MARTINEZ, Calif. (KCBS) -- East Bay oil refineries have gone ten years without a major accident or chemical release, according to Contra Costa County officials.
The county's Industrial Safety Ordinance, the most stringent set of safety rules nationwide, was credited with radically changing the safety culture at local refineries and chemical plants, said Randy Sawyer, director of the county's Hazardous Materials Program.
It's been that emphasis on safety that has led to a relatively quiet period for the industrial plants, Sawyer said.
One of the worst accidents in Contra Costa happened ten years ago when four workers were killed in an explosion and fire at the Tosco Refinery in Martinez. It followed a string of other accidents at various plants in the 1990s.
KCBS' Dave Padilla Reports
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