Benzene Reduction Campaign

Oregon Toxics Alliance’s Neighborhood Benzene Reduction Project is a comprehensive project to protect children’s health by reducing benzene emissions from gas stations throughout Oregon. OTA also recommends steps that individual car owners can take to cut down on the amount of benzene and other hazardous air pollutants from gas tanks and tailpipes.

Benzene = Cancer

The United States Environmental Protection Agency classifies benzene as a Class A carcinogen and has concluded that Oregon’s cancer risk “is dominated by the emissions of benzene.”

• Studies show that breathing air contaminated with benzene inflicts genetic damage linked to childhood leukemia.
• Recently, researchers are taking a closer look at what seems to be a direct connection between a parent’s benzene exposure and the likelihood of leukemia in their offspring.
• Neighborhoods within two blocks of gas stations are exposed to benzene levels that increase the risk for leukemia, a cancer of the blood-making organs.

Benzene in Oregon

A recent study by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality shows that benzene contributes almost a quarter of the cancer risk in Portland. Air monitoring equipment in Eugene shows that average ambient benzene levels are 10 times the benchmark level believed to spur cancer in humans over a lifetime of exposure as established by National Air Toxics Assessment. The DEQ estimates that Portland residents may be exposed to as much as forty times over (40X) safety levels of benzene in ambient air.

Furthermore, benzene is one of the volatile organic compounds that play a significant part in the formation of ground-level ozone, a corrosive air pollutant that damages plants and increases climate change.

Gasoline refueling is a large source of ambient benzene concentration in Oregon’s air. This is due, in part, to the fact that gasoline in the Northwest region has double the benzene content of gasoline sold in other parts of the country, and three times the amount allowed in California. The national average for benzene content is 0.97 percent to 0.62 percent by volume; however the EPA allows gasoline sold in the Northwest to contain 2.06 percent by volume.

While other states require benzene vapor controls at gas stations, Oregon has not developed such a policy. As a result Oregonians are exposed to excessive amounts of benzene from refueling activities and car exhaust.

What OTA is Doing

OTA's Benzene Reduction Project is working at several levels to reduce the amount of Benzene in our air.

At the local level, we are working with local governments, school districts, businesses, and individuals to reduce the amount of benzene released during auto idling and refueling activities. We encourage policies that limit unnecessary idling and discourage "topping-off" at gas stations. We also promote the creation of no-idle zones around schools, parks, and public places.

At the statewide level, OTA is working to establish new public health policy requiring the use of vapor control devices at gas stations. We are working with gas station owners, refueling companies, auto repair shops and health organizations to urge the Department of Environmental Quality to implement a statewide, non-legislative rule change to require emission control devices at that time the underground gas storage tanks are being refilled.

What You Can Do

You can make a difference. Click here to find out how.