Plan to Curb Mobil’s Toxics

Torrance City Council members have agreed to pay a law firm up to $22,000 to write a ballot measure that would raise up to $20 million in new taxes. The money would create a legal defense fund should voters also approve a virtual ban on the use of hydrofluoric acid at the Mobil Refinery.

Both measures would be on the ballot in March.

Six of the seven council members oppose the hydrofluoric-acid measure, which was placed on the ballot through an initiative petition sponsored by Councilman Dan Walker. The council majority say Walker’s initiative, if approved by voters, will draw legal resources away from a lawsuit they have filed asking for greater regulatory control over the refinery and lead to a separate costly suit by Mobil.

Walker’s measure is intended to force Mobil Oil to use a less toxic chemical at its Torrance refinery; it bans the use and storage of more than 250 gallons of hydrofluoric acid in the city. Mobil typically has about 29,000 gallons on hand at the refinery.

The tax measure, to be prepared by the law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, would have to be approved by a two-thirds majority. It would allow the city to collect 5.7 cents for every $100 of assessed property value each year for no more than five years.

A formal ballot measure must be submitted to the City Clerk’s office by Oct. 27 appear on the March 6, 1990, ballot.