Morningstar Foods Inc. - Executive Summary |
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Suiza Foods Corporation is a leading manufacturer and distributor of fresh milk and related dairy products, shelf-stable and refrigerated food and beverage products, frozen food products, coffee, and plastic containers. The Company's products are distributed throughout the United States and Puerto Rico. Suiza strives to manufacture and distribute products that are an integral part of consumers' lives; to constantly delight consumers and customers with the quality, value, and innovative nature of its products; and to responsibly increase value for its shareholders Morningstar Foods Inc, Fullerton is part of The Morningstar Group owned Suiza Foods Corporation. It is our corporate and company policy to provide every employee a safe and healthy workplace. The personal health and safety of each employee is our first concern and top priority. Management will provide a safe and healthy workplace to the greatest degree possible. Our efforts for personal safety and healt h shall be in keeping with the highest standards. Management has every desire to provide for its employees a safe working environment. To accomplish this, management will provide all reasonable safeguards to ensure safe working conditions. No job is so important and no order is so urgent that we cannot take time to perform our work safely. We will maintain a safety and health program conforming to the best practices of occupational safety. To be successful, such a program must embody the proper attitudes toward injury and illness prevention on the part of both supervisors and employees. It also requires cooperation in all safety and health matters, not only between supervisor and employee, but also between each employee and his or her co-workers. Only through such a cooperative effort can an outstanding safety record be established and preserved. THE WORST-CASE RELEASE SCENARIO (S) AND THE ALTERNATIVE RELEASE SCENARIO (S) The following scenarios were modeled using the followi ng guidance of the EPA Model Program: Definitions from Epa Model Risk Management Program and Plan for Ammonia Refrigeration, Appendix A and B; SAIC, May 1996 and the RMP Comptm FedEPA Software for concentric radius' of the Worst-Case and Alternative Case Scenarios. Anhydrous ammonia used in refrigeration systems is gaseous at ambient temperature and pressure and is handled as a gas in a liquid state under pressure. The CalARP regulations require the analysis of a worst-case release scenario specific to the vessel in the system which holds the greatest amount of pressurized liquid, and would be released as a gaseous liquid release in a 10 minute period (Section 2750, c, 1). The release rate must be assumed to be one-tenth the total quantity. The pressurized liquid receiver is the largest vessel in the system and is a dedicated liquid reservoir for anhydrous ammonia. The estimated release quantity for the scenario of this system is 4,650 pounds. This assumes the failure of any admi nistrative controls, or passive mitigation measures to the system. The resultant release then is assumed to be at a rate of 465 pounds per minute. The CalARP regulations require the use of the parameters stated in section 2750.2 in order to estimate the distance to the toxic endpoint for a worst-case scenario. The table below lists the parameters. These parameters are from the guidance given in Section 2.0 for the 'EPA Model Program.' The guidance is as follows: 7 Wind speed: 1.5 meters per second 7 Atmospheric stability class: 'F' 7 Height of release: ground level 7 Surface roughness: urban topography based on the use of surrounding properties 7 Ambient temperature/humidity: 25 degrees centigrade and 50% humidity 7 Model classification for anhydrous ammonia: Dense or neutrally buoyant gases 7 Model classification for temperature assumed at substance release: 25 degrees centigrade The toxic endpoint for ammonia is 0.14 mg/l or 200 parts per million (ppm). Based upon the definition of exposure of 'safe' airborne concentration (Section 2.1.1) of the model the interpolation of the toxic endpoint for the release of 4,650 pounds of ammonia is 1,584 feet (0.3 miles). This is based on the release of the specified vessel under the qualified weather conditions. The estimated population within the worst-case release scenario radius constitutes a mixture of commercial, industrial and residential receptors. Based on information from EPA Marplot Software the estimation of effected population is approximately 1830 people. ALTERNATIVE RELEASE SCENARIO The CalARP regulation requires that the facility evaluate a release scenario that is more likely to occur than the worst-case release scenario and that will reach an endpoint offsite (Section 2750.4,b, 1). Using the 'EPA Model Program' definitions for this type of release a typical scenario line rupture with an orifice leading to an airborne release (Section 2.2.2) for the high pressure side of the syst em will have a corresponding release of 465 pounds of ammonia per minute. This coupled with the data for evaluation for the corresponding section describes a wind speed of 3 meters per second and an atmospheric stability class 'D'. Therefore, the predicted distance to the toxic endpoint is 1,056 feet. The estimated population within this release scenario is 800 people. Employees of the facility, commercial businesses and the residences bounded by the plant to the south would be effected. This population estimate is based on employees and surrounding minimally effected structures that are commercial and residential. THE FIVE-YEAR ACCIDENT HISTORY We have maintained excellent ammonia accident release prevention programs. The Fullerton Plant has never had an incident involving the release of Ammonia. EMERGENCY RESPONSE PROGRAM The following procedures are to be followed in the event of an Ammonia leak. 1. Critical or very severe A. Call 911 and evacuate the building as to emerg ency procedures. B. Notify the persons listed under General Procedure's part 3 in Emergency Action Plan. 2. Moderate A. Evacuate the affected area(s). B. Notify the persons listed under General Procedure's part 3 in Emergency Action Plan 3. Slight A. Contact Maintenance Department for repair. B. If off-hours, contact Chief Engineer or Assistant Chief Engineer using numbers found in General Procedures. PLANNED CHANGES TO IMPROVE SAFETY It is the intent of the Fullerton division to become proficient in emergency response by training the workforce as an emergency response team. The make up of the team and planned response will be under the review and direction of the Corporate Safety and Training Director. |