Cookeville Water Treatment Plant - Executive Summary |
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The City of Cookeville owns and operates a water treatment plant in Cookeville, Tennessee. The plant uses chlorine for disinfection, which is classified as an extremely hazardous substance. Two release scenarios (worst-case and alternate-case) were modeled using the Areal Location of Hazardous Atmospheres, ALOHA(R), computer program. The worst-case for chlorine (i.e., catastrophic failure due to corrosion, impact, or construction defects causing a direct release of 2,000 pounds of chlorine over a 10-minute period) resulted in an endpoint of 2.6 miles. The estimated number of persons residing in the 2.6-mile radius is 1,500. The alternate-case scenario (i.e., gaseous release through a short pipe or valve) resulted in an endpoint of 0.4 mile. The estimated number of persons residing in the 0.4-mile radius is 20. The LandView III database indicates there are 6 schools in the 2.6-mile radius surrounding the site. However, facility personnel have verified that these schools have bee n vacated and no schools are currently located in the 2.6-mile radius. Since the plant uses and stores chlorine in excess of 2,500 pounds, it is subject to federal requirements including preparation of PSM and RMP programs. Stringent RMP requirements (known as "Program 3 Level") apply to the City of Cookeville because of Tennessee's OSHA jurisdiction. The City of Cookeville has developed an emergency plan to provide employees with specific details for emergency operation. Additionally, in-house procedures are in place for training personnel on the chlorine system, mechanical inspection of equipment, incident investigation, compliance audits, and emergency response and action plan. The City of Cookeville has never had a accident involving chlorine that cause deaths, injuries, property or environmental damage, or sheltering in place at this facility in the past 5 years. |