Dangers to Communities posed by Oil/Gas Refineries

[Bob]

As I suspected, the US Chemical Safety board has gotten to the site where we saw the Crude/Asphalt mixture spewing out of the large white storage tank (and ignited).. the Fluidic Catalytic Cracker EXPLODED. The explosion sent pieces of metal into the tank, blowing a large hole into it.

Most problems with a Fluidic Catalytic Cracking unit will happen during powering up or powering down (the heating or cooling), and the highly explosive and very very sensitive azide products or possibly fulminates of mercury coat and clump on the walls. I would say it is a failing of the design.. Each refinery that has a Fluidic Catalytic Cracking unit must go through cleaning cycles periodically, where the dangerous explosive coating (on the inside) has to be carefully removed.

My best guess is, because Husky inherited the problem from the previous owner, the Fluidic Catalytic Cracking unit (FCCU) was in need of long overdue maintenance.. During the powering down/cooling cycle the explosion appears to have happened.

Most likely, if another refinery has a poorly maintained (cost cutting for instance) FCCU, if there is a feed pipeline or stock tank nearby the Unit during one of the explosions, the same situation could happen. An explosive shrapnel laden detonation can send deadly and dangerous metal pieces and whatever liquids/gases are present everywhere in the vicinity. The resultant fires no doubt would release the toxic clouds as was happening with the Superior Wisconsin Husky Energy refinery incident.

The plant owners/operators have no business cutting corners when it comes to maintenance and safety.

EPA currently says, "All Clear" as far as the "air quality" goes. That took a while to clear today being May 3rd 2018.

There remains the issue of the inspectors "determining" why the FCCU failed. The statement included they were wondering why the "metal" was weak.

None of these units can withstand a large explosion if there is a substantial buildup of the highly unstable residues within the FCCU.

https://www.wpr.org/safety-board-sup...-cracking-unit

There is now a concern about potential water pollution:

David Morrison, the EPA’s on-scene coordinator, is still overseeing Husky’s air quality monitoring in Superior and another agency coordinator is working remotely on air quality data.

"The EPA has been involved in the development of the company's long-term air monitoring plan," said EPA spokeswoman Rachel Bassler in a statement. "EPA remains ready to return with air sampling capabilities should another event occur."

The DNR is also overseeing water cleanup and an oil boom that has been placed in Newton Creek to prevent any residual oil or firefighting product from reaching the Hog Island Inlet.

Air monitoring updates are available on the Douglas County Health Department website.

[Bob]

Understanding a FCCU (Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit) Explosion

This video below about 7 minutes (good) shows what happened to the Torrance California Refinery Explosion. (Another reason to NOT have refineries near or within Communities)

The refinery also uses toxic Hydrogen Fluoride acid, similar to the Husky Energy Plant that had an incident/leak/explosion with their FCCU. It is stored close by to the upgrader system.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=JplAKJrgyew

This explosion happened due to maintenance issues, failed valves, improper shutdown procedures, and operators over-riding normal safety procedures, using what they called a "Variance" (an exception) to change the rules to get a dangerous situation from become more dangerous (so they thought)..

The operators didn't want to shut down the heat at the crude boilers (and risk explosions of the coatings within the system).. so they kept the boilers running, heat running.. The Torrance Refinery has an additional collector of air pollution particulates, probably because its smack right in the town of Torrance.. A "good in theory" apparatus, however it relies on valves that have to be maintained, and a system of checks and balances which must not fail, even a little bit.

Watching the video is a good example of how the FCCU works, and how a critical valve which was not properly inspected, not properly maintained failed.. Where other systems should have shut down, but instead sent explosive gases into the electrostatic particle precipitation unit..

[onawah]

Trump Needs Another Reminder: Coal Is Not Coming Back
By Mary Anne Hitt May 24, 2018
https://www.sierraclub.org/compass/2...ign=newsletter

In a world where clean energy keeps winning, expanding exponentially, and creating good jobs, President Trump continues to keep his head in the sand -- or rather, in the coal dust. He recently, amidst his usual flurry of ridiculous assertions about witch hunts -- tweeted once again about “beautiful, clean coal.”

My short response: “lol, nope!”

Here’s a longer response about why coal is permanently losing ground to clean energy -- look at these recent developments from across the U.S.

First - States Are Enacting Plans to Go Coal-Free. Earlier this month, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation released the much anticipated draft rule that would fully phase out coal in New York by 2020 -- the “enforcement teeth” to Governor Cuomo’s 2016 State of the State pledge to make New York coal-free. According to our senior Beyond Coal representative in New York, Lisa Dix, the Empire State already has one of the toughest emissions standards in the nation on new power plants, and this rule would apply a carbon intensity standard to existing plants to protect public health and curb carbon emissions.

New York has statewide target to reduce carbon emissions sector-wide 40 percent by 2030 and 80 percent by 2050, and they’re certainly not the only state to have plans for being coal-free.

Second - Coal is too expensive and can no longer compete. In Henderson, Kentucky -- a city of 30,000 people with its own coal plant -- officials can’t sell the power because it now costs 33 times more than electricity on the open market. This is a nationwide trend!

Third - Clean energy is cheaper than coal and fracked gas. A recent report out from the Rocky Mountain Institute shows that:

Power producers are rushing to build natural gas plants and pipelines to replace retiring coal, but in less than 10 years much of that infrastructure will be more expensive to operate than the cost to build new renewables….That would leave investors and ratepayers saddled with billions in stranded assets.

It’s more than coal -- it’s fracked gas, too! Fossil fuels harm our health and our pocketbooks -- and that’s not all.

Fourth - Fossil fuel power plants cause significant health problems. A new study shows that within a year of shutting down fossil fuel plants like those that burn coal, the risk of premature birth by women living nearby decreased. The study, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, found that after eight coal- and oil-fired power plants in California closed, the rate of premature birth for moms living nearby dropped dramatically. The greatest improvements were for Asian American and African American moms -- women who are suffering from a well-document maternal health crisis. Coal’s air and water pollution cause severe health issues -- why would we invest in dirty fossil fuels when we can choose clean energy?

Those are just four recent developments that make it clear the tide is turning away from coal and toward clean energy -- but I could go on and on. Coal is not coming back, no matter how much Trump, Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt, and their fossil fuel buddies try to make it happen. That's why we need federal support to diversify the economy in coal communities and to make sure no one is left behind as we make the transition to an economy powered by clean energy. In this country, we make decisions about how to produce electricity in our states and cities, not in Washington, D.C., and Americans are demanding safe, affordable, clean, renewable energy. No amount of tweeting is going to change that.


Mary Anne Hitt is the director of the Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign.

[onawah]

Earthquake at SUPERVOLCANO in New Mexico + EXPLOSION @ Kansas pumping ops
10:47 minutes in-- report on Kansas pumping ops-- through to about 22 minutes in

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=6JkOEuRxSHg