HOUSTON—On June 23, NELC submitted “proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law” to U.S. District Judge David Hittner. This 450-page filing presents every relevant piece of evidence and each legal precedent proving that ExxonMobil Corporation should be held liable for approximately 18,000 violations of the federal Clean Air Act at its Baytown, Texas, refinery and chemical plant complex since 2005.
NELC submitted these proposed findings and conclusions to assist the court in writing its final decision following a three-week long Houston trial that pitted Environment Texas and Sierra Club against Exxon this past February.
The evidence includes the testimony of 25 witnesses and over 1,000 trial exhibits, and covers over 4,000 separate incidents at the Baytown complex, from which Exxon released a total of more than 10 million pounds of unlawful pollution.
NELC attorneys are asking Judge Hittner to find that the number and seriousness of Exxon’s violations, and its refusal to take the steps necessary to prevent the escape of dangerous pollutants, justify the maximum allowable penalty of $641 million and the appointment of an outside monitor to oversee Exxon’s environmental compliance efforts. There is no timeline for issuance of the final decision.
