Community Protests Calumet Refinery's Jet Fuel Spill into the San Antonio River
Last Friday, community members gathered for a rally and candlelight vigil at the corner of S Presa and SE Military to protest the south side refinery's contamination of the river that was once the lifeblood of this city. Behind the inter-generational crowd, the news anchors and cameras, Calumet refinery's ominous flare lashed against the sky like a fiery scourge.
Folks showed up early to make signs proclaiming 'Our Kids Deserve Clean Water' and ‘Our Well has been Poisoned.' One person brought a shimmering piece celebrating Yanaguana as 'The Place of Clear Waters' and a statue of San Antonio de Padua besmirched with a black oily substance.
Many of the attendees were angered by the lack of information being given to residents regarding the details of the spill. News coverage of the contamination had been brief, vague, and delayed, and suggested that even a toxic spill in San Antonio’s namesake river isn’t newsworthy on an election day.
Residents in the neighborhoods adjacent to the refinery were evacuated (just as they were in 2010 and 2011 when the refinery experienced an explosion and a fire) and Mission Parkway and a mile and a half stretch of the river were shut down for the week as a result of the spill.
The action was successful in increasing news coverage and general awareness of the contamination. It also prompted disclosure of how much jet fuel was spilled, 208 barrels according to the San Antonio River Authority, a number that originally was not being disclosed to the public. Despite these positive outcomes, at least one rally attendee suffered a migraine and illness as a result of their brief proximity to the refinery. It is a sobering reminder of the daily and life-long impacts suffered by communities near the refinery.
How can a ‘City on the Rise’ allow the violation of our human right to clean air and water, the continued racial and economic injustice of locating toxic sites near poor communities of color and the continued environmental contamination of the San Antonio community and our river?
It is also important to note that, due to the fracking frenzy in the Eagle Ford Shale, the Calumet refinery has recently expanded operations from 2,000 to 5,000 barrels of fuel per day, and plans to double this capacity once the TexStar pipeline is completed later this year. We want Calumet Refinery and all refining companies out of our community. SHUT CALUMET DOWN NOW!
