Commercial fertilizer license holders by county
Butler: 4
Champaign: 4
Clark: 6
Darke: 10
Greene: 3
Miami: 5
Montgomery: 5
Preble: 8
Warren: 3
Source: Ohio Department of Agriculture
A chemical suspected of causing or contributing to Wednesday’s deadly fertilizer plant explosion in Texas is commonly stored in significant amounts in southwest Ohio.
A large amount of anhydrous ammonia was present at the plant in West, Texas, near Waco, when the plant exploded Wednesday night. The blast left as many as 15 people feared dead, injured at least 160 people and leveled buildings.
The chemical, used commercially in manufacturing, refrigeration and agriculture, is a colorless gas with a pungent smell. It’s also is caustic, and when concentrated, can burn human tissue upon contact. In vapor form, it can be dangerous if inhaled.
Anhydrous ammonia must be stored at high pressure. It is considered a non-flammable gas, but at certain concentrations in enclosed spaces it can be made to explode, according to the California Ammonia Co.
Ammonium nitrate, a compound found in many fertilizers, was also at the blast site. Ammonium nitrate can form an explosive mixture if it comes in contact with organic materials, according to the California Ammonia Co.
Storing 10,000 pounds or more of anhydrous ammonia requires a risk management plan, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency documents. Such a plan details how staff is trained, how a company reports the amount of product it has on hand and maintenance requirements, said Heather Lauer, an Ohio EPA spokeswoman.
There are 46 industrial and agricultural companies with risk management plans for storing anhydrous ammonia in Butler, Champaign, Clark, Darke, Greene, Miami, Montgomery, Preble and Warren counties, according to Ohio EPA documents. That number doesn’t include locations that store less than 10,000 pounds of the chemical, Lauer said.
According to Ohio Department of Agriculture documents, there are 48 commercial fertilizer license holders in those same counties.
Those companies include both fertilizer manufacturers and distributors, and many of them are blending pre-manufactured products together to get a certain level of compounds, said Erica Hawkins, a Department of Agriculture spokeswoman. “There is very little full-blown manufacturing that is going on in Ohio,” she said.
Commercial fertilizer license holders are required to report annually the amounts they are making, selling and distributing, Hawkins said.
Southwest Ohio has seen several industrial blasts involving volatile chemicals, including the Veolia Environmental Services plant in West Carrollton in May 2009; the Isotec chemical manufacturing plant in Miami Twp. in September 2003; and the Sherwin-Williams paint warehouse fire in Dayton in May 1987.
The area also has seen a number of emergency incidents in recent years related to anhydrous ammonia, most involving leaks and evacuations:
• December 2008: An anhydrous ammonia leak shut down part of Lower Valley Pike in Bethel Twp. for several hours. Investigators suspected the leak was related to the attempted theft of the farm fertilizer, which can be used in the production of methamphetamine.
• December 2006: More than 100 homes in South Charleston were evacuated after an anhydrous ammonia leak at South Landmark Inc., 11888 Ohio 41. Employees were transferring the chemicals from a 30,000-gallon tank when a hose popped off, causing the leak.
• October 2006: Nine people in West Chester Twp. were treated after several hundred pounds of anhydrous ammonia leaked from a refrigeration system at U.S. Food Service at Industrial Boulevard and Spellmire Drive. The people were either treated at the scene or taken to the hospital for exposure to the chemical.
• February 2004: Nearly 400 residents of Pleasant Plain were evacuated after about 850 gallons of anhydrous ammonia leaked from a 1,000-gallon tank at the Southwest Landmark fertilizer plant. Thieves attempting to steal the farm chemical to make methamphetamine caused the link, officials said.
• January 2002: A potentially explosive ammonia leak at the Aldi distribution center in the Prime Ohio industrial park in Springfield caused part of the operation to be shut down while emergency responders ventilated the center.
• June 2001: A tanker spill at the Harvest Land Co-op near West Milton created a two-mile plume of poisonous anhydrous ammonia in Ludlow Creek, which feeds the Stillwater River. Ohio Environmental Protection Agency officials closed the West Milton water plant to protect the water in the village’s emergency towers. The chemical discharge killed more than 103,300 fish, according to the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
• June 1995: Customers were evacuated from restaurants and stores around the Sugarcreek Plaza after a 1,000-gallon tank of anhydrous ammonia started spewing toxic fumes. The tank, sitting in an empty field in Washington Twp., was struck by lightning, according to witness reports.
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