Environment

Partner in environmental quality
At ExxonMobil Baytown, the largest petrochemical complex in the U.S., we control emissions, enhance energy efficiency and maintain the highest standards for safety, security, health and environmental care. As a 90-year community partner in the Baytown area, we work hard to be a good corporate citizen and are committed to improving air quality and making positive contributions to the surrounding communities.

We operate under an aggressive state and federal regulatory system that authorizes certain emissions that are inherent in manufacturing; however, our goal is to prevent all incidents and releases. We are committed to continuous efforts to improve our environmental performance, and our record speaks to that commitment.

Diligent work renders continuous improvements
Over the past nine years, ExxonMobil Baytown has spent more than $1.3 billion to improve environmental performance. The results have been dramatic.

• We have reduced emissions by more than 55 percent
• and improved our air incident performance, including those that contribute to hydrocarbon flaring, by more than 60 percent. 

In making these improvements, we worked with expert environmental regulators from the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Our total annual emissions are now about 40 percent below federal permit limits, which the EPA sets to be protective of the environment. Additionally, when looking at our upset emissions, it is important to note that half are simple byproducts of combustion and are not ozone precursors. 

Our results in Baytown have played a role in improving the greater Houston area air quality as reported by the Houston Regional Monitoring (HRM) Corporation and the TCEQ. Since 1999, eight-hour ozone levels have decreased by about 30 percent, with the Houston area attaining the current 84 parts per billion ozone standard in 2009. 

We are proud of our progress in the area of environmental performance and to have played a role in improving regional air quality.  As a Baytown area neighbor, we pledge to continue working to find better ways to reduce emissions and improve air quality – our mission is to protect tomorrow, today.  After all, we are invested in improving air quality as we live and work here too.