Farmers Union Co-op Co. - Executive Summary |
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Farmers Union Co-Op, Blue Springs NE, buys, sells and stores agricultural chemicals, feed, fertilizer, grain and seed, as a retail facility for a small rural community. We employee five (5) full-time employees. Our Contingency and Emergency Procedures have been designed for our employees and community protection. To minimize hazards to human health and our environment. We maintain four (4) stationary units, interconnected for anhydrous ammonia storage and dispensing. The Co-Op maintains a 5+ accident/incident free record. Operating a safe operation is a priority. Worst case scenario and alternative release relates to 240,000 pounds of anhydrous ammonia being released into the air. This amount is stored from March-May on a yearly basis. As supply depletes, it is not replinshed until the following March. During the months of heavy storage, we usually have prevailing winds from the S-SW moving any possible released ammonia into rual farmland. The Co-Op maintains a wa ter supply at these storage tanks for neutralization of a vapor cloud, and the Blue Springs Fire Department is 3 city blocks away. Our dispensing hoses for the ammonia are locked in storage boxes and only trained and certified employees are permitted to use these devices. Our Emergency Action Plan establishes administrative and worker procedures to be followed in case of a spill or release. The Co-Op's safety record and on-going inspections, demonstrates the care and priority safety has been given to this elevator. However, safety is a continuous improvement program and to improve our program for further prevention of incidents, we will improve training techniques for employees to ensure proper knowledge of all procedures, and to increase our maintenance inspections and repair of Co-Op equipment. |