WASHINGTON, D.C. — The EPA has fined Shell Oil’s Anacortes refinery for a toxic vapor release.
Shell paid $191,000 and agreed that workers at its Puget Sound Refinery deviated from operational procedures, causing the release on February 20, 2015.
About 700 pounds of un-combusted pollutants escaped over a three and a half hour period.
More than 550 people in the area, including the Swinomish Reservation and in La Conner reported effects from the vapors, and some sought medical attention.
The EPA says Shell has corrected Clean Air Act violations and developed a plan to prevent future releases.