St. Paul, Minn.--The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency reported to its Citizens' Board that Koch Petroleum Group L.P. has continued to make progress in correcting environmental problems at its refinery in Rosemount. A 1998 agreement between the MPCA and Koch included a list of environmental problems to be corrected, as well as a $6.9 million penalty for violations.

MPCA staff reported today that, since efforts began in 1997, approximately 2.5 million gallons of leaked petroleum have been recovered from underground at the refinery. The petroleum is believed to have leaked into the ground from Koch's storage tanks over many years.

Koch also recently corrected a situation that was the result of a dispute about whether a requirement to monitor gas streams applied to a situation at Koch. The federal Environmental Protection Agency recently determined that the requirement not only applies to Koch, but to the entire industry. Koch paid a penalty of $500,000 in September and added monitoring capacity to comply with this requirement.

MPCA staff periodically pay surprise inspection visits to the refinery. The most recent, this month, showed excellent maintenance and operations. Tests on the treated wastewater exiting the refinery's wastewater treatment plant showed low pollutant levels, with ammonia at levels almost undetectable. High ammonia had been a past problem at the plant. The wastewater is discharged into the Mississippi River.

MPCA staff continues to work with Koch on how to dispose of 60,000 tons of petroleum byproduct known as coker fines. Coker fines are usually sold as fuel for electric generating plants. This particular lot of coker fines, however, came in contact with untreated wastewater and was therefore automatically classified as hazardous waste. Hazardous waste may not be burned as fuel. A chemical analysis of the fines was recently completed as part of an effort to re-classify these fines as non-hazardous. The MPCA is studying the results of the analysis and will announce a decision next year.

Koch's Rosemount facility is the largest of the two oil refineries in Minnesota. The other, owned by Marathon Ashland, is located in St. Paul Park.

For more information on Koch's progress, contact Mary Hayes at the MPCA at (651) 296-7236.