Martinez, CA — A series of accidents and flare-ups at the Martinez Refining Company (MRC) has put the facility and its workers under increased scrutiny, highlighting the growing tensions between California’s reliance on fossil fuels and the health and safety of its communities.

The most recent incident happened earlier this year, on Feb. 1, when a fire broke out during a refinery maintenance procedure. According to reporting at KQED, the fire was caused by human error when two workers loosened bolts on a pressurized pipe connection, allowing hot hydrocarbons to escape and ignite. The fuel ignited into flames in less than one minute and spread quickly as the refinery’s warning systems failed.

“You could see the flames from blocks away,” Amina Khan, a mother of three who lives only a few blocks from the refinery, told The Inquirer in late October. “We didn’t know if we should just grab all of our stuff and leave or stay inside.”

“Nobody really told us anything,” she added. The refinery, operated by New Jersey-based PBF Energy, was forced to shut down for two months following the flare-up, which had repercussions beyond just Contra Costa County. 

Producing more than 156,000 barrels of crude oil per day, the facility accounts for nearly 10 percent of California’s fuel production. Its sudden closure tightened the statewide supply, which in turn spiked gas prices across California, according to the California Energy Commission’s Division of Petroleum Market Oversight. A report from Business and Industry Connection (BIC) Magazine confirmed that the facility partially reopened in late April, producing between 85,000 and 105,000 barrels per day. The refinery expects to return to full operations late this year pending regulatory approval, according to BIC. 

Insurance has covered most of the company’s financial troubles, although MRC had to absorb a $30 million deductible, the magazine reported. But for residents of Martinez, the flare-up in February was only the latest in a pattern of accidents since PBF Energy acquired the refinery in 2020.

In November 2022, the plant released between 20 and 24 tons of spent catalyst dust into the surrounding neighborhoods. The fine powder, which was laced with metals such as zinc, barium and chromium, filled the air and covered surrounding homes. 

Company officials initially chose to downplay the severity of the accident, but later testing confirmed that the toxic materials had spread all across the city’s residential areas.

“When we woke up, everything outside was completely covered in dust, our cars, my garden, and even our dog’s water bowl,” said Serena Blake, a Martinez homeowner who has lived here for nearly 15 years. “They said it wasn’t toxic, but we just simply didn’t believe that.”

Community frustration began to grow following disclosures that the refinery itself had not even detected the toxic release. According to a DVC Inquirer investigation in 2023, local residents themselves were the ones who alerted the company after noticing the contamination. 

Local critics of the company have also noted the absence of wet scrubbers, which are a widely used pollution-control technology that could have prevented the release.

In response to the November 2022 accident, regulators, including the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), launched investigations into the day-to-day operations and reporting at MRC, according to BAAQMD incident documents. 

Contra Costa County leaders have also called for increased oversight, citing the repeated chemical releases and concerns for public safety. 

In the aftermath, calls for real-time access to the emissions data from the refinery, as well as quicker and clearer public alerts, have grown — especially due to the delayed public notifications following both incidents.

“Everybody here knows that the refinery is a part of the town, but that doesn’t mean we should just accept it when something bad like this happens,” said Mark Jensen, a father of two and a homeowner in downtown Martinez. Industry advocates argue that refineries like the one in Martinez are essential to the fuel supply in California as the state transitions to renewable energy. But the investigations into the February fire also point to significant gaps in supervision and training, raising concerns about whether future incidents like this can be prevented. 

As the refinery moves toward full restoration in the coming months, residents of Martinez remain skeptical. For many members of the community, the main question isn’t just when the next flare-up will occur, but whether the systems that have been put into place will protect them when it does.

“We all deserve to know what’s being released into our air,” said Jensen, “and what we’re breathing in.”