Champaign- West Plant - Executive Summary

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14. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY/RMP SUBMIT 
 
14.1 CORPORATE PREVENTION AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE APPROACHES 
 
At this facility, NIWC handle chlorine for the purpose of disinfecting and treating drinking water.  OSHA and EPA consider chlorine a hazardous chemical.  The hazards of chlorine make it necessary to observe certain safety precautions in the use and handling to prevent unnecessary human exposure, to reduce the threat to our own personal health as well as our co-workers, and to reduce the threat to nearby members of the community.  It is NIWC policy to adhere to all applicable Federal and State rules and regulations.  Safety depends on the manner chlorine is handled and used, combined with the safety devices inherent in the design along with operating procedures and the training of our personnel. 
 
The emergency action plan is based upon OSHA 1910.38 (Employee Emergency Plans) 1910.120 (Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response) and experience obtained from community drills. 
 
14.2 THE S 
TATIONARY SOURCE AND REGULATED SUBSTANCES 
 
7 The maximum amount of chlorine stored at this location is 20,000 pounds. 
7 The chlorine is delivered by truck in one-ton cylinders.  Liquid chlorine is added to water by evaporating chlorine liquid to gas, metering the gas through an injector, and then diffusing the gas into the flow stream of water at the point of application. 
 
14.3 THE WORST-CASE RELEASE SCENARIO AND THE ALTERNATIVE RELEASE INCLUDING ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS AND MITIGATION MEASURES TO LIMIT THE DISTANCES FOR EACH REPORTED SCENARIO 
 
A.    Worst -Case Scenario: 
7 Failure of the largest vessel when full would allow a release of 2,000 pounds of chlorine for a 10 minute duration. 
7 Distance to the end point at 770 F would travel 2.6 miles before dispersing enough to no longer pose a significant hazard to the public. 
 
B. Alternative-Case Scenario: 
7 A tubing failure due to a bad connection or valve failure resulting in the release through a 5/16 inch diameter opening allowing a rele 
ase rate of 10.5 pounds per minute for a 60 minute duration for a total release of 317 pounds of chlorine. 
7 Distance to the endpoint at 770 F would travel 0.48 miles before dispersing enough to no longer pose a significant hazard to the public. 
14.4 THE GENERAL ACCIDENTAL RELEASE PREVENTION PROGRAM AND THE SPECIFIC PREVENTION STEPS 
 
7 This facility and process uses design codes and standards from the Chlorine Institute, Wallace and Tierman Manuals, American National Standards Institute, American Society for Testing and Materials, and applicable state codes and regulations. 
 
14.5 FIVE YEAR ACCIDENT HISTORY 
 
7  We have had no accidental releases of chlorine in the past five years. 
 
14.6 THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE PROGRAM 
 
7 The written emergency response program as mentioned in the opening paragraph is located at the facility with an ongoing training program. 
 
14.7 PLANNED CHANGES TO IMPROVE SAFETY 
 
7 Although there is no immediate plans for changes to improve safety at this facility, we co 
nstantly review advancement in safety and process technology for the continuing pursuit to provide a safer workplace and community.
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