Environmental activists filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of citizens against Shell, reports the Houston Chronicle.  Environment Texas Citizen Lobby and the Sierra Club claim Shell and many of its subsidiaries have released millions of pounds of excess toxic air pollutants along the Houston Ship Channel over the past five years.  They also accused the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the U.S. EPA of failing to enforce the Clean Air Act at the company’s Deer Park plant.

In a statement, Shell said it was reviewing the allegations and could not comment, but it did acknowledge meeting in December with lawyers representing the environmental groups and claimed to show “continuous improvement in environmental performance.”