API touts green record for refiners

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WASHINGTON, Jan. 16 (UPI) -- An oil lobby group in the United States said the nation's refinery sector has invested more than $137 billion in meeting environmental requirements since 1990.

The American Petroleum Institute said it was launching a new public-awareness campaign aimed at touting the nation's refinery sector.

Cindy Schild, a senior refining manager for API, said refiners in the country have not only helped prop up the economy given the emerging oil boom but also done its part on environmental issues.

"Since 1990, it has invested more than $137 billion meeting environmental requirements," she said in a statement. "Over that time, pollution levels for the six common air pollutants, including ozone, have substantially declined, as have total emissions of toxic pollutants."

API said, with the right policies in place on issues like the Keystone XL pipeline and the renewable fuels standard, the economy can look to a brighter future.

API and the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers were among those who challenged a decision by the Environmental Protection Agency to back gasoline blends containing 15 percent ethanol.

API last year said so-called E15 may damage vehicle engines. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit Court rejected an appeal Tuesday to hear the challenge.