Sinclair Oil fined $2.45m for Clean Air Act violations

Sinclair Oil Corp. will pay a $2.45m civil penalty and spend more than $72m for new and upgraded pollution controls to reduce annual harmful emissions by more than 11m pounds from the company's three refineries, said federal officials.

The settlement resolves alleged violations of the Clean Air Act at the company's facilities in Casper and Sinclair, Wyo. and in Tulsa, Okla.

Granta Nakayama, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, said: “EPA’s vigorous enforcement of environmental laws shows polluters that they need to act responsibly. Our fellow citizens in Wyoming and Oklahoma will breathe cleaner air thanks to today’s settlement.”

Ronald J. Tenpas, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division, added: “The emissions reductions required by this settlement will lead to cleaner air and significant environmental and public health benefits for the communities in Wyoming and Oklahoma. The Department remains committed to working with EPA and states to bring industries such as the refining industry into compliance with the nation’s environmental laws.”

“EPA's vigorous enforcement of environmental laws shows polluters that they need to act responsibly.

Granta Nakayama, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance

The agreement requires new pollution controls to be installed that will reduce annual emissions of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide.

The three refineries covered by today's settlement have the capacity to produce nearly 160,000 barrels of oil per day.

Sinclair will also spend $150,000 on supplemental environmental projects in Oklahoma, including $100,000 to install new controls to reduce emissions from the City of Tulsa’s fleet of municipal trash trucks.