BP Whiting Refinery getting a bad rap? You decide.

Alaska has what one might term a love-hate relationship with BP. Perhaps I am a bad Alaskan for not knowing a lot about the company, but I really have no preconceived ideas about whether BP is good or evil. Something that I knew immediately was not the case for a reporter for the Chicago Tribune when I read an article entitled "BP gets break on dumping in lake" that ran in the July 15th edition of the Tribune. The staff reporter, Michael Hawthorne, begins his piece on an ominous note:

"The massive BP oil refinery in Whiting, Ind., is planning to dump significantly more ammonia and industrial sludge into Lake Michigan, running counter to years of efforts to clean up the Great Lakes."

That is objective reporting? Huh. I always thought that being objective was to approach an issue with no preconceived views and to discuss the topic without having your words swayed by any outside or internal opinions. To present both sides of an issue and allow the reader to draw forth their own conclusions about the subject you have written about.

Now, before I go any further, please, allow me to note that yes, I have been paid by BP to write about this, however I do not have any requirement from them other than that I be objective. Precisely they want me to do what the very biased Tribune reporter failed to do. To: "tell BOTH sides of the story, by making objective posts that include the facts". No problemo. I will present here the facts, for you, dear reader, and you may draw from those facts what you will. I have no intention of persuading you and have nor been paid to attempt that, only to give you the facts and allow you to draw forth your own conclusions from those.

So, what are the objectively presented facts of what BP is doing?

When BP announced their plans to modernize the Whiting Refinery in Whiting, Indiana, in a press release in 2006 they said that construction was tentatively scheduled to begin in 2007. There was an estimate for the project to be completed by 2011 - depending on regulatory approvals.

What BP plans to do is to modernize the refinery to allow them to process additional heavy crude oil from Canada. This will cost an estimated $3 billion and result in about 2,000 contract workers during the peak construction phase (construction to run from 2007 thru 2011). There will also be, upon completion, an additional 80 full-time BP employees at the facility.

The Whiting Refinery has been in place for 117 years and with this modernization hopes to be able to continue to serve the Whiting community for many years to come. The refinery produces gasoline, diesel fuel, and jet fuel that is used throughout much of the Midwest. As a result of the modernization the refinery will be able to increase the current 30% processing of heavy Canadian crude up to 90%.

As part of the modernization the facility will invest about $150 million into further enhancing the existing wastewater treatment facility. A facility that BP says meets or exceeds federal and state regulatory requirements.

The byproduct that leaves the facility is not sludge, as reported by the Chicago Tribune, rather it is wastewater that is more than 99.9% water with the remaining percentage being salt, nutrients, organics and inorganic materials. So small that they pass through filters, these are not dissolved in water. The reported sludges are treated elsewhere.

Another point that is misunderstood is the amount of ammonia the plant will be discharged. US federal and Indiana state regulations limit how much ammonia is allowed in discharged wastewater. The new permit will allow the facility to discharge an additional 554 lbs per day of ammonia for a total of 1,584 lbs per day. The guidelines of the US Environmental Protection Agency could allow for up to 3,358 lbs per day, placing the Whiting BP refinery's average allowed discharge at less than half the daily discharge amount allowed by the EPA. And that is something that bears considering. This is their allowed average, which means that some days this may be close to the number, but on most days it may be significantly lower.

Right now there is a cry for finding an alternative to Mideast oil, and although it is more extensive processing required for the heavy crude oil from Canada, it is a step toward finding alternatives to reliance on the oil from the Midast.

I would urge anyone that is interested in this situation to please look closer at all sides of the issue. You can find out more about the Whiting Refinery by checking out the Whiting Refinery website, where BP explains the project and what they are up to. BP has also created a Whiting Refinery fact sheet to help people better understand what they are doing

Is there a balancing point between the increase in pollutants to Lake Michigan and independence from Mideast oil? That is for you to consider and learn more about for yourself. Never let anyone think for you, inquire and ask and make your own decisions.

Personally, I think as long as the EPA is happy with what they are doing, there are major long term benefits to finding resources closer to home.