Mobil Public Relations Effort Coincides With Battle in Court

On the same April day that lawyers for Torrance and Mobil Oil Corp. exchanged angry accusations in a Los Angeles courtroom, Torrance residents received a Mobil mailing inviting them to a “Spring Cleanup Day” co-sponsored by the oil giant and the city.

In the past 10 days, Mobil has sent two mailings to 74,000 Torrance households advertising the event, in which residents can bring household hazardous waste to Mobil’s Torrance refinery for collection and disposal.

The pamphlet, printed on recycled paper, includes a voucher that will admit residents to the refinery between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday. It lists items that will be collected by Mobil for disposal, such as paints, car batteries, pesticides, weed killers, oven cleaners, fingernail polish remover and photographic chemicals.

Despite their adversarial posture in the courtroom, city officials praised Mobil for its Spring Cleanup effort.

“I don’t see a conflict with our legal action with Mobil Oil,” Mayor Katy Geissert said. “The reality is that they’re a significant presence in the community, and this is a constructive thing that they’re doing.”

Mobil spokesmen said it is merely coincidental that the mailings were done during a crucial period for the implementation of the October, 1990, consent decree that settled Torrance’s public-nuisance lawsuit against Mobil.

They noted that the oil company has stepped up its funding of Torrance community events in the last two to three years, responding to results of opinion surveys and talks with community leaders.

In early 1989, Mobil hired Braun & Co., a Los Angeles public relations firm, to help improve relations between the refinery and Torrance residents. The firm, now known as Braun/Ketchum, is still working with Mobil and assisted with the Spring Cleanup planning, said James A. Carbonetti, Mobil’s West Coast public affairs manager.

Refinery spokesman Barry L. Engelberg cited a series of new efforts by Mobil, including its sponsorship of the March 17 Mobil Tom Sullivan 10-K run, refinery tours, newspaper advertising campaigns and the Mobil Report, a newsletter mailed regularly to Torrance residents. Mobil also has launched a new half-hour talk show on South Bay cable television stations, moderated by refinery manager Joel H. Maness. The first show, titled “Blue Sky in the Basin,” dealt with air pollution.

“I know that we are working with the community--I assume, a lot more than we have in the past--and we’re getting very positive results,” Engelberg said.

Carbonetti said there is no direct relationship between Mobil’s community efforts and the city’s lawsuit.

Two years ago this month, the city filed suit against Mobil in an effort to have the Torrance refinery declared a public nuisance. The lawsuit followed a series of accidents at the 750-acre refinery in northern Torrance.

Attorneys for the city and Mobil presented their arguments April 10 and 11 in front of a judge who must choose which of two firms will serve as court-supervised safety adviser for the refinery under the terms of the consent decree. The judge’s decision is expected at any time.

Carbonetti said planning for the Spring Cleanup has been under way for more than a year and that the event was not scheduled intentionally to coincide with the safety adviser deliberations.

The event will cost Mobil $130,000, including the cost of cleanup and the mailings, Carbonetti said. He said he cannot disclose the total cost of Mobil’s public relations effort for the refinery.

The total cost of the Spring Cleanup is being borne by Mobil, which first suggested the idea, Torrance officials said.

Although the cleanup event got high marks from city officials, its purpose was questioned by Christopher Angelo, lead trial counsel for 600 Torrance residents who are suing Mobil, contending that their health and property values have been damaged by the refinery.

“I seriously question the motivation behind these fliers,” Angelo said, noting that they are being sent to his clients and that legal ethics prevent a defendant from communicating with clients represented by counsel.

Carbonetti responded: “I think that hasn’t even entered into our thinking. It would be a disservice for us to even consider eliminating (Angelo’s clients) from our mailing.”