Assumption Parish Water Works District #1 - Executive Summary |
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27981 LDEQ Facility ID Number This Executive Summary is being written for Assumption Parish Waterworks District No. 1 (APWD) for the process of Chlorine. This is a first time submittal for APWD. APWD has a Chlorine inventory greater than 2,500 pounds which is located at the rear of the facility. This amount is greater than the threshold limit set by EPA. Therefore, this Risk Management Plan is being written and submitted by June 21,1999. APWD'S Risk Management Program (RMP) is kept on file in the plant at all times. We obtained our guidelines for our RMP from "Compliance Guidance and Model Risk Management Program for Water Treatment Plants". This is a book released by The American Water Works Association Research Foundation. The RMP is in "RMP Submit" format which is a program given out by EPA. In order to ensure the safety of the community, APWD is coordinated with Assumption Parish Local Emergency Planning Committee. The LEPC is notified of any leak and will assist APWD in any w ay possible to ensure the safety of the community. APWD is also coordinated with the local fire department and have invited the fire department to attend several classes on chlorine safety. The Hazard Assessment is conducted to identify the possibility of a release or an accident. Conducting a five-year accident history survey is part of the Hazard Assessment. There were no accidents to report at Assumption Parish Waterworks. Offsite Chemical Analysis is another part of the hazard assessment. There are two parts of the analysis. They are the worst case and alternate release scenarios. The worst case scenario would affect an area with a three-mile radius around the chlorine cylinder, which is located at the rear of the plant. The cylinder would take approximately ten minutes to empty and it would release the entire contents of the cylinder, which is highly unlikely to happen. In the alternate release scenario, the cylinder would release the chemical for 60 minutes at 10.5 pounds per m inute due to a transfer hose failure. The cylinder would release approximately 630 pounds in 60 minutes. This scenario would cover an area of 0.56 miles around the cylinder. The maps for both release scenarios are on file with all RMP information at APWD. The Prevention Program is conducted to prevent the possibility of a chemical release. All chlorine equipment is inspected and maintained once or twice a year to be sure that all equipment is working properly. Every inspection and routine maintenance procedure is documented and kept on file with all Risk Management Program information. There is also a procedure followed for receiving and hooking up a chlorine cylinder. Assumption Parish Waterworks has a chlorine system that runs on a vacuum system. This means that in the event of a leak in the line the vacuum is broken and the cylinder is automatically shut off. A written operating procedure is kept on file and followed at all time by all operators. There is a form on file entitled "D esignation of Management Program". In this form, the chain of authority is defined according to the RMP. There is a specific amount of safety information on file at APWD at all times. The Material Safety Data Sheets for Chlorine and all other chemicals are readily available for all employees at all times. Chemical Inventories and safe upper and lower limits are also available at any given time. A hazard review was conducted and is on file with all RMP information. Any hazards that are identified will be corrected immediately to ensure a safe working climate and community. A compliance audit was conducted and a checklist was put on file for future use. A compliance audit will be conducted every three years or in the event of a major change. Forms for an incident investigation are kept on file in case a situation would arise. The emergency response plan is written to be certain that employee's and certain agencies know what to do in the event of a release or emergency. APWD is coordinat ed with Assumption Parish LEPC and the local fire departments. LEPC will assist APWD in any way and communicate to the public information concerning a chlorine leak by means of radio transmission or cable over-ride as needed. The Louisiana State Police will be called in the event of a leak for any assistance they can give. The chlorine distributor, DPC Enterprises, will be called also to offer help in fixing a leaking cylinder if they are needed. APWD has made several changes to the plant to improve safety conditions. A chlorine leak detector and self-contained breathing apparatus equipment were installed at the plant in case of an emergency. |