CRISIS/EPA/TEXAS: “The city of Houston, the Environmental Protection Agency and an environmental advocacy group are investigating a potentially hazardous plume of a carcinogenic substance in one neighborhood after a nearby oil refiner reported its operations suffered hurricane-related damage.
The city and the Environmental Defense Fund said extra air monitors they dispatched to Houston’s Manchester region on Monday [9-4-17] detected the presence of benzene, a component of crude oil and gasoline.
Two monitors detected significantly different levels of the carcinogen at different times of the day, and additional sampling is needed to determine the concentration, according to Loren Raun, chief environmental science officer for the Houston Health Department, and Elena Craft, a senior health scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund, which became involved in the probe after offering the city assistance.
A Valero Energy Partners LP refinery in the neighborhood reported a hurricane-related leak on Aug. 27.
The EPA said it was deploying an air monitor to the area on Tuesday to help the investigation. Officials are seeking to pinpoint the source of the benzene plume, the concentration and how far-reaching the emissions may have spread, Ms. Raun said Tuesday morning, after a call with EPA, EDF and Houston city officials.”
-Melanie Evans, “After Oil Refinery Is Damaged by Harvey, Benzene Is Detected in Houston Area,” The Wall Street Journal online, Sept. 5, 2017 09:15pm