BP (NYSE:BP) Sued By Texas Over Refinery Pollution

The BP (NYSE:BP) refinery in Texas which killed 15 workers in 2005 continues to be an albatross around the neck of the oil giant, as it has been sued again by the state of Texas over pollution violations.

It doesn't help them at all to have this negative publicity in light of the progress they're finally achieving at the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

This lawsuit is centered around a fire at the facility on April 6, when 500,000 pounds of pollutants were allegedly released into the air during a 40-day period.

Major elements of the case are the fire could have been prevented with proper maintenance, but probably more importantly, the pollutants could have been managed by shutting down the two units until repairs of the broken compressor were finished.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said, "BP made very little attempt to minimize the emission of air contaminants caused by its actions, once again prioritizing profits over environmental compliance."

That determination was based around the decision of BP to restart not long after the fire.

Texas Requests $25 Million from BP (NYSE:BP)

Now that Texas has oil starting to wash up on its shores, the state has now asked BP (NYSE:BP) for $25 million in order to clean up the mess, which has initially come in the form of tar balls.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said, “While we do not yet know - and cannot yet calculate - the ultimate damage this ecological and economic disaster will inflict upon the state of Texas, we do know that BP will be held fully financially accountable for the costs incurred by the taxpayers.”

According to Daren Beaudo, a BP spokesman, the tar balls which landed on Texas beaches didn't come directly from the well, citing the Coast Guard, but were probably carried by ships instead.

“It was confirmed that the oil was Deepwater Horizon, but very fresh, not consistent with weathered oil reaching Texas from the well site," Beaudo said. “Suspicion is that it travelled in ships’ ballast or on hulls...."

First BP (NYSE:BP) Tar Balls Show Up on Texas Beaches

For the first time since the BP (NYSE:BP) oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, tar balls have shown up on Texas beaches.

According to Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, the tar balls showed up on Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula on Sunday, and crews have been dispatched to clean it up.

"We've said since day one that if and when we have an impact from Deepwater Horizon, it would be in the form of tarballs," Patterson said. "This shows that our modeling is accurate. Any Texas shores impacted by the Deepwater spill will be cleaned up quickly and BP will be picking up the tab."

So far approximately 35 gallons of oil waste has been cleared from the two Texas beaches.