[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 211 (Wednesday, October 31, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Page 54781]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-23735]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under The Clean Air 
Act, The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
Liability Act, and The Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know 
Act

    On October 24, 2018, the Department of Justice and the State of 
Mississippi filed a complaint and lodged a proposed Consent Decree with 
the United States District Court for the Northern District of 
California (``Court'') in the matter of United States of America and 
the State of Mississippi v. Chevron U.S.A. Inc., Civil Action No. 4:18-
cv-06506 (N.D. Cal.).
    The proposed Consent Decree resolves certain claims brought under 
Section 112(r)(7) of the Clean Air Act (``CAA''), 42 U.S.C. 7412(r)(7), 
at the four petroleum refineries owned and operated by Chevron U.S.A. 
Inc. (``Chevron''), which are located in Richmond, California; El 
Segundo, California; Pascagoula, Mississippi; and Salt Lake City, Utah; 
as well as a fifth petroleum refinery formerly owned and operated by 
Chevron, located in Kapolei, Hawaii. The State of Mississippi is also 
resolving its related state law claims at the refinery located in 
Pascagoula, Mississippi. The proposed Consent Decree also resolves 
certain claims brought under Section 112(r)(1) of the Clean Air Act, 42 
U.S.C. 7412(r)(1), at the refineries located in Richmond, California, 
and Pascagoula, Mississippi; under Section 103 of the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (``CERCLA''), 
42 U.S.C. 9603, at the refinery located in Richmond, California; and 
under Section 304 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know 
Act (``EPCRA''), 42 U.S.C. 11004, at the refinery located in Richmond, 
California; and certain findings of violation previously issued by the 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (``EPA'') in Richmond, California. 
The claims alleged in the complaint and resolved in the proposed 
Consent Decree concern Chevron's prevention and mitigation of 
accidental chemical releases, including actual releases that occurred 
in Richmond, California in 2012, in El Segundo, California in 2013, and 
in Pascagoula, Mississippi in 2013.
    The Consent Decree requires Chevron to perform safety improvements 
to all its U.S. petroleum refineries. These improvements include the 
replacement of vulnerable pipes, the implementation of ``integrity 
operating window'' parameters and alarms, the conducting of additional 
corrosion inspections, the implementation of additional employee 
training, and the centralization of safety authority within the 
corporation. The Consent Decree also requires Chevron to pay a civil 
penalty of $2,950,000, of which $2,492,750 will be paid to the United 
States and $457,250 to the State of Mississippi; and requires Chevron 
to perform Supplemental Environmental Projects valued at $10,000,000, 
consisting of the provision of emergency response equipment to local 
jurisdictions surrounding the five refineries at issue in the 
complaint.
    The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on 
the Consent Decree. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant 
Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, and 
should refer to United States of America and the State of Mississippi 
v. Chevron U.S.A. Inc., D.J. Ref. No. 90-5-2-1-11576. All comments must 
be submitted no later than thirty (30) days after the publication date 
of this notice. Comments may be submitted either by email or by mail:

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         To submit comments:                     Send them to:
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By email............................  [email protected].
By mail.............................  Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
                                       DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
                                       Washington, DC 20044-7611.
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    During the public comment period, the Consent Decree may be 
examined and downloaded at this Justice Department website: https://www.usdoj.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We will provide a paper copy of the 
Consent Decree upon written request and payment of reproduction costs. 
Please mail your request and payment to: Consent Decree Library, U.S. 
DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-7611.
    Please enclose a check or money order for $25.00 (25 cents per page 
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury.

Jeffrey Sands,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment 
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2018-23735 Filed 10-30-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4410-15-P