Texas Attorney General files lawsuit against TPC Group following explosion
Published 5:50 pm Friday, February 21, 2020
- A process tower flies through air after exploding at the TPC Group Petrochemical Plant in Port Neches. An earlier massive explosion sparked a blaze at the plant on Nov. 27, 2019. (REUTERS/Erwin Seba)
On behalf of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the Texas Attorney General today filed a lawsuit against TPC Group, Inc. and TPC Group, LLC for violations of the Texas Clean Air Act and the Texas Water Code, pertaining to the Nov. 27 explosion at its Port Neches plant.
The lawsuit also includes claims that TPC Group caused numerous violations of TCEQ’s air quality program from January 2018 through September 2019.
“I appreciate the Attorney General’s action today,” said TCEQ Executive Director Toby Baker. “It is absolutely crucial that entities like TPC Group are held responsible not only for the destructive environmental pollution they cause, but also for their impact on human health.”
State Rep. Dade Phelan said he wants to thank the TCEQ and the Attorney General for acting in the best interest of all Southeast Texans impacted by the Port Neches explosion.
“Through this suit, the state can learn what caused the incident, how to prevent such occurrences in the future and adequately penalize all violations,” Phelan said.
The State of Texas requests that the court grant the following relief as allowed by law: injunctive relief, civil penalties, reasonable attorney fees, court costs and investigative costs.
