In recent reporting for CalMatters, Marie Choi and Nick Plurkowski document a troubling series of refinery fires, explosions, and chemical releases across California that highlight ongoing risks to workers and nearby communities. From Martinez to Benicia to El Segundo, these incidents are grave reminders that refinery work remains among the most dangerous in the state. At the same time, California regulators are considering proposed changes to the state’s Process Safety Management (PSM) regulations, rules that were strengthened after the catastrophic 2012 Chevron refinery explosion in Richmond that drove thousands of residents and workers to seek medical attention.
California’s existing PSM regulations were designed to prevent exactly these kinds of disasters. They require rigorous oversight of hazardous materials, meaningful worker participation in safety planning, and engineering reviews intended to identify risks before lives are put in danger. Central to these protections is the ability of workers with firsthand, day-to-day knowledge of refinery operations, to participate fully and independently in safety decisions, including the authority to stop unsafe operations when necessary.
The changes proposed to the PSM regulations would drastically weaken these safeguards. Most concerning is a change that would allow refinery management to handpick which employees participate in developing safety plans and conducting critical safety reviews, undermining the very purpose of worker participation. Additional changes would narrow oversight of hazardous and carcinogenic chemicals, leaving known dangers unaddressed despite their continued presence in aging refinery infrastructure.
The proposed regulatory changes stem from a settlement reached between state regulators and oil industry lobbyists following industry legal challenges to the current rules. According to reporting, this agreement was negotiated behind closed doors, without meaningful input from refinery workers or the frontline communities most affected by refinery operations. As a result, the proposed changes reflect industry priorities rather than the public safety goals that originally shaped California’s refinery safety framework.
When worker voices are sidelined and safety rules are diluted, preventable injuries and fatalities become more likely. Preserving strong refinery safety standards and meaningful worker participation is essential to protecting lives, preventing catastrophic injuries, and ensuring accountability when safety failures occur.
