Knouse Foods Peach Glen Plant - Executive Summary |
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SEE ATTACHED ASCII FILE WHICH CONTAINS THE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY KNOUSE FOODS, PEACH GLEN PLANT PEACH GLEN, PENNSYLVANIA Accidental Release Prevention and Emergency Response Policies Knouse Foods has developed this Risk Management Plan (RMP) and previous Process Safety Management Plan (PSMP) to ensure the safety of all persons who could be affected by an accident or incident that might occur at the Knouse Foods, Peach Glen Plant. Subsidiary concerns are minimization of damage to the environment or Knouse Foods equipment, property and product as well as compliance with the regulations. Controlled-Atmosphere Refrigeration System (No. 3) Knouse Foods, Peach Glen Plant is a process and storage facility for apples. The facility is equipped with an anhydrous ammonia refrigeration system serving coolers and freezers. The total system capacity of refrigerant is 12,000 pounds of ammonia. Worst-case Release Scenario The worst-case release scenario wa s calculated to be the failure of the largest single ammonia storage vessel in the refrigeration system. The vessel holds 3,000 pounds of ammonia during normal operating charge and all 3,000 pounds would be released if the vessel failed. The off-site consequences analysis for the worst-case release scenario was modeled using RMP*Comp v.1.1.5. The release duration was 10 minutes with a release rate 165 pounds per minute (lbs/min). Mitigation measures considered included release into the building. The results of the modeling indicated that the toxic endpoint of 0.14 milligrams per liter (mg/L) of ammonia would be reached at a distance of 0.7 miles from the release point. Alternative Release Scenario The alternate release scenario assumed that a leak develops in the piping system of the refrigeration system. Based on the current ammonia detection systems and procedures for quickly responding to the alarm, it was assumed that 25 pounds of ammonia would be released. The off-site consequences analysis for the alternate release scenario was modeled using RMP*Comp v.1.1.5. The release duration was 1 minute with a release rate of 25 lbs/min. Mitigation measures considered included release into the building. The results of the modeling indicated that the toxic endpoint of 0.14 mg/L of ammonia would be reached at less than 0.1 mile from the release point. General Accidental Release Prevention Program and Chemical-Specific Prevention Steps Knouse Foods has developed and implemented a PSMP in compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Administrations Process Safety Management Standard 29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1910.119, for operation of the ammonia refrigeration system at Knouse Foods, Peach Glen Plant. The PSMP has been revised to comply with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys Risk Management Program regulations, 40 CFR Part 68. The PSMP and RMP for the Knouse Foods, Peach Glen Plant includes detailed sections on the following: ? Em ployee Participation ? Process Safety Information ? Process Hazard Analysis ? Operating Procedures ? Training ? Contractor Safety ? Pre-startup Safety Review ? Mechanical Integrity ? Hot Work ? Management of Change ? Incident Investigation ? Emergency Planning and Response ? Compliance Audits ? Off-site Consequences Analysis. In addition to the PSMP and RMP, Knouse Foods maintains the following documents as part of the safety program at Knouse Foods, Peach Glen Plant: ? On-site Emergency Response Plan, Peach Glen, Pa. Plant ? Evacuation Plan, Peach Glen Plant ? Employee Evacuation Instructions, Peach Glen Plant ? Work Rules publication ? Knouse Foods Safety Program (manual) Five-year Accident History Knouse Foods maintains detailed hazardous materials incident reports for the ammonia refrigeration system. The system was initially started in July of 1999. There have been no reportable releases of ammonia from the system since startup. |