August 2002 Issues Online June 2007 April 2007 February 2007 December 2006 October 2006 August 2006 June 2006 April 2006 February 2006 December 2005 October 2005 August 2005 June 2005 April 2005 February 2005 December 2004 October 2004 August 2004 June 2004 April 2004 February 2004 December 2003 October 2003 August 2003 June 2003 April 2003 February 2003 December 2002 October 2002 August 2002 June 2002 April 2002 February 2002 December 2001 October 2001 August 2001 June 2001 April 2001 February 2001 December 2000 October 2000 August 2000 June 2000 April 2000 February 2000 December 1999 October 1999 August 1999 June 1999 April 1999 February 1999 December 1998 October 1998 August 1998 June 1998 April 1998 February 1998 December 1997 October 1997 August 1997 June 1997 April 1997 February 1997 December 1996 October 1996 August 1996 June 1996 April 1996 February 1996 December 1995 October 1995 August 1995 June 1995 April 1995 February 1995 December 1994 October 1994 August 1994 June 1994 April 1994 February 1994 December 1993 October 1993 August 1993 Select any issue from the menu in this bar.

Dioxin Back to Drawing Board

A controversial discharge permit has been sent back to the drawing board by a San Francisco judge. Superior Court Judge James McBride says the permit, issued to the then Tosco refinery in Avon two years ago, is invalid because it fails to meet Clean Water Act standards for dioxin reduction.

The suit was filed by SF BayKeeper and Communities for a Better Environment against the State Water Quality Control Board and the S.F. Regional Board. McBride ruled that the agencies had failed to impose a numeric-based standard for the gradual decrease of the amount of dioxin discharged by the refinery (now owned by Ultramar). Instead, they allowed the refinery to discharge roughly the same amount of the substance until a TMDL standard for dioxin is finalized, a process that could take a decade or more. Such an approach isn’t allowed under the Clean Water Act, he ruled.

The Boards argued that refineries are only one of a number of dioxin sources, and that it didn’t make sense to impose new limits while the TMDL study is underway. "Why go through all that if the TMDL tells you (the refineries) aren’t the problem?" asks the Regional Board’s Wil Bruhns. BayKeeper’s Leo O’Brien called that argument "nonsense," and the judge basically agreed, ordering the agencies to rewrite the permit.

"We expect that with this decision, they will have to change a number of other permits," O’Brien adds. Bruhns says that the same process was used for both private and municipal discharge permits, affecting standards set for mercury, PCBs and other substances. He says that Board lawyers are trying to determine how the ruling might apply to those permits and whether or not to file an appeal. O’B

«To @@(newsletter_title)@@ Index

[ ABAG HOME | SFEP HOME ]

Copyright © 2002, San Francisco Estuary Project