Dear Friends of the Environment,
THIS LETTER is to ask that your organization join with other environmental, civil rights, and labor groups who are speaking out against the practices of a dangerous corporate polluter. Crown Central Petroleum, one of the largest independent refineries and marketers of petroleum products in the U.S., has demonstrated its disregard for public health, the environment, and the rights of citizens.
Crown has violated the federal Clean Air Act for thousands of hours and has been sued by Texans United Education Fund, the Sierra Club, and the Natural Resource Defense Council.
Residents of low income and minority neighbors in Pasadena, Texas have taken legal action against Crown because of continuing and unbearable air pollution. Crown had repeatedly refused to meet with residents to discuss their pollution problems.
A group of union and management employees has filed a class action lawsuit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act alleging a pattern of discrimination in Crown's promotion policies.
Both the U.S. EPA and the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission have taken enforcement actions against Crown. Crown has a long history of environmental violations.
According to oil industry publications, Crown's CEO, Henry Rosenberg is advocating revamping the U.S. EPA and the Department of Energy so refiners like Crown will have "a better chance to defend themselves against hostile or indifferent government agencies."
In the midst of February 1996 contract negotiations with the Oil Chemical and Atomic Workers Union, Crown escorted union employees out of the plant and locked the gates behind them. 252 workers with an average seniority of 18 to 20 years were replaced with temporary contract workers. A joint OCAW and Texans United Education Fund report documented a dramatic increase in pollution events in the 20 month period after the lock-out. These included a 1,200 barrel oil spill and a major fire involving the release of deadly hydrofluoric acid.
If Crown's outrageous behavior goes unanswered, the wrong message will be sent to other companies who might be tempted to reap profits at the expense of people and the environment. Join with the National Black Caucus of State Legislators, the Baltimore City Council, and others who have passed resolutions condemning Crown's actions.
Please, have your organization sign on to the attached letter that will be released to the media and presented to Crown's stockholders at the company's annual meeting on April 23, 1998, in Baltimore, Maryland. If you choose to write your own resolution or letter, send us a copy. Let us hear from you if you would like more information.
Sincerely,
Rick Abraham, Executive Director
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We the undersigned, call on you to respect the rights of citizens who live in communities surrounding your operations, and the rights of those who work inside your company fences. We urge you to stop the pollution that you would never tolerate for your own families and communities. We support the coalition of environmental groups and Pasadena families who filed suit against your company for thousands of violations of Clean Air Act standards. The coalition, which includes Texans United, the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club, and the Natural Resource Defense Council, is seeking penalties for more than 10,000 past violations. Crown has repeatedly violated federal air pollution limits for sulfur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide, two extremely hazardous substances. These violations are a result of frequent equipment breakdowns and other operational problems which often lead to massive air releases into the surrounding community. During a one week period in December of 1996 Crown released 59 tons into Pasadena's air. In late April of 1997, Crown released of more than 71 ton's of sulfur dioxide over a three day period. We support the residents and property owners who filed a lawsuit in state court accusing the refinery of disrupting their daily life and health through negligent operations. The lawsuit, which is unrelated to the federal lawsuit for Clean Air Act violations, seeks class-action status to include approximately 1,000 other citizens. The lawsuit accuses Crown of discharging "airborne noxious and hazardous products." Citizens say they can't concentrate, sleep, or enjoy the outdoors. The lawsuit claims the refinery is a "public nuisance" and that Crown committed "gross negligence" by continuing the nuisances even after knowing of their impacts on citizens. Residents claim they suffer from skin rashes, breathing problems, severe headaches and dizziness, eyesight problems, digestive ailments and other physical and mental conditions.
We believe it is in everyone's best interest to make Crown safer and cleaner. Increasing short term profits by reducing costs associated with proper maintenance, skilled labor, and up-to-date equipment, is not the way to achieve this goal. Companies that use under-skilled and poorly trained workers are accidents waiting to happen. Unorganized contract workers with less experience and no union protections are less likely to notice and complain about conditions that are dangerous to themselves and to the community. This leads to preventable accidents and preventable pollution. It results in regulatory fines and costly lawsuits. An organized workforce and a safe clean operation is good for business and good for the community! We urge you to take the necessary steps to clean-up your operations, stop the poisoning of communities, and return your locked-out employees to work. Until you do so, we support the lawful efforts of those who are fighting to protect themselves in the courts and the market place through the use lawsuits, public protest, and consumer boycotts.Communities for a Better Environment