For better or for worse, the petrochemical and refining industries evoke much controversy and debate in both the public and private spheres. Many elected officials — whether for the purposes of necessity or political expediency — regularly raise concerns about the industries’ effects on the environment and the economy and craft their policy agendas accordingly. Interest groups and private citizens contend with industry on a daily basis on a variety of matters, from the petty to the profound.

Since his December election to the presidency of NPRA — the petrochemical and refining industries’ primary representative to government and society — Charles Drevna has steered the organization to be in a position of setting the tone for discussion about industry. This effort remains vital in an era where perpetual news coverage — much of it highly opinionated — exists both on the airwaves and in cyberspace.

“We as an industry are easy targets,” Drevna said. “We make for great political soundbites. When you strip away the veneer of the soundbites and really dig down into who we are and what we do, however, those kinds of proclamations fall like houses of cards.”

But if few in the media are willing to analyze the soundbites they create and nurture, how can a concerned public view industry in the light of its positives? It can only be done through the efforts of organizations like NPRA, according to Drevna.

“We pride ourselves on being the association that takes those challenges head on,” Drevna said. “Our mission is to ensure that industry’s message is clearly articulated and understood by policy and opinion makers. We also plan to make sure that the general public understands what we do and why and how we do it. That’s not an easy task. I believe, however, that once they know and understand those things, they’ll have a better appreciation for the good work that we do and how vital the petrochemical and refining industries are to the nation and to them individually.”

The key to that understanding is providing empirical evidence to support a positive message about industry before jumping into overly philosophical or emotionally charged debates.

“We always strive to put science and economics first, and then worry about politics later,” Drevna said. “We want to know what’s real and what’s not before we develop policy. The media, policy makers and other opinion leaders come to us for accurate and timely information. We pride ourselves on that. We have nothing to hide, nor do we want to hide anything. We have a very good story to tell. As my NPRA colleague Bill Holbrook says, it’s the greatest story rarely told.”

Drevna emphasized that this positive narrative will not hold if assembled only through counterarguments and defensive posturing.

“We are out front on these issues,” he said. “We’re trying to promote policy without being in a reactive, firehouse mode. At NPRA, we have a cross-section of talented, highly motivated and energized professionals who are passionate about representing this industry. Our people in government relations and communications are out there participating in the process of strategy in a proactive and understandable way. They’re not simply reacting to comments or policies that may not be beneficial.”

That Drevna has arrived at a key position on the front lines of an ongoing public relations and policy-making battle for the petrochemical and refining industries is somewhat ironic considering his educational background and early career. After earning a degree in chemistry from Washington & Jefferson College, Drevna got his first job developing an environmental quality control laboratory for Consolidation Coal.

“The nexus of that was the effect of the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts of 1969 and 1970,” Drevna said. “Companies were scrambling to figure out how they were going to analyze what they had to do to comply with the acts.”

Having been given a responsibility of unusual importance for a recent college graduate, Drevna believed his path was carved.

“I planned on making a career out of wearing a blue lab coat with my name written on it,” he said. “But as I got more involved with environmental quality control, it led me to Washington as a member of an environmental committee of the coal association. I saw that there was a very interesting life outside the laboratory.”

Although his family was never actively involved in politics, Drevna describes himself and his parents as political junkies who were engaged in current events during the early days of talk radio and beyond. Working in Washington and observing the policy-making process first hand ignited a new passion. Drevna left Consolidation Coal and became director of environmental affairs for the coal association, interacting with regulatory agencies and lawmakers on Capitol Hill. He later became involved in the refining business and held government affairs and public policy positions for Sun Co. (now Sunoco) and Tosco Corp. before joining NPRA as director of technical advocacy in 2002 under then-president Bob Slaughter. 

The individuals at the gears of the petrochemical and refining industries have endeared themselves to Drevna. Perhaps this, most of all, is what qualifies him to lead NPRA in its effort to win hearts and minds.

“I think the general public would have a greater appreciation for the commitment these folks have for providing the American consumer with the products they need and deserve if they knew them as well as I do,” Drevna said. “It’s a great industry. It’s not for the faint of heart because it’s very competitive. At the same time, however, it’s highly fraternal. We’re proud to be a part of it.”

Issues like global warming and high prices at the pump won’t disappear overnight. Neither will heated debates over alternative fuels, especially as the Western world grapples with its dependence on oil extracted from areas of political turmoil. There is no silver bullet to any of the world’s energy problems. For this reason, associations like NPRA must win small today in order to achieve bigger policy and public relations victories in the longer term.

“I recently saw a news report about a refinery that was built in 1909,” Drevna said. “I think it’s a disservice to the American public that we’re being led to believe that these refineries that are 100 or more years old haven’t ever been changed. The nameplate on the refinery may say ‘1909,’ but there’s nothing in that refinery that’s more than 10 years old. The petrochemical and refining industries are always on the cutting edge of technology.”

The march of progress continues unabated in those industries, as is the case with the alternative fuels that some analysts believe could replace fossil fuels. Drevna believes governments and the general public lose sight of this and the importance of fossil fuels at their own peril.

“The demise of the hydrocarbon molecule has been grossly overstated,” Drevna said. “The world will be dependent on liquid fuels, coal and nuclear power for a long time to come. We had better get together and formulate policies that augment those resources because to abandon them would be foolish public policy.”

Debate over energy policy will be high on the agenda in the years to come, as America prepares to elect a new president and new members of Congress this November. No matter which party stands most prominently at the levers of power in 2009, Drevna knows that the work of NPRA will never be done.

“We’ve got a long way to go, and we’re not about to rest on our laurels,” he said. “At the end of the day, however, I’m an optimist. I think good judgment and sound policy will trump political expediency. It may take some time getting there. It may be a painful process. But I believe that no matter who has the gavel on either side of the aisle in Congress or occupies the White House, sound judgment will prevail.

“It’s our job to keep hitting home with that message and to make sure that everyone knows and understands the art of the possible in our industries and what we should and should not be doing as a nation.”


NPRA Reliability & Maintenance Conference to be held in San Antonio

The 2008 NPRA Reliability & Maintenance Conference and Exhibition will be held May 20-23 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio.

The three-day program includes keynote addresses, technical and management presentations, discussion groups, structured Q&A sessions, and an exhibition of products and services. Presentations focus on improving reliability in the refining and petrochemical industry, covering topics such as effective maintenance organization, productivity, equipment reliability, health and safety, training, environmental control, predictive/preventive maintenance, maintenance and engineering standards, inspection, procurement, and innovative reliability technology.

The conference will also devote a series of workshops to the challenges of establishing a reliability culture that rivals the industry’s safety culture. There will also be five professional development seminars.

For more information on registration as an attendee or an exhibitor, please call (202) 457-0480 or visit www.npra.org.