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Press Release

For Immediate Release
Contact: Sean C. Bonyun
June 4, 2009
(202) 225-3761

Upton Takes on BP for Deadly Clean Air Violations along Lake Michigan
BP reportedly has been violating clean air standards the last six years at Whiting, IN refinery - Last year alone, BP discharged 16 times the allowable limit of benzene, linked to leukemia and other severe health problems

WASHINGTON, DC - In light of yesterday’s Chicago Tribune story reporting that British Petroleum’s Whiting, Indiana facility has been violating clean air permits for the last six years, Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph), a member of the Great Lakes Caucus, today joined his Great Lakes colleagues in calling for the EPA to immediately review all of BP’s reported ground, water and air discharges. In 2007, Upton joined local officials and residents in successfully fighting BP’s plan to increase their daily dumping of ammonia and total suspended solids into Lake Michigan – BP ultimately dropped that plan.

“It is outrageous for British Petroleum to have been violating clean air standards over the last six years along Lake Michigan,” said Upton. “This is far from an oversight when BP reportedly processed 16 times the legal limit of benzene last year alone – we have got to get to the bottom of this immediately. While we successfully blocked BP from dumping more harmful pollutants into Lake Michigan back in 2007, it now seems that they have been contaminating our air all along. This is a serious matter of public health, and I join my colleagues in urging the EPA to immediately review all of BP’s discharges – ground, water and air - to ensure more lives are not at risk. I have zero tolerance for putting our beloved Lake Michigan and the treasured Great Lakes Basin in jeopardy.”

The full text of the letter is below:

June 3, 2009

Ms. Lisa Jackson
Administrator
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Ariel Rios Building
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20460

Dear Administrator Jackson:

As Members of Congress representing the Great Lakes region, we are concerned about recent reports that British Petroleum (BP) has been violating clean air permits for as long as six years at its oil refining facility in Whiting, Indiana. We are therefore writing to request a comprehensive review of all ground, water and air pollution discharges at all British Petroleum refining facilities in the Great Lakes basin.

On June 2, 2009, BP reportedly acknowledged that it discharged benzene, linked to leukemia and other severe health problems, above federal pollution limits for at least the past six years. Levels of benzene emitted were approximately sixteen times the amount allowed in just the past year.

In July, 2007, the company applied to dump 54 percent more ammonia and 35 percent more industrial sludge into Lake Michigan. Fortunately, a coalition of federal, state and local leaders, environmental advocates and local citizens prevented the first new permitted pollution of the Great Lakes in a decade. We now understand that BP began the overhaul of this plant, without the proper permits, and increased air pollution for over thirty months in the southern region of the Great Lakes.

As you know, the Great Lakes are the crown jewel of our nation. They provide drinking water, food, jobs and recreation for more than thirty million Americans. President Obama recently included $475 million in his Fiscal Year 2010 budget in order to restore our lakes. As we begin the federal restoration of the Great Lakes, we should ensure that BP fully complies with the environmental protection laws and permits.

We request that the EPA undertake a comprehensive review of each pollution discharge at the BP facility in Whiting, Indiana and other BP facilities in the Great Lakes region. We look forward to working with you to ensure the continued environmental protection of the Great Lakes.

Sincerely,

Fred Upton (R-MI)
Mark Kirk (R-IL)
Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
Melissa L. Bean (D-IL)
Judy Biggert (R-IL)
Vernon J. Ehlers (R-MI)
Deborah L. Halvorson (D-IL)
Brian Higgins (D-NY)
Jesse L. Jackson, Jr. (D-IL)
Daniel Lipinski (D-IL)
Donald A. Manzullo (R-IL)
Candice S. Miller (R-MI)
Thomas E. Petri (R-WI)
Mike Quigley (D-IL)
Mike Rogers (R-MI)
Peter J. Roskam (R-IL)
Bobby L. Rush (D-IL)
Janice D. Schakowky (D-IL)
Bart Stupak (D-MI)

Below is a timeline of the 2007 events that led to the BP abandoning their plan to increase dumping into Lake Michigan.

7/15/07	– Chicago Tribune runs Sunday cover story reporting BP’s plans to increase dumping into Lake Michigan.
7/19/07	– Upton phones Governor Daniels to express his grave concern over Indiana’s state environmental permits offered to BP.
7/19/07	– Upton spearheads bi-partisan letter to Governor Daniels signed by 11 other Member of Congress to further amplify their opposition to the proposed increases in dumping by BP into Lake Michigan
7/25/07	– Congress overwhelmingly passes a bi-partisan resolution, with Upton’s support, condemning BP’s proposed plans to increase dumping into Lake Michigan by a vote of 387 to 26.
8/09/07	– Upton hosts EPA Administrator Johnson in the Sixth District and expresses his concerns regarding BP’s plans. As a result, the EPA calls for more dialogue to find an alternative to BP’s increased dumping.
8/10/07	– Upton pens letter to BP America’s Chairman and President, Robert A. Malone, calling for an end to increased discharges into Lake Michigan.
8/15/07	– Lake Michigan Summit is held in Chicago. Upton outlines three principles clearly stating that BP must “dump this plan.”
8/23/07	– After continued pressure from Upton and many communities in the Great Lakes Region, BP acquiesces and says it will not increase harmful discharges into Lake Michigan at their Whiting, IN refining facility.

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