Flint Hills Resources Refinery Lawsuit

Benzene Lawsuits Information – Pine Bend Refinery (Flint Hills Resources), Rosemount, Minnesota (MN) 265,000 BPD – Speak to an attorney or lawyer regarding benzene exposure and benzene leukemia claims.

The Pine Bend Refinery is the largest oil refinery in Minnesota, located in the Twin Cities suburbs of Rosemount and Inver Grove Heights next to the southern split of U.S. Highway 52 and Minnesota State Highway 55. The refinery is notable for being the largest in the United States to be located in a state without any oil wells. Overall, it ranks 14th in the country as of January 1, 2005, with an input capacity of 265,000 barrels (42,131 m³, 11,130,000 gallons, or 42,131,633 liters) per day. The facility is owned by Flint Hills Resources, a subsidiary of Koch Industries (pronounced the same as “Coke”). It is colloquially referred to as the “Koch Refinery.”

The plant was first constructed in 1955 by the Great Northern Oil Company. Koch purchased a controlling interest in the plant in 1969. Since then, capacity has been tripled.

Most petroleum enters and exits the plant through pipelines. Most of the incoming crude oil comes from oil fields in Canada and is brought from the northwest to the facility through the Lakehead and Minnesota pipelines. Additional crude comes from the south via the Wood River Pipeline, though plans are in place to reverse the flow of that line.

The plant has a dedicated pipeline to the Minneapolis – St. Paul International Airport that provides much of the jet fuel for aircraft. Another major exit route for distilled products is the Wisconsin Pipeline, which brings fuel eastward into the neighboring state. Fuel is also distributed by semi-trailer trucks, railroad cars, and, occasionally, river barges.

In the 1990s and the year 2000, Koch was forced to pay $19 million in environmental fines because of improper management of emissions. In 1999, the company accepted a challenge from the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy (MCEA) to set up an independent monitoring group to keep track of emissions at the plant. Emissions were reduced to below 50% of 1997 levels, the last year for which data was available at the time.

As of 2001, Minnesotans were using a total of 7.2 million gallons of gasoline per day, and fuel use continues to climb in the region by about 2% annually. About 70% of the gasoline fuel used in the state comes from Pine Bend and the nearby St. Paul Park Refinery, while most of the rest comes from a combination of the Mandan Refinery in North Dakota, and the Superior Refinery in Superior, Wisconsin. 40 to 50% of Pine Bend’s output is used within the state. Flint Hills is currently planning a $100 million expansion to increase capacity at the plant to about 330,000 barrels per day.

The petrochemical product known as benzene is an aromatic hydrocarbon. The benzene vapors that are breathed (inhaled) or absorbed through the skin can cause cancer. Typically, leukemia and lymphoma may be caused by very heavy exposure to benzene or years of chemical exposure. A worker exposed to benzene may contract aml leukemia (acute myelogenous leukemia).

If you, or a loved one, ever worked at Pine Bend Refinery (Flint Hills Resources) in Rosemount, Minnesota (MN) and you have been diagnosed with aml leukemia, MDS or any other benzene related cancer, then contact us immediately to talk to a benzene lawyer about your potential benzene exposure lawsuit at Pine Bend Refinery (Flint Hills Resources) in Rosemount, Minnesota (MN). Often, refineries and chemical plants such as Pine Bend Refinery (Flint Hills Resources) used benzene, manufactured benzene, sold benzene or used benzene-containing products. While working at refineries and chemical plants such as Pine Bend Refinery (Flint Hills Resources) in Rosemount, Minnesota (MN), workers are often exposed to harmful levels of benzene during benzene spills, pipe or valve leaks, pipe explosions, line ruptures, during maintenance, cleanup, in the refining process or in the chemicals or processes that occur at Pine Bend Refinery (Flint Hills Resources) in Rosemount, Minnesota (MN). Talk to a Texas Trial Lawyer that understands benzene exposure cases. Upon investigation and research you may have a potential benzene lawsuit against Pine Bend Refinery (Flint Hills Resources) in Rosemount, Minnesota (MN) for your benzene exposure.

Benzene exposure has serious health effects. Breathing high levels of benzene can result in death, while low levels can cause drowsiness, dizziness, rapid heart rate, headaches, tremors, confusion, and unconsciousness. Eating or drinking foods containing high levels of benzene can cause vomiting, irritation of the stomach, dizziness, sleepiness, convulsions, rapid heart rate, and death.

The major effect of benzene from chronic (long-term) exposure is to the blood. Benzene damages the bone marrow and can cause a decrease in red blood cells, leading to anemia. It can also cause excessive bleeding and depress the immune system, increasing the chance of infection.

Some women who breathed high levels of benzene for many months had irregular menstrual periods and a decrease in the size of their ovaries. It is not known whether benzene exposure affects the developing fetus in pregnant women or fertility in men.

Animal studies have shown low birth weights, delayed bone formation, and bone marrow damage when pregnant animals breathed benzene.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) classifies benzene as a human carcinogen. Long-term exposure to high levels of benzene in the air can cause leukemia, a potentially fatal cancer of the blood-forming organs. In particular, acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) may be caused by benzene.

The US Environmental Protection Agency has set the maximum permissible level of benzene in drinking water at 0.005 milligrams per liter (0.005 mg/L). The EPA requires that spills or accidental releases into the environment of 10 pounds (4.5 kg) or more of benzene be reported to the EPA.

The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has set a permissible exposure limit of 1 part of benzene per million parts of air (1 ppm) in the workplace during an 8-hour workday, 40-hour workweek. The short term exposure limit for airborne benzene is 5 ppm for 15 minutes.

If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML), Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL) or Mesothelioma Asbestos Cancer or other cancers & diseases, then you need to consult with an attorney to discuss a potential exposure lawsuit. Talk to a Board Certified Personal Injury Trial Lawyer, certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, with 30+ years of legal experience. Call 1-800-883-9858 or click the link below.

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