Bulington Municipal Waterworks - Executive Summary |
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. Accidental release prevention and emergency response policies: The Burlington Municipal Waterworks handles chlorine that is considered to be a hazardous material by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Our policies adhere to all applicable Federal and state rules and regulations. The Burlington Municipal Waterworks operates a water treatment plant the serves a community with population of 27,500 people. For both incidental and non-incidental releases of chlorine, the Waterworks will rely on community emergency responders. The emergency response plan includes procedures for notification of the local fire authority that has a trained hazardous material response team. The plan also includes notification of any potentially affected neighbors. 2. The stationary source and regulated substances handled. 7 The primary purpose of the Burlington Municipal Waterworks water treatment facility is to clean and disinfect water to be used by the City of Burlingto n and rural neighbors for potable purposes. Chlorine is shipped by truck to the plant in 2,000-pound cylinders (one ton). The chlorine cylinders are offloaded into the chlorine room adjoining to the rest of the plant building. 7 The regulated substance handled at this facility is chlorine. The maximum amount of Chlorine that can be stored at this plant is 8,000 pounds. 3. The worst-case release scenario(s) and the alternative release scenario(s), including administrative controls and mitigation measures to limit the distances for each reported scenario. 7 Worst-Case Scenario: The worst-case scenario has been defined as a catastrophic failure of a 2,000-pound cylinder due to corrosion, impact, or construction defects. 7 The distance to the toxic endpoint of 0.0087 mg/l (8.7 mg/cubic meter) for the worst-case scenario is 2.6 miles or 13,768 feet. 7 Alternative Scenario: The alternative-case scenario has been defined for two one-ton chlorine containers with gas feed. The scena rio includes failure of a 1-inch schedule 80 carbon steel pipe connected to the two one-ton containers. The amount of the release is 317 pounds. The maximum average sustained release rate is 10.5 pounds per minute over a 60-minute duration. 7 In average weather conditions, the distance to the toxic endpoint of 0.0087 mg/l (8.7 mg/cubic meter) for the alternative-case scenario is 0.56 miles or 2,953 feet. 7 Comparing alternate source assumptions, the model predicts that the release rate in the alternative case scenario will be limited by the flow through each of the 5/16-inch valve openings at the chlorine containers rather than flow through the 1-inch pipe. 4. The general accidental release prevention program and the specific prevention steps. The Burlington Municipal Waterworks has worked to comply with EPA's Accidental Release Prevention Rule and with state codes and regulations. This facility was designed and constructed between 1965 and 1967 and contains separate chlorine s torage and feed rooms. The ventilation system in the chlorine storage room maintains both rooms under negative pressure preventing released chlorine from migrating directly to other interial portions of the water treatment plant. Chlorine detectors have been installed in both the chlorine storage and feed rooms. When activated the detectors sound an alarm in the main control room. In the event of alarm or some other emergency the emergency action plan is initiated. 5. Five-year accident history. The Burlington Municipal Waterworks has not had an accidental release of chlorine from the covered process that resulted in deaths, injuries, or significant property damage on site, or known offsite deaths, injuries, evacuations, sheltering in place, property damage, or environmental damage. 6. The emergency response program. The facilities emergency response program has been developed to respond to upset or malfunction conditions. The Burlington Fire Department will be called (dial 911) in the event outside emergency assistance is warranted. This program has been discussed with the Des Moines County Emergency Management Agency Coordinator and the Burlington Fire Department Hazardous Materials (HAZMAT) team. A representative of the Burlington Fire Department HAZMAT team has visited this plant. 7. Planned changes to improve safety. Safety and health is constantly changing. The Burlington Municipal Waterworks is striving to make safety and health a dynamic, progressive endeavor. This facility currently utilizes chlorine detectors in both the chlorine storage and feed rooms. The detectors set off an audible alarm in the control room. The facility is manned 24 hours per day; consequently, someone is always around to initiate emergency response procedures should the alarm sound. |