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Speakers at Brownsville meeting urge pause, health study and water transparency over proposed refinery
Summary
Multiple public commenters at the March 17 meeting urged the city and port not to allow a planned oil refinery project without independent environmental and health reviews, raising water‑supply, cancer and environmental justice concerns.
Several members of the public used the commission's public comment period to press city officials to halt or subject to independent review plans for a proposed Port of Brownsville oil refinery.
Sergio Colorado (2601 Wilson Road) told the commission the Rio Grande Valley had been "betrayed" by leaders striking deals with billionaires and warned of long-term health and water impacts. He cited a University of Texas Medical Branch study he said links proximity to refineries with higher cancer risk and said reported job estimates for the project would be far lower than advertised.
A 15‑year-old speaker who identified himself as Aiden described local symptoms—smelling "rotten egg" and increased asthma—and said the refinery's product would primarily be exported under long-term contracts rather than lower local gas prices. He asked for no groundbreaking until an independent environmental review and a developer‑funded health impact study in English and Spanish.
Other speakers called for transparency on the refinery's water plan amid ongoing regional drought concerns and warned of precedent from other Texas refinery areas where communities saw worsened air quality and water stress.
The commission took no immediate action on the project during the meeting; public comment was recorded and will be part of the public record.
