without more aggressive oversight it is not a question of whether deaths will occur but when, given the company’s disregard for safety.”

The fire injured six, and BAAQMD has so far issued three notices of violations to MRC for public nuisance, excessive smoke and soot fallout. 

County Health Officer Dr. Ori Tzvieli said they didn’t know the long-term health impacts yet and were waiting on additional information. 

The next Board of Supervisors meeting is Feb. 25.