Oil and Gas Watch

October 1, 2026

Controversial West Virginia chemical plastics ‘recycling’ plant gets permit over local objections

In response to lobbying by the industry, 24 states, including West Virginia, have passed legislation reclassifying chemical plastics "recycling" not as waste incineration but as a kind of manufacturing, which requires less strict environmental standards. The Trump Administration is working to exempt these plants from being subjected to Clean Air Act limits for cancer-causing air pollution.

Oil refinery waste is a major source of air and water pollution

Two hours north of Oklahoma City outside a small town named Kremlin, billionaire William “Bill” Koch owns a plant that processes oil refinery waste. The 60-year-old Oxbow petroleum coke plant occupies enough land to cover 250 football fields. But it has an even larger environmental footprint. The plant’s sulfur dioxide emissions create haze and reduce visibility in several downwind states. A national report reveals that the “petcoke” industry releases large amounts of pollution at sites like this across the country, but that EPA has neglected to require it to install modern air and water pollution control systems, as are required for many other industries.

Brendan Gibbons

Environmental Integrity Project launches updated Oil & Gas Watch database and news site

The Oil & Gas Watch database and news site are being re-launched today (Aug. 1) with new features to make it easier for users to track oil and gas developments in local areas and gather national data on the growing industry. The database features a new “alerts” function to highlight new projects, updates, and public hearings. It also has new search tools; the projected greenhouse gas and related health impacts of projects; new maps; and sharable summary pages for industries. We also redesigned the Oil & Gas Watch News site and email newsletter. We are hosting a free virtual webinar at 1 p.m. Eastern time on Aug. 21 to explain how to use the new database.

Cancer-causing benzene emissions are rising at the Dow Chemical Orange plant in East Texas. Why?

Dow Chemical's facility in Orange County, Texas, has the highest levels of carcinogenic benzene air pollution measured at its perimeter among U.S. petrochemical facilities reporting to the EPA, according to the most recent available data. Benzene is a colorless, flammable gas with a sweet odor that is among the most potent cancer-causing byproducts of oil and gas operations. The EPA requires monitoring for benzene along the fencelines of all U.S. oil refineries and a smaller subset of chemical plants. While concentrations at many refineries have gone down, benzene levels at the Dow Orange plant remain stubbornly high and even reached concentrations more than three times higher than short-term safety thresholds and 33 times higher than a standard for chronic exposure.

Data shows Denbury’s carbon pipelines leak more than any other CO₂ pipeline company’s

Denbury is one of the largest companies producing oil though enhanced oil recovery, which uses CO₂ to dislodge oil remnants from nearly depleted stores. The company owns an extensive network of CO₂ pipelines to supply its oil fields. However, data from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) shows Denbury is responsible for more CO₂ leakage than any other CO₂ pipeline company. Since 2010, there have been 76 incidents involving CO₂ pipelines reported to PHMSA, collectively releasing nearly 67,000 barrels of CO₂ into the air...

Most hydrogen plants proposed near disadvantaged communities

At a time when the federal government is offering billions in subsidies to encourage hydrogen as an alternative fuel, U.S. companies have proposed at least 24 projects to build new plants to manufacture hydrogen out of natural gas. Public records show that about 90 percent of these projects are in or near low-income neighborhoods. The construction of these hydrogen plants in disadvantaged communities poses an environmental justice problem because they release not only greenhouse gases, but also air pollutants like particulate matter that threaten the health of local people.