TDEC Rejects EPA Recomendations On USN

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

Tennessee environmental regulators have rejected a series of recommendations from the U.S. Environmental Protection to require additional, montoring, reporting and record-keeping by US Nitrogen LLC, a major Greene County chemical firm.
In a seven-page document made public this week, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation stated that the EPA recommendations are neither required or necessary. The disclosure comes following the issuance late last week of a new permit that allows the company to continue operations through April of 2029.
The EPA from its Atlanta regional office had made five suggestions to TDEC "to ensure compliance with Title V of the Clean Air Act."
Those suggestions included monitoring that would ensure the visible emissions from US Nitrogen's nitric acid plant did not exceed opacity limits during start-ups and shut-downs.
Concerns about the visible emissions from the plant have recently been voiced by Park Overall, a local activist who sent pictures to TDEC showing visible emissions from the Midway plant recorded recently.
"The division sees no need for additional opacity monitoring for the nitric acid plant during start-up or shut-down," TDEC official James Johnston wrote in response to the EPA recommendation. Stating that emissions were expected to decrease dramatically due to a recent "process change," Johnson wrote, "There is no need for additional monitoring."
EPA also had suggested that US Nitrogen be required to record the amount of natural gas used and to set an annual limit on natural gas used.
TDEC rejected that suggestion contending that EPA was using the wrong standard in its analysis.
EPA also had urged that the state permit require US Nitrogen to record the heat input for the anhydrous ammonia plant but TDEC said that also was unnecessary. However the agency stated that they did add new language to the permit to ensure overall compliance.
A fourth EPA recommendation, that the permit require monitoring of visible emissions for flares used in the production process, was judged "unnecessary."
A final recommendation for additional monitoring and record-keeping on the nitric acid plant was similarly rejected.
"There are no federal or state standards for ammonia emissions that apply to this facility," the TDEC response states.
TDEC did state that a provision was added to the permit requiring that US Nitrogen adjust the ammonia injection rate if emission limits were exceeded.
TDEC previously issued responses rejecting other additional monitoring and record-keeping requirements proposed by an environmental consultant brought on by Overall. The agency similarly rejected suggestions from the Sierra Club.
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US Nitrogen Gets TDEC Permit

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

Tennessee environmental regulators have issued a new operating permit to a Greene County chemical firm that will allow the company to continue manufacturing till April 1, 2029.
The conditional major operating permit was issued by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to US Nitrogen, an ammonium nitrate manufacturer located in Midway in Greene County. The action followed public hearings in which the Sierra Club,local activists and an environmental consultant all called for stricter limits and additional reporting and record-keeping requirements.
In November the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also recommended additional record-keeping and reporting requirements.
Under the revised permit the company is required to limit the emission of nitrous oxides and carbon monoxide to 100 tons each in any continuous 12 month period.
If the company exceeds those limits through required monitoring it must self report it to TDEC within 15 days of its discovery.
Limits also are placed on the opacity of emissions, set at 20 percent. Local activist Park Overall recently sent TDEC photos showing plumes of smoke emitting from the US Nitrogen plant.
The opacity limits do not apply to startup and shutdowns, but US Nitrogen must take steps to limit emissions and opacity during startups, shutdowns and malfunctions.
The permit states that if the company exceeds the agreed limits it faces the possible loss of its permit and penalties and action by the EPA.
The permit sets various deadlines for the company to submit reports including two that become due in April of next year.
Other limits in the permit include a cap of 5.8 million tons of ammonia production in any 12 month period. Limits also apply to particulate emissions and heat input. The permit also requires the use of natural gas in production processes.
The action on the operating permit follows TDEC approval of a series of related permits, some of which apply to two other companies, Praxair Inc. and Yara North America Inc., that share the same Greene County site.
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US Nitrogen's River Use Plunges

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

The use of water from the Nolichucky River by a Greene County chemical firm dropped substantially in November, according to a report filed with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.
US Nitrogen reported that it drew 12.3 million gallons from the Nolichucky in the month down from the 21.7 million gallons of river water it used in October. The report shows that on 10 days during last month a minimal amount was drawn for use in the company's production of ammonium nitrate and related product.
On only on two days, Nov. 24 and 25, the company pumped a little over one million gallon from the waterway.
The amount of water the company discharged back in to the Nolichucky also decreased with the total reaching 4.8 million gallons. That was less than half of the 10.9 million discharged in October. The largest day of discharge, more than 500,000 gallons. came on Nov. 20. Minimal discharges were reported on four days.
The company draws water from the river through an 11 mile pipeline running from the river to its Midway plant. A permit allowing the installation of the pipeline alongside two state highways was issued by the Tennessee Department of Transportation. Another permit, which was recently renewed by TDEC, authorizes the use of the river water by US Nitrogen..
Both permits drew opposition from local residents and were the subject of lawsuits. One such suit filed by landowners who charged that the pipeline trespassed on their property was settled under terms that were not made public.
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Judge Boosts US Nitrogen Verdict

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

A federal judge has reversed himself and boosted the award to US Nitrogen LLC to a little under $2.8 million in a suit brought against the company that performed engineering work on a Tennessee factory.
In a seven-page ruling U.S. District Judge Michael L. Brown, sitting in Atlanta, ruled that Weatherly Inc. must pay US Nitrogen $2.759 million, an increase of nearly $600,000. Brown had earlier ruled that the maximum amount of the award was $2.2 million.
The latest action follows a September trial in which a jury awarded US Nitrogen $5.75 million. Brown subsequently reduced the award to $2.2 million citing a 15 percent cap in the contract between the two firms.
But the judge reversed himself following a December hearing in which lawyers for Weatherly argued that the $5.75 million jury award was excessive and should be reversed. US Nitrogen's lawyers sought an increase in the verdict.
Weatherly performed engineering services for the construction of US Nitrogen's Midway TN. ammonium nitrate manufacturing facility. In the original suit US Nitrogen sought $30 million, charging that errors by Weatherly substantially delayed the start up of the plant and forced millions of dollars in added construction costs.
According to the ruling US Nitrogen was billed $18.395 million by Weatherly and a provision in the original contract capped any damages at 15 percent of the contract price.
Brown had previously ruled that the cap applied to the original contract price of $14.692 million, but in the latest ruling he concluded that the cap should be applied to the final price.
Citing language in the original contract, Brown wrote that it was clear that both parties understood that the price could increase.
"That the parties used a percentage rather than a definite figure indicates their expectation and intention for the price and Weatherly's liability cap to increase with the needs of the project," Brown wrote.
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