The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is requiring that Limetree Bay refinery install 18 air monitors in St. Croix after ordering the plant to halt operations last month, the agency said on Thursday, as reported by Reuters.
The EPA ordered Limetree to halt operations in May for at least 60 days after a series of incidents polluted the air and water supply of the nearby community.
The 200,000-barrel-per-day Caribbean refinery restarted operations this year after idling for about a decade. The restart was delayed several times due to problems with refinery equipment. Since the facility reopened, nearby St. Croix residents have complained of breathing problems and headaches.
The refinery, backed by private equity group EIG, must develop a plan within 15 days to install nine hydrogen sulfide and nine sulfur dioxide monitors, the agency said. When the refinery resumed operating earlier this year, it was not operating monitors for criteria pollutants and said it was not under legal obligation to do so.
EIG could not immediately be reached for comment.
The EPA said five of the sulfur dioxide monitors are already required by its pre-existing permit. Limetree has previously argued that requirement does not apply, though it did agree to resume operating the sulfur dioxide monitors. Reuters exclusively reported the monitors were not operating in March.
"Addressing environmental justice issues is a priority for EPA," said EPA acting Regional Administrator Walter Mugdan in a statement.
Even short-term exposure to elevated levels of sulfur dioxide can harm the human respiratory system and make breathing difficult, according to the EPA.
Most recently, a refinery incident emitted sulfur dioxide that prompted local school closures after students and staff reported feeling sick and forced some residents to shelter in their homes.
The EPA sent staff to St. Croix in April to investigate the cause of the odors along with the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources. The National Guard previously found elevated levels of sulfur dioxide near the refinery, where Limetree said its own monitoring found none.
"EPA stands ready to assist Limetree in understanding its compliance obligations," Mugdan said.
Since the May incident, Limetree has been hit with four class actions from hundreds of St. Croix residents seeking compensation for property damages and medical monitoring.
