Chocolate Bayou Works, Alvin, TX
Overview
The 2,400-acre Chocolate Bayou Chemicals Complex—home to the second largest hydrocarbons cracker in the U.S.—is located 45 miles south of Houston near the Gulf of Mexico. The plant manufacturers two main product lines—olefins and polypropylene—and ships product by rail, roadway, pipeline and barge.
Products and People
The primary Chocolate Bayou facility includes three polypropylene units—the most recent of which was added early in 1999—and two olefins units. The complex employs more than 350 full-time employees as well as over 400 contractor employees to produce more than six billion pounds of product per year.
Vision and Values
Maintaining the ecology of the areas in which we operate is an important goal of INEOS Olefins & Polymers USA (Olefins & Polymers)—and the Chocolate Bayou facility specifically. In 1996, the Chocolate Bayou Wildlife Team was established and is now a member of the Wildlife Habitat Council. To date, more than 200 species of birds have been observed among the facility’s wetlands, and the site is included in the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s “Great Texas Birding Trail.” In addition, plant personnel have undertaken projects to establish a butterfly and hummingbird garden, erect bird houses and raptor perches, and introduced a coastal prairie restoration project within the site.
Community Involvement
INEOS Olefins & Polymers has joined with the citizens of the neighboring communities of Alvin, Amsterdam and Liverpool, Texas to form a Community Advisory Panel to keep members advised of plant initiatives and incidents. Community involvement is very important to the members of the CBW team. They work extensively with local schools and citizens on a wide variety of projects from wildlife education to highway and beach clean ups.