WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Representatives Gary Peters (MI-14) and Mike Quigley (IL-05) called for a federal investigation to review the best practices for transporting and storing petroleum coke (petcoke) and to further study the potential health and environmental hazards associated with the oil tar sands by-product. Quigley and Peters sent a letter with nine of their colleagues to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

“Communities in Chicago and across the country are struggling to address the hazardous impacts of dangerous pollutants like petcoke,” said Rep. Quigley.“Our families deserve more than patchwork regulations that fail to keep petcoke contaminates out of our air and water. The EPA has a responsibility to fully investigate the environmental and public health risks caused by petcoke and help protect our communities from these negative impacts.”

“The proper storage of petcoke and how it impacts public health and the Great Lakes is something Michiganders have already had to deal with, and it's a growing concern for communities across the country,” Rep. Peters said. “I look forward to getting answers from this EPA study for Michigan middle class families and small businesses who have had to deal with the challenges of petcoke. The study will also provide more research so we can make informed decisions on how to properly store and handle petcoke in the future.”

Petcoke is a solid by-product of the oil refining process, produced when converting heavy crude oils into refined petroleum products. Petcoke dust can contaminate air when dust is blown from storage sites into neighboring residential and business areas, and water when runoff feeds into nearby water sources.

Currently, there is no national standard for storing and transporting petcoke, and little is known about the health impacts of petcoke dust exposure. Communities in Illinois, Michigan and across the country have been affected by petcoke contamination, causing upper respiratory ailments and concerns over the safety of drinking water. According to Energy Information Administration (EIA), the domestic production of petcoke is expected to increase as U.S. refineries continue to add coking capacity.

Rep. Quigleyis a stalwart supporter of the environment and a member of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition. He recently received one of the highest scoresfrom the League of Conservation Voters for his record on environmental issues. He has urged his colleagues in the House to put partisanship aside and craft America’s first national energy plan. He has opposed the environmentally harmful Keystone XL pipeline and recently fought to protect America’s public landsfrom weakened environmental standards.

Rep. Petershas been leading the fight for developing a comprehensive solution on how to properly store pet coke and study into the long-term health and safety implications of pet coke. Peters introduced the Petroleum Coke Transparency and Public Health Study Act that calls for a federal study on public health and environmental impacts of the byproduct. Peters’ proposal earned support from Michigan U.S. Representatives John Conyers Jr., John Dingell, Sander Levin, and Dan Kildee, and its Senate companion was introduced by Senators Levin, Stabenow, Durbin and Brown.

Signatories to the letter include Representatives Daniel Kildee (MI-05), Alan Lowenthal (CA-47), Donna Christensen (VI-At Large), Raul Grijalva (AZ-03), Carol Shea-Porter (NH-01), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-At Large), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Robin Kelly (IL-02) and John Conyers Jr. (MI-13). The full letter can be found here.

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