Chevron Declines AG's Offer To Mediate On Stalled Project

Chevron spokesman Brent Tippen said Wednesday afternoon that the company would decline State Attorney General Jerry Brown's offer to mediate negotiations with the city of Richmond to resume construction of an upgrade to its Richmond refinery.

While Tippen insisted that Chevron appreciates Brown's offer, he said that the company does not want Brown to mediate negotiations.

The two sides are currently in private mediation and Tippen said that although the mediation adjourned today, the company believes it is premature to consider other mediation proposals.

Earlier in the day, Brown repeated an offer he first made at a Richmond City Council meeting Tuesday night that he would serve as a go-between for Chevron, the city of Richmond and three environmental groups in negotiations.

More than 1,000 construction workers were laid off early this month after the refinery was ordered to stop work on its Energy and Hydrogen Renewal Project, according to Chevron.

Brown said he believes the issues could be resolved quickly.

"This is a huge problem when 1,000 hard working Americans are out of work," Brown said. "I want to get them back to work."

He said he believes the difference between the two sides is relatively small, particularly when compared to the financial hardship that workers are experiencing as a result of the work stoppage.

"I believe it can be resolved," Brown said.

Following Brown's Tuesday night statement, the Richmond City Council unanimously passed a resolution urging Chevron and the environmental groups to take Brown up on his offer, Brown said.

"We are very ready, willing and able to join Attorney General Jerry Brown in settlement talks," Mimi Ho with the environmental group Asian Pacific Environmental Network said Wednesday.

The Asian Pacific Environmental Network, Communities for a Better Environment and the West County Toxics Coalition sued Chevron in September to stop the project, which they claim would give the refinery the capacity to process heavier crude oil and could result in increased pollution in nearby communities.

Ho said all three environmental groups hoped Chevron would agree to Brown's offer.

"Community members need both jobs and health," Ho said.

The Richmond City Council approved the project by a 5-4 vote last July and Chevron broke ground in September. At that time, the three environmental groups, represented by the law firm Earthjustice, sued the refinery to stop the project.

In June, Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge Barbara Zuniga ruled that the environmental impact report for the project was invalid because it failed to disclose whether it would enable the refinery to process heavier crude oil.

On July 1, Zuniga gave the refinery 60 days to demobilize construction and Chevron began laying off workers.

On Monday, Chevron filed a notice of appeal in the state appeals court seeking to overturn Zuniga's ruling.

Ho said environmentalists want an enforceable commitment from Chevron that it will not begin processing heavier crude oil.

Chevron has repeatedly said that it did not plan to process heavier crude, but has declined agree to a cap on the quality of crude oil it would be refining.

"We want an enforceable commitment that the project will not worsen the health impact on the community," Ho said.