Coulee Progressives: Stop Husky Refinery

Monday, September 09, 2019

Stop Husky Refinery

From Winona LaDuke:

On April 26th, 2018, an explosion rocked the Husky Refinery in Superior, Wisconsin that resulted in a dangerous fire. In the aftermath, it was discovered that had the accident unfolded in a slightly different matter, it could have killed many of the residents of Superior, WI and Duluth, MN. fire. The refinery has effectively been shut down since the event due to the extent of the damage from the explosion and fire.

Now Husky is applying for an air pollution control construction permit from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. This permit would allow Husky to begin the construction required to not only bring the plant back online, but also to expand.

The Chemical Safety Board has yet to issue a final report on the cause of the explosion. The Duluth City Council has urged the WI DNR to review the use of hydrofluoric acid at the plant. Nevertheless, the WI DNR has only allowed 30 days for the public to review and comment on this permit application.

We are asking you to take action TODAY.

Right now.

The Department of Natural Resources and your elected officials need to hear from YOU that the public is concerned about this plant re-starting operations.

TALKING POINTS:

Any permits should be put on hold until the Chemical Safety Boards issues their final report;
A 30-day comment period does not provide enough time to review and understand the implications of restarting this plant;
Hydrofluoric acid is not cutting edge technology and new, safer alternatives are available;
The “rebuild” permit is also being used to increase the plant’s capacity, which should require a more robust review process;
The air permit should be denied on the basis of the extreme increase in greenhouse gases;
Communities in the Husky refinery airshed should be given an education and a chance to comment on the increase of air-borne toxins this plant restart would produce;
Husky’s safety record should be reviewed before they are allowed to restart the plant;
If the plant is re-started, the state of Wisconsin should increase worker safety requirements for the plant and all refineries, including both emergency response and clean-up activities for a worst-case scenario explosion.