NGOs win legal victories against two California proposed biofuel refinery conversions

In California, Communities for a Better Environment and the Center for Biological Diversity won legal victories last week over Contra Costa County’s approval of two proposed biofuel refinery conversions in the Bay Area. The Superior Court of Contra Costa County found the county relied on incomplete and misleading environmental reviews in violation of the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA.

The court found that the county’s environmental review for one project, the Marathon-Tesoro refinery in Martinez, failed to properly evaluate ways to reduce odors from the refinery. For another project, the Phillips 66 refinery in Rodeo, the court found the county’s review failed to properly assess major project components as well as odor mitigation.