Piney Creek Power Plant - Executive Summary |
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Piney Creek Power Plant is a 32 MW net electric generating facility located in Piney Township, Clarion County, PA. It is owned and operated by Piney Creek Limited Partnership, with general offices at 428 Power Lane, Clarion PA 16412, which is about 3 miles west of the intersection of state routes 68 and 3016 on property that was formerly an abandoned mine and farm. The facility combusts waste bituminous mine products in a Circulating Fluid Bed boiler and returns the ash product to source mines as neutralization backfill. Crushed limestone is injected into the combustion process to absorb sulfur dioxide, and is part of the ash product. Water is obtained from the Clarion River reservoir at Piney Dam. Effluent liquids are collected in a series of ponds, treated to meet discharge specifications, and returned to Piney Creek, which joins the Clarion River approximately four miles downstream of the return line. The water is used for non-contact cooling, boiler make-up, fire protection, ash conditioning, and small miscellaneous services. The site is operated under both a Title V air and NPDS water permit. The facility has less then the reportable quantities of toxic and flammable materials listed in tables 1-4 of CFR 40 68.130, but has hazards associated with service quantities of Sodium Hydroxide, Sulfuric Acid, Sodium Hypochlorite, and Diesel Fuel. Spill procedures are locally defined in the facility Preparedness, Prevention, and Contingency Plan, which generally attempt to stop the spill, contain it, and process clean up of the problem, while addressing any associated personel and fire hazards. Maximum tankage available for these substances are as follows: Diesel Fuel- 25000 gal, NaOH- 4893 gal, H2SO4- 4346 gal, NaOCL- 1000 gal. All are in >125% diked containments. Additional hazardous items are Ash storage silos holding ~500 tons each. All other chemicals for specific treatment are held at less then 400 gallons and contained in 125% diked containers. Soli d fuel transfer and lubricating oil systems associated with the boiler have 100% sprinkler system coverage, and specific electrical load centers have Halon flooding capability. Worst case probable casualty analysis results in no damage outside of the site boundaries. There have been no casulties concerning this facility in the last five years. Future plans for hazard minimization consist of elimination of the acid storage tank, replacing it with a smaller 'tote' type refillable unit, and investigation of changing startup fuel to natural gas, reducing the need for the present level of fuel oil inventory. The worst case accident analysis was for an explosion of the #2 Fuel Oil Tank used for plant startup, which resulted in damage to a distance of less then one mile. |