An ethanol business has been cited for 15 health and safety violations by OSHA after a worker was fatally engulfed in corn inside a grain storage bin on April 19 at the ethanol manufacturing facility. The worker entered the grain bin in an attempt to unclog the floor chute and became engulfed when corn began to flow. The commercial grain bin held about 140,000 bushels of corn at the time of the incident. One willful violation was cited under OSHA’s grain handling regulations for failing to lockout conveyors used to empty grain bins, which exposed the now-deceased worker to the engulfment hazard. Five serious violations of OSHA’s grain handling standards include…
- failing to guard floor chute openings
- prevent exposure to moving grain hazards
- prevent workers from entering bins when engulfment hazards exist
- failure to have an observer oversee entry procedures
- to certify that all bin entry requirements had been implemented
The April fatality inspection resulted in OSHA initiating a comprehensive health inspection of the company’s ethanol plant in May under the agency’s national emphasis program for process safety management for covered chemical facilities. A total of 9 violations were cited. Seven serious violations of OSHA’s Process Safety Management standards include:
- failing to develop emergency shutdown procedures for the ethanol distillation process
- perform inspections and tests on control systems
- perform storage of incompatible chemicals in close proximity
- annually certify that operating procedures for the distillation process were current and accurate
- to correct deficiencies noted in June 2010 compliance audits.
Two other-than-serious violations involve failing to retrain ethanol distillation process operators at least every three years, and to consult workers on the development of refresher training and operating procedures.
Proposed fines total $140,000, following the two inspections. Due to the nature and severity of violations, the company has been placed in OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program, which mandates targeted follow-up inspections to ensure compliance with the law. OSHA’s SVEP focuses on recalcitrant employers that endanger workers by committing willful, repeat or failure-to-abate violations. Under the program, OSHA may inspect any of the employer’s facilities if it has reasonable grounds to believe there are similar violations.
Breakdown of the PSM citations for the etanol process:
Citation 1 Item 1
Type of Violation: Serious; $5,000
29 CFR 1910.119(d)(3)(i)(B): Information pertaining to the equipment in the process did not include piping and instrument diagrams (P&ID’s):
On or about May 14, 2013, the employer’s process safety information did not include piping and instrument diagrams that accurately represented equipment in the covered, including but not limited to, the following:
- A gate valve tagged V31729 on the 24″ line from the Beer Column to the Beer Column reboiler pump(s) #1 and #2 is not depicted on the P&IDs.
- The valve on the 6″ line from the beer booster pump to the beer column feed heater is tagged V 41129, but the P&IDs indicate the tag number is V41113.
- The valve on the 6″ line to the CIP return from the Beer Booster Pump is tagged V41187, but the P&IDs indicate the tag number is V41114.
- The valve on the 3″ line from the Rectifier Column to the Stripper Column is tagged V46165, but the P&ID indicates the tag number is V42127.
- The valve on the 3″ line from the Stripper Column to the Stripper Column Reboiler and/or Process Condensate Tank is tagged V42127, but the P&IDs indicate the tag number is V46165.
- The pipe run from the Rectifier Column to the Beer Column has been capped and the pipe run removed, but is still depicted on the P&IDs.
- A piping run, inclusive of control valves, was installed for draining the Beer Column Reboiler and not depicted on the P&IDs.
- A valve installed on the 811 line outlet fro:m the Rectifier Column was not depicted on the P&IDs.
- A strainer installed on the 811 line outlet from the Rectifier Column was not depicted on the P&IDs.
- A valve from the Rectifier Column to the Stripper Column is labeled V51122, but the P&IDs indicate the tag number is V42123.
Citation 1 Item 2
Type of Violation: Serious; $5,000
29 CFR 1910.119(e)(3)(v): The process hazard analysis did not address facility siting.
On or about August 16, 2013, the employer’s Process Hazard Analysis did not address facility siting, including but not limited to, the proximity of the ignition source created by the corn delivery traffic in relation to the Class I, Division 2 locations at dispensing and filling of the tanker trucks, dispensing and filling of the railcars, and the bulk storage of ethanol and denaturant.
Citation 1 Item 3
Type of Violation: Serious; $5000.00
29 CFR 1910.119(f)(1)(i)(D): The employer did not develop and implement written operating procedures that provide clear instructions for emergency shutdown, including the conditions under which emergency shutdown is required, and the assignment of shutdown responsibility to qualified operators to ensure that emergency shutdown is executed in a safe and timely manner.
On or about May 14, 2013, the employer did not develop written operating procedures that provided clear instructions for emergency shutdown, including the conditions under which emergency shutdown is required, and the assignment of shutdown responsibilities for the covered process.
Citation I Item 4
Type of Violation: Serious; $5000.00
29 CFR 1910.119(f)(3): The employer did not annually certify that operating procedures were current and accurate.
On or about May 14, 2013, the employer did not annually certify that the Distillation operating procedures were current and accurate, including but not limited to, the Distillation operating procedures.
Citation 1 Item 5
Type of Violation: Serious; $5000.00
29 CFR 1910.119(j)(4)(i): The employer did not perform inspection and tests on process equipment
On or about August 16, 2013, the employer failed to perform inspections and tests on the controls, including alarms and interlocks, for the covered process.
- The beer column’s high pressure alarm.
- The beer column’s high pressure interlock, changing the process from auto mode to manual mode when any two pressure indicators alarm.
- The rectifier column’s high pressure alarm.
- The rectifier column’s high pressure interlock, changing the process from auto mode to manual mode when any two pressure indicators alarm.
- The stripper column’s high level interlock, shutting down the rectifier bottoms pump and the steam control valve to the stripper column, when the level inside the stripper column exceeds 90%.
Citation 1 Item 6
Type of Violation: Serious; $5000.00
29 CFR 1910.119(0)(4): The employer did not promptly determine and document an appropriate response to each of the findings of the compliance audit, and document that deficiencies have been corrected:
On or about May 14, 2013, the employer did not determine and document an appropriate response to each of the compliance audit findings from the PSM Audit performed on June 15, 16 & 17, 2010 of the ethanol plant, including but not limited to the following findings:
- No consultation with employees on the content and frequency of refresher training (item #4).
- Not conducting refresher training for operators on at least a three year interval (Item #12).
- Lack of employee participation in the review and revision of standard operating procedures (Item #4).
- Failure to develop emergency shutdown procedures, including the conditions under which emergency shutdown is required, and the assignment of shutdown responsibility to qualified operators to ensure that emergency shutdown is executed in a safe and timely manner (Item #8).
- Lack of an annual certification that the standard operating procedures are current an accurate (Item #9).
Citation 1 Item 7
Type of Violation: Serious; $5000.00
29 CFR 1910.176(c): Storage areas were not kept free from accumulation of materials that constituted hazards from tripping, fire, explosion or pest harborage:
On or about May 15, 2013, in building 5, strong chlorinated base chemicals were stored next to strong acid. Accidental mixture of these chemicals may create an exothermic reaction and cause a chemical fire.
Citation 2 Item 1
Type of Violation: Other-than-Serious; $0.00
29 CFR 1910.119(c)(2): The employer did not consult with employees and their representatives on the conduct and development of process hazards analyses and on the development of the other elements of process safety management in this standard.
On or about May 14, 2013, the employer did not consult with employees on the conduct and development of the elements of the process safety management program for the ethanol process, including but not limited to, the following elements:
- The employer did not consult with employees on the content and frequency of refresher training.
- The employer did not include employees in the participation in the review and revision of the standard operating procedures for the distillation process.
Citation 2 Item 2
Type of Violation: Other-than-Serious; $0.00
29 CFR 1910.119(g)(2): Refresher training was not provided at least every three years to each employee involved in operating a process to assure that the employee understands and adheres to the current operating procedures of the process:
On or about May 14, 2013, the employer did not provide refresher training to the ethanol plant operators at least every three years.
CLICK HERE (pdf) for the PSM Citations