US Nitrogen Claim Disputed by "Partner"

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

A dispute has arisen between US Nitrogen LLC and its partner, Praxair, Inc., over which company is responsible for a violation of a permit issued by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.
In a letter to TDEC sent last week Praxair's environmental manager Scott Poole charged that it was US Nitrogen and not Praxair that was responsible for the violation cited by TDEC in an Aug. 24 notice.
In a one-page letter to Michelle Owenby, a TDEC director, Poole wrote that "There should be no question that US Nitrogen remains responsibility for any alleged non-compliance with that permit."
The Praxair letter follows a claim by US Nitrogen to TDEC that Praxair was responsible for any violation.
Citing the history of the permit Poole said that despite discussions about a transfer of a construction permit between the two firms a formal transfer has yet to occur.
"US Nitrogen's suggestion that liability for their actions transfers with the permit is without any basis in law or regulation," Poole wrote, adding that "On this basis, US Nitrogen is the appropriate recipient of the Aug. 24 letter from TDEC, not Praxair."
Praxair, which produces liquid carbon dioxide largely for the beverage industry, is located on the same Greene County parcel as US Nitrogen. It receives the chemical from US Nitrogen.
The violation notice was issued following an on-site visit to the Midway facility in July. According to the notice the permit limit on the production of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases.
Amanda Davis, a TDEC director, wrote that the records showed the company failed to comply with a permit provision limiting the production of carbon dioxide to 90,789 tons per year. In addition the records showed the company exceeded the permit limit for the production of greenhouse gases, the letter Aug. 24 letter stated.
The violation notice also charges that US Nitrogen failed to comply with another permit requirement for monthly data reports on the liquefaction operation.
US Nitrogen manager Andrew Velo subsequently wrote to TDEC that it was Praxair and not US Nitrogen that was responsible for any violations.
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