Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Industrial Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Contra Costa Health presents Richmond industrial safety report; Chevron audit shows compliance trend but flags 22 'ensure' items
Summary
Contra Costa Health presented the FY2023–24 Richmond Industrial Safety Ordinance annual report and described a five‑week 2025 audit of the Chevron Richmond Refinery. The report said no major chemical accidents occurred during the reporting period, Chevron submitted process‑safety indicators and the audit identified 22 ensure items that staff will track toward resolution.
Contra Costa Health presented the fiscal year 2023–24 annual Richmond Industrial Safety Ordinance report to the council on Nov. 18, summarizing program activity, process‑safety indicators and the results of a five‑week tri‑annual audit of the Chevron Richmond Refinery.
Nicole Heath, director of the Hazardous Materials Division, said the ordinance extends state process‑safety requirements and requires facilities to submit safety plans, process‑safety indicators and to participate in public engagement. For the reporting period, Contra Costa Health said there were no Major Chemical Accidents or Releases (MCARs) at Chevron that met the county’s level‑2 or level‑3 community‑warning thresholds.
Chevron reported process‑safety indicators (self‑reported), including zero overdue temporary piping repairs and zero overdue piping inspections in the reporting year; staff cited one API tier‑1 incident reported in 2023 and no tier‑2 incidents for the year. Heath said the refinery’s tier‑1 incident rate compared favorably with industry benchmarks.
Contra Costa Health described a September–October 2025 audit (the most recent tri‑annual audit) during which staff evaluated more than 400 audit questions across 20+ program elements. The audit identified 22 "ensure" items (regulatory non‑compliance findings) spread across 10 program elements; two items were repeats from the prior audit. Heath said facilities must provide action plans and the health department follows up; enforcement is available as a backstop but staff prioritize compliance through education and corrective action.
Public commenters raised concerns about flaring events in 2025 and asked for fuller public review; a resident asked that the county present this report as new business rather than on consent. Contra Costa Health staff said the report is publicly available online, one‑page audit summaries will be published, and staff will hold community outreach and present audit findings publicly.
The council voted unanimously to receive the report. Staff said they are exploring cumulative‑exposure studies with a retained toxicologist and will report back to the Industrial Safety Ordinance ad‑hoc committee if a study plan is feasible.
