U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) announced a settlement with an Electric Utility, resolving a violation of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and the CSB’s 2020 Accidental Release Reporting rule. This is the first time EPA has taken an enforcement action and reached a settlement with […]
Natural Gas is a hazardous material commonly found in nearly every structure in the USA. It is so abundant that many have lost respect for this highly flammable gas. I deal with NG nearly every month, either as a utility to appliances within a facility or as a “critical utility” to a PSM/RMP-covered process. Recently,
This is WHY we ALWAYS pressure test and then leak test welds on our Primary Containment Systems!
At 10:00 p.m. on October 10, 2024, an employee (33) and a coworker, both boilermakers for a facilities support service, were working on a 12-inch pipe to flip the blind. The pipe released hydrogen sulfide gas, exposing the crew. The employee died from poisoning from the hydrogen sulfide gas.
On the evening of 20 April 2022, the chemical tanker was anchored at anchorage 8 in the North Sea. The recently unloaded vessel had discharged its cargo ofpalm oil in Rotterdam, and was being prepared to take on a new cargo of gas oil in Amsterdam. To receive the new cargo, the tanks first had
Oxygen-containing air released from his breathing air helmet came into contact with the catalyst on top of him, causing it to ignite. On the morning of Friday, February 3, 2023, an employee of XXXXXX Service Catalyst Handling (the contractor) lost his life in an accident at the oil refinery. This happened while removing the catalyst
We have seen a significant decline in Process Safety over the past five years. It seems PSM was infected with COVID-19, and it has Long COVID-19 illness! In the past five years, we have battled facility management and corporate legal teams over one significant issue… Training personnel on the PSM/RMP Management of Change Program. All
As we have discussed before, Nitrogen (N2) Gas is NOT a toxic gas. It is an INERT gas. It has NO exposure limits, and in fact, 78% of every breath we take is N2. However, too much N2 will displace the Oxygen (O2) in the atmosphere, potentially creating a lethal atmosphere. In March of 2016,
A member of a team of workers dismantling subsea emergency shutdown valves (ESDV) on deck was badly injured when hit by parts of a valve that were ejected with force. The team had successfully and without any problems already dismantled three (3) valves / ESDV as per the plans for that night. As the last
After filling a propane cylinder at a service station, the attendant placed the filling nozzle on top of the propane piping to hand the cylinder to the customer. The nozzle dropped. The impact with the ground reopened the control valve and resulted in an uncontrolled release of liquid propane. The dispenser lacked the required excess
Respondent owns and operates a stationary wet corn milling plant, which uses sulfur dioxide (anhydrous) (SO2) to control microbial growth during the corn steeping process and to weaken the starch-gluten bonds. Sulfur dioxide (anhydrous) is a regulated substance. See 40 C.F.R. § 68.130(a), Table 1. The Facility maintains a maximum inventory of the regulated toxic
