The Martinez Refining Company, already facing a series of investigations after a string of industrial accidents, is now being sued by two Martinez residents in a proposed class action lawsuit that demands the company cease operating until it proves it can do so safely.
The suit alleges that the beleaguered refinery, which has been responsible for numerous chemical releases into the community over the past year, has become a public nuisance that is causing severe harm to the residents of Martinez.
Beside shutting down the refinery, the lead plaintiffs, Alena Cruz and Shannon Payne, are also asking for an environmental monitoring regime and a public acknowledgement of the facility’s mismanagement. In addition, the suit asks for the creation of an independent oversight board that would evaluate the refinery, determine compensation for damages, and require the Martinez Refining Company to pay residents’ medical expenses.
“We want to make sure that people in this community get more than the refinery coming to the city council and saying ‘we have to do better’,” said Blair Kittle, the lead attorney in the case.
The lawsuit marks a further escalation in a series of investigations and potential lawsuits surrounding the refinery. Just a few weeks ago, the Contra Costa District Attorney’s office announced a “joint civil action” against the refinery in conjunction with several other local agencies, which could also be a prelude to a lawsuit. The EPA and the FBI continue to investigate the refinery for the spent catalyst release on Thanksgiving last year.
A spokesperson for the Martinez Refining Company said they do not comment on pending litigation. During a presentation at an October Martinez city council meeting, the manager of the refinery, Daniel Ingram, acknowledged that the refinery’s license depended on their ability to operate in a “safe and responsible manner.”
Because the lawsuit has been presented as a proposed class action, it’s possible that the two lead plaintiffs could ultimately come to represent the as many as 40,000 people who may have been affected by the refinery’s releases over the last year.
The saga began last year on Thanksgiving night, when residents woke up to a layer of fine white silt on their cars, garbage cans, and window sills. The Martinez Refining Company, whose sprawling campus defines the east side of the city, said the release was “non-toxic,” “non-hazardous”, and “naturally occurring” spent catalyst dust used in the refining process.
Only days later did the County Health Department alert residents that the sand contained harmful metals like aluminum, chromium, and barium. Over the past year, there have been several other releases from the refinery, although none as harmful or far-reaching as the incident in November.
In the suit, Cruz described the fear of seeing flames rising from the facility on regular occasions. She said after the spent catalyst release many of the plants in her garden died mysteriously. Payne said all the refinery did was offer a few hundred dollars to replace the soil in her garden.
“They never say what the problems are and what they are doing to correct them. We are afraid of what this dust is potentially doing to our children and their health,” said Cruz in a statement.
At its core, the lawsuit seeks to dispel the notion that the Martinez Refinery is a good neighbor that has simply made a few mistakes. The complaint pulls no punches, calling the Martinez Refinery an “inevitable disaster” and “not the good corporate citizens they claim”. Now, the lawsuit argues, they must pay for their mistakes.
“There are a lot of questions,” Kittle said. “A lawsuit is one mechanism we can use to get the answers.”