Yara, Praxair Permits Progress

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

Tennessee environmental officials have issued a revised permit for another company sharing a Greene County site with US Nitrogen LLC, a subsidiary of an explosives manufacturer.
The conditional major source permit was issued to Yara North America, Inc. which manufactures calcium nitrate for use as a fertilizer. The Yara production facility, located in Midway, has yet to be constructed.
Meanwhile Yara and Praxair Inc., which already is located on the same Midway site as US Nitrogen, have applied for amendments to their permits to eliminate greenhouse gas requirement. Both firms also agreed to limit production to avoid stricter anti-pollution requirements for so called major pollution sources.
Praxair produces liquid carbon dioxide for use in the beverage industry.
"The facility is a true minor (source)," the Praxair submission states.
Both Praxair and Yara are seeking to be categorized as conditional major sources rather than major sources, which require stricter regulation.
Praxair has agreed to limit the annual production of liquefied carbon dioxide to 90,789 tons. If that limit is exceeded the company must report it to the state Department of Environment and Conservation. In addition, exceeding the limit could lead to the company losing its designation as a conditional major source.
Yara's permit limits its annual production of calcium nitrate to 100 tons per year. The company also stated that it will use a venturi scrubber for emission control.
As with Praxair, Yara could lose its categorization as a conditional major source if it exceeds the limits set in the permit.
The permit, signed by TDEC's Michelle Owenby, also sets limits on visible emissions.
The developments on the Praxair and Yara permits come following state approval of permits for US Nitrogen, the original occupant of the Eastern Tennessee site. The US Nitrogen permit has now been submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection for its review.
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