A 2019 explosion at a petrochemical plant caused “injuries, evacuations and significant air pollution,” according to the news release of the US Department of Justice (DOJ) announcing the settlement. The explosion also led to the company’s bankruptcy filing.

Civil and Criminal Cases
DOJ filed civil and criminal cases, with settlements submitted in both cases on the same day. The proposed consent decree in the civil case, which also addresses issues at another company facility in addition to the one that had the explosion, calls for payment of $12.1 million in penalties “made through bankruptcy proceedings.” The proposed decree requires the company to spend “approximately $80 million to improve its risk management program and improve safety issues.”

The criminal case settlement requires the company “to pay $18 million in criminal fines. The plea agreement also includes a one-year term of probation and publishing of a public apology.”

Extensive Updates to Company Procedures
The consent decree is subject to a 30-day comment period and court approval. If approved, it will require the company to 1) overhaul its process hazard analysis program to ensure prompt completion of corrective actions, 2) update operating procedures and training for workers and contractors, 3) audit and revise emergency shutdown procedures, 4) provide incident investigations to EPA, 5) conduct an audit to ensure relief systems can handle all appropriate scenarios, 6) install and continually use air monitors at the fence line of each facility and in the neighboring communities, 7) conduct an inherently safer technology review to identify alternatives that minimize or eliminate the potential for accidental chemical releases, and 8) publish incident investigations and monitoring data on its publicly available website.

To see the news release, which has a link to access the proposed consent decree https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/texas-petrochemical-company-pleads-guilty-clean-air-act-violation-and-fined-more-30-million