The Environmental Protection Agency has fined a Cheyenne refinery $153,000 for allegedly violating several federal regulations. The EPA alleges that Frontier Refining wasn’t properly training its employees in safety practices and that it misreported or didn’t report the presence of certain toxic chemicals on-site. David Cobb works with the EPA’s enforcement office. He says that’s important information.
“Emergency officials can use it, academics who are doing research can use it, the public who is involved in their local planning committees can use it to know what’s in their communities and plans that are in place to deal with those chemicals,” he said.
The chemicals included ammonia and ethylbenzene. Holly Frontier said in a statement that it is "committed to minimizing environmental impacts in communities where we operate and live. The concerns raised by the EPA have been addressed." Cobb said the company was cooperative and prompt in fixing the problems, which were discovered during an inspection in 2011. Refineries are typically inspected every 5 years.
