TDEC Discounts US Nitrogen Complaints

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

Tennessee environmental officials are discounting reports of possible explosions last month at US Nitrogen's Midway manufacturing facility.
In an email dated today Ronald B. Wilhoit, an inspector for the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, told one Midway resident that loud noises heard on Oct. 4 were likely the result of a high pressure steam valve that released "a handful of times" that day.
Citing information provided by US Nitrogen's plant manager, Ronald Velo, Wilhoit wrote that those releases were "likely the noise that people reported hearing."
Wilhoit said US Nitrogen did acknowledge there was "a component failure" causing the nitric acid plant to "trip" on that day.
Wilhoit said in an email to the local resident that he also checked the company's continuous emission monitoring data at the nitric acid plant for the day in question and "there were no violations of their short term emission limits for nitrogen oxides."
Similar responses have been issued by TDEC to other area residents over the past few weeks.

US Nitrogen Draws 14.6 Million Nolichucky Gallons

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

US Nitrogen, the Greene County chemical firm, pumped 14.6 million gallons of  water from the Nolichucky River in October and on a single day withdrew a little over 1 million.
A report filed this week with the state Department of  Environment and Conservation also shows the company pumped a little over 9 million gallons back into the river. US Nitrogen is required to file the monthly reports under the terms of one its state permits.
According to the report submitted by Plant Manager Andrew Velo the company pumped a little over one million gallons on Oct. 19. The water is pumped through a 12 mile pipeline from the Midway plant to the river.
On three days during the month, Oct. 23, Oct. 26 and Oct. 29 no water was drawn from the river. Likewise no water was pumped back into the river on those same days.
In September the company withdrew nearly the same amount from the Nolichucky and returned seven million gallons to the river.
The use of the river water has been one of the most controversial aspects of US Nitrogen's operation in Eastern Tennessee. Initially the company had indicated it would purchase water from the local utility district.
The permit allowing construction of the pipeline has been challenged in a suit pending in Chancery Court in Nashville. A new judge was assigned to hear that case earlier this week.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com

New Judge Named in US Nitrogen Suit

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

A new judge has been assigned to hear the case brought by a group of Eastern Tennessee residents challenging the legality of a permit issued by the state to a major ammonium nitrate manufacturer.
Records in Chancery Court in Nashville show Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle has been assigned to hear the challenge to the permit issued  by the Tennessee Department of Transportation to US Nitrogen and the Industrial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County.
The case was sent back to the Nashville court after an appeals court overturned a decision by Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman. She had thrown out the suit on the grounds that the landowners lacked standing to challenge the permit.
The permit enabled the construction of a pipeline from US Nitrogen's Midway facility to the Nolichucky River. The company uses the pipeline to draw water from the river for use in its manufacturing processes.
Bonnyman recused herself from the case on Oct. 5 after the Appeals Court overturned virtually all of her findings in an 18-page decision issued in July.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com

What's in a Name...Mosheim or Moshiem

US Nitrogen, the company that announced plans to operate in Greene County more than five years ago, has submitted an official notice to state environmental officials stating that it plans to install a 52,000 gallon tank in Moshiem.
The misspelling of Mosheim appears four times in the notice which was submitted to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation on Nov. 1.

USN Tank to Hold 52,000 Gallons of Toxic Liquid

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

US Nitrogen has filed notice with Tennessee officials that it is installing a 52,000 gallon tank which will emit under five tons of ammonia vapors per year to the atmosphere.
The notice was filed Wednesday with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. According to the filing the tank will be used to store aqua ammonia  also known as ammonium hydroxide. According to the notice some two million gallons of ammonium hydroxide will pass through the storage tank in the course of a year.
Ammonium hydroxide is classified as a highly toxic hazardous substance. Environmental officials state that the chemical can "severely irritate and burn the skin and eyes." It can also cause damage if inhaled.
Citing a formula set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Velo said that the annual ammonia emissions from the tank are expected to be 2.4 tons.
"The tank will be at ambient temperature and will be vented to the atmosphere," the letter from Velo to TDEC Director Michelle W. Owenby states
Velo said that by keeping emissions below five tons the agency should treat the tank as as an "insignificant" source thus exempting the company from the requirement to obtain a state permit.
"We believe the tank would qualify as an insignificant emissions unit and ..(it) does not require an air permit," Velo wrote.
The tank will be located near the company's facility in Midway.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com