Southern Valley Co-op - Executive Summary |
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Southern Valley Co-op 301 W. Mabel Mankato, Mn. 56001 For further information contact Mark Wels, Safety Director - (507) 387-2769 1. The Facility Policy The owners, management and employees of Southern Valley Co-op are committed to the prevention of any accidental releases of anhydrous ammonia. If an accidental release should occur, the facility is prepared to work with the local fire department or other authorities, to mitigate any release and minimize the impact of the release to people and the environment. 2. Facility Information The primary activity at the facility is the storage and blending of fertilizers for sale to farmers. Anhydrous ammonia is received, stored, and distributed for direct application. Anhydrous ammonia is used for crop production nutrients. The maximum quantity of ammonia stored would be 140,000 lbs. in our 12,000 and 18,000 gal storage tanks and nurse tanks. The maximum quantity handled would be the unloading of a truck tank holding 40,000 pounds. 3. The worst-case release scenario and the alternative release scenario. a. The worst-case release scenario for anhydrous ammonia would be the release of the total contents of a storage tank released as a gas over ten minutes. The maximum quantity released would be 80,000 pounds which represents the volume of the storage tank at 85 percent capacity as limited by design standards. The distance to the endpoint (point of dispersion to 200 ppm.) is 0.94 miles b. The alternative release scenario for anhydrous ammonia based on the hazard review is a 2 minute release from a break in a 2 inch pipe. The distance to the endpoint (point of dispersion to 200 ppm) is .56 miles. 4. The accidental release prevention program. The facility has implemented the provisions of "Safety Requirements for the Storage and Handling of Anhydrous Ammonia, K-6.1", published by the American National Standards Institute, Inc. and the Standards of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 29 CFR 1910.111, "Storage and Handling of Anhydrous Ammonia". In addition, Mn. Dept. of Ag. Rules. 5. The Five-year Accident History a. There have been no accidental releases of anhydrous ammonia in the past five years that: have caused any death, injuries, or significant property damage at the facility; nor to our knowledge have resulted in offsite deaths, injuries, evacuations, sheltering in place, property damage or environmental damage. 6. The Emergency Resonse Program. The facility has: a. A written emergency action plan, in accordance with OSHA standard, 29 CFR 1910.38 b. Provided state and local authorities the emergency planning and community right-to-know information as required under SARA Title lll (EPCRA); c. Coordinated with local emergency responders. 7. Planned Changes to Improve Safety Safety improvement is an on-going process at the facility. Periodic evaluations are performed to assess the maintenance of safe conditions. There are no additional specific anhydrous ammonia safety recommendations for implementation at this time. Mark Wels |