Contra Costa Health Services has recommended an independent investigation into incidents at the Martinez Refining Co. in late November and early December.
On the night before Thanksgiving, the refinery accidentally released 20 tons of spent catalyst, a powdery dust containing heavy metals that left cars covered in ash. The county says it was a major chemical accident or release, and the refinery violated state law and local policy when it failed to immediately notify them of the incident.
In another incident on Dec. 9, the Martinez Refinery experienced a larger than usual flaring event, which was unsettling to many people who live in the area.
The county is now investigating both incidents.
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"We are taking these events very seriously, and we’re investigating the events to the fullest of our ability to completely understand the impacts that have happened to the community and taking all the steps necessary to be able to hold the refinery accountable for any regulatory statutes they’ve violated," said Nicole Heath of the Contra Costa Hazardous Materials Program.
The Martinez Refinery Co. says an equipment malfunction caused the Dec. 9 flaring, and in a statement wrote: "The flare worked as designed to safely combust excess hydrocarbons efficiently and effectively. We apologize for impacting the community."
The city of Martinez and Contra Costa County held a virtual town hall at 6 p.m. Monday to address people’s concerns about the two recent incidents.
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“I went and looked at my photos because and I did notice, I thought the air looked a little sparkly,” said Katherine Houghtby who was at the Amtrak station on Nov. 24 heading to Seattle for Thanksgiving.
She was part of the meeting which lasted for over three hours with more than 100 people having questions and concerns about their health.
Operations Manager Daniel Ingram addressed both incidents.
“We are very disappointed in ourselves, that on that night we fell short of achieving our own high standard of being a good neighbor. On behalf of our team, we apologize for impacting you, our neighbors, and our community,” said Ingram.
Contra Costa Health Department informed the public about refinery violations.
“This is for, number one failure to notify us on Nov. 24 and 25 event and also for discharge into storm water drains,” said an official at the meeting. “We will be submitting a referral to the DA in the next couple of weeks.”
The refinery is in Federal Glover's district.
“The one thing we will do here is get to the bottom of this. We will do an independent investigation and from there take the necessary actions,” he said.
Contra Costa County officials also promise to put together an oversight committee and the newly elected mayor of Martinez says she will post results of the investigation on social media.
