Lake Charles refinery owner faces record $12 million fine

A Texas company that owns a refinery in Lake Charles pleaded guilty Wednesday to felony violations of the federal Clean Air Act and to obstructing justice, and agreed to pay a record fine. Pelican Refining will pay $12 million for problems at its refinery, including $2 million for air pollution monitoring and other environmental projects in the state, according to a plea agreement reached in federal court and awaiting a judge’s approval. The Justice Department says the criminal fines would be the largest ever in Louisiana for violations of the Clean Air Act. It also says Houston-based Pelican acknowledged it had violated numerous standards in its permit—including emissions of potentially deadly hydrogen sulfide—and submitted false emissions reports to the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality. Byron Hamilton, Pelican vice president overseeing operations at the refinery since 2005 from an office in Houston, pleaded guilty on July 6 to two Clean Air Act violations. He faces up to a year in prison and a $200,000 fine for each count, according to authorities. Federal authorities opened an investigation in 2006 after they received reports of illegal releases of hydrogen sulfide, improperly repaired or bypassed pollution monitoring and control equipment, as well as oil stored in tanks requiring repairs. The refinery also had no company budget, no environmental department and no environmental manager, according to Pelican’s court admission. As part of the plea agreement, Pelican would be banned from operating a refinery until it implements an environmental compliance plan, including external auditing by independent firms and oversight by a court-appointed monitor.