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County planners endorse refinery expansion plan
| Friday, Sep 19 2008 2:58 PM
Last Updated: Friday, Sep 19 2008 8:47 PM
County planners recommended approving the Big West of California expansion Friday in a way that appears to bridge a compromise between the refinery and some of its biggest opponents.
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Big West's "Clean Fuels Project" would allow the facility to nearly double gasoline production and increase diesel output by 60 percent without increasing crude oil coming into the facility.
The refinery would add equipment to convert an intermediary petroleum stream, called gas oil, into transportation fuel. Currently the refinery can't convert all its gas oil to fuel so it sells the product to other refineries in the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas.
Big West's parent company, Flying J, said when it bought the refinery from Shell Oil in 2005 that an expansion would be needed to ensure the facility's long-term viability. The project is expected to cost about $700 million.
The Kern County Planning Commission must approve a conditional use permit for additional storage tanks and a zone variance for equipment that will exceed height requirements.
The project also requires an air permit from the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District and a separate environmental permit from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The expansion would create about 100 new jobs at the refinery paying an average of about $70,000 a year, double the facility's property taxes from about $1.5 million to $3 million annually, and create 1,200 construction jobs, refinery officials say.
Opponents have raised concerns about the use of a controversial chemical called modified hydrofluoric acid, as well as increased air pollution and truck traffic on Rosedale Highway.
Photos:
A tanker truck pulls into Big West of California Refinery on Rosedale Highway.
Big West refinery
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The Kern County Planning Department endorsed expanding fuel output at the Rosedale Highway facility under a design called “Alternative D” that does not use the toxic chemical modified hydrofluoric acid.
Big West, which originally proposed the chemical’s use, immediately released a statement supporting the planning department’s decision.
A coalition of firefighters, police officers, nurses and residents that was adamantly opposed to the chemical’s use also backed the recommendation.
“We are very pleased that the Kern County Planning Department agrees with us and wants hydrofluoric acid to stay out of Bakersfield,” said Betsy Ramsey, who organized the Bakersfield Citizens Against Hydrofluoric Acid campaign.
“Alternative D” would still allow the refinery to boost fuel production while eliminating the acid, producing less pollution and reducing power and water demands.
In recent months, the citizens group and refinery waged a public relations battle over the proposed expansion. The citizens group sent mailers detailing the dangers of modified hydrofluoric acid while Big West sent out its own fliers and ran television ads reassuring the public it could use the chemical safely.
The quantity of modified hydrofluoric acid the refinery originally planned to use could create a hazardous gas cloud capable of traveling up to 6.5 miles in a catastrophic release, according to an environmental analysis.
Big West refinery already stores enough anhydrous ammonia to create a gas cloud that could impact people living with 10 miles of the facility under similar circumstances, according to emergency management plans submitted to the federal government.
The planning department’s recommendation was formulated by planners who worked on an exhaustive environmental review of the project for nearly 18 months.
“The intent is to provide the maximum health, safety and environmental protection while still encouraging oil production here in Kern County,” said Lorelei Oviatt, a planning department division chief.
The decision is meant to guide the Kern County Planning Commission, which will hold a public hearing on the project Thursday and formulate a recommendation for the Board of Supervisors. The supervisors have the ultimate say.
Supervisors could deny the expansion, approve Alternative D or approve the original project Big West proposed.
However, Big West officials said Friday they no longer plan to seek approval of that project and will instead support Alternative D.
“It makes a lot of sense,” Big West’s Health, Safety and Environmental Director Bill Chadick said of the county’s recommendation.
“The whole acid issue goes away. There's 30 percent less demand on water, a 30 percent reduction from air emission, it will use less power, there will be a smaller construction force so that means less traffic during construction.”
Up until now, Big West has been open to “Alternative D” but said it preferred its original project.
Under Alternative D, the refinery would build equipment similar to what currently operates at the facility, whereas the original project called for another type of refining process.
The recommended project would still create 100 new jobs and cost about $700 million to build. The construction force would total about 700 laborers compared to 1,200.
About 65 percent of the new fuel produced would be diesel and 35 percent gasoline under Alternative D, whereas the original project would have generated more gasoline and less diesel.