Macon, Mo.-A stakeout equipped with a camera inside a farmer’s barn north of Atlanta, Mo., resulted in the arrest of three persons for stealing anhydrous ammonia and a fourth individual at a suspected “meth house,” according to the Macon County sheriff’s office. Chief Deputy Jeff Vogan told Green Markets that the three, who were captured after a vehicle chase, now face felony drug and resisting arrest charges. “We had a camera on one of two nurse tanks for awhile and then took our best guess when they might be there,” Vogan related. He said the thieves were allowed to carry their bounty to their car and then gave officers the slip. “We ended up having to pursue them for four or five miles (before making the arrest),” Vogan reported. “The three in the car were familiar to us. We also knew about an abandoned property where a couple of them lived and we had seen their vehicle.” The fourth person, arrested at the house while waiting for his friends, was charged with providing a precursor for manufacturing a controlled substance. Bail has been set at $40,000 cash for each. According to Vogan, anhydrous-related meth problems have been numerous in this wide-open territory. “Because we’re such a big rural county with a lot of farmland, it makes it ideal for meth cooks to steal anhydrous out of the tanks,” he explained. “A few years ago we were working meth labs all the time. Then it seemed to slow down, and now it’s picking back up again.”
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Uranium-from-phosphate technology gets boost
Adelaide, South Australia-Uranium Equities Ltd. (UEL) has announced that it has secured funding of up to US$16.5 million from Saskatchewan-based uranium giant Cameco. The funding is for the continued development of UEL’s new technology for the extraction of uranium from phosphoric acid. UEL says the development of the technology has progressed through a pilot plant scale at a significant rate at an unnamed U.S.-based phosphoric acid facility. UEL says the process is capable of producing uranium at operating costs in the order of U.S.$25-$30/lb, with over 90 percent uranium recovery. It notes that historically, production from phos acid peaked in 1978-1983, and that worldwide production from those sources ceased in the early 1980s as a consequence of high operating costs and falling uranium prices. UEL said estimated low operating costs under the new technology indicates commercially robust production is achievable. It said that agreements have been reached with two phosphate producers to carry out laboratory test work to establish the commercial applicability of the process, with negotiations at advanced levels with two other producers for preliminary screenings. Utilizing current phos acid production, UEL estimates some 20 million pounds of uranium is recoverable from the process, with approximately $1 billion in revenues.
Ammonia theft triggers 15-mile Illinois chase
Jonesboro, Ill.-Two suspected anhydrous ammonia thieves are in Union County jail waiting a trial date on felony theft charges after leading deputies on a 15-mile chase over two counties with two tanks and about 35 gallons of ammonia in the back of their pickup truck. Union County Sheriff David Livesay told Green Markets the pair was tripped up early on Nov. 8 at Fruitbelt Farm Services in Ware by an alert passerby who notified the sheriff’s office. “That individual noticed the truck sitting by the tank area at Fruitbelt and it looked pretty suspicious to him,” Livesay related. “There was a deputy in the area who was alerted by dispatch. He actually got there as the vehicle was leaving the property and tried to stop them, but they wouldn’t stop.” The pursuit, which was joined by two additional deputies, crossed county lines. The two suspects next tried to cross over a levee system along the Mississippi River. The truck hit the system, which was flooded due to high water, at high speed, and “They willingly gave up at that time,” the sheriff reported. “Drug investigators took charge at the scene and a Hazmat team came to transfer the anhydrous into a stable tank which is being held for evidence.”
Two die in crash fleeing ammonia theft scene
Tennyston, Ind.-Two men were killed in an automobile wreck early on Nov. 9 while fleeing from a southern Indiana farm where they were surprised by a farmer while apparently trying to steal anhydrous ammonia, according to the Warrick County sheriff’s office. There was no ammonia in the car at the time of the crash, Chief Deputy Brett Kruse told Green Markets. “They fled the scene without stealing anything,” Kruse reported. “They were just trying to get away without being caught after the farmer discovered what was going on.” Both were pronounced dead at the scene. Kruse said the farmer got up about 4:15 a.m. and reported seeing the men near his anhydrous tank. Upon seeing the farmer, the men fled at a high rate of speed. The farmer tracked the car, later finding it had crashed into a guardrail near a bridge over a creek. Kruse said the guardrail went through the front of the vehicle. One of the men had a record of manufacturing methamphetamines and had been charged with having a meth lab at his residence, among other drug-related offenses. His case was yet to go trial. The other had a drug abuse violation this year and was also a suspect in a non-drug theft case.
Residents alerted as ammonia tanks tip over
Princeville, Ill.-Authorities issued a reverse 911 evacuation alert for residents in a mile-wide radius, and traffic was diverted for about three hours when two 1,500 gallon tanks filled with anhydrous ammonia tipped over on a state highway. The tanks were on a trailer being towed by a pickup truck about 10 a.m. Nov. 5 when the driver lost control while making a turn off the highway, reported Capt. Dave Briggs of the Peoria County sheriff’s office. “The tanks tipped over, possibly due to some uneven road lanes at that location, and ended up in a culvert,” Biggs told Green Markets. “While turning, the trailers and the tanks tipped sideways, causing a mist of the chemical to be released by a relief value on one tank. It didn’t amount to much so the situation was approachable.” He said the Peoria city hazmat team was called in, along with the Akron-Princeville fire department. No one was injured, the ammonia was transloaded into other tanks without incident, and the evacuation alert was called off.
Missouri gets EPA ammonia safety grant
Kansas City, Kan.-U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 has awarded the Missouri Department of Agriculture (MDA) and the state’s Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) a total of $75,000 to carry out programs that reduce the risk of accidental anhydrous ammonia releases at fertilizer facilities that handle more than 10,000 pounds of the chemical and are subject to the agency’s chemical safety requirements. The grants are part of EPA’s Clean Air Act risk management program and are designed to prevent releases and protect the health and safety of area residents, employees at the facilities, emergency responders, and the environment. MDA will receive $30,000 to develop a program to conduct on-site audits and follow-up safety assessments at 189 agricultural retail anhydrous ammonia facilities in the state. SEMA will receive $45,000 to conduct workshops and on-site audits of 205 non-agricultural facilities. The SEMA grant focuses on enhancing communication among local first responders, planners, and all regulated facilities. Region 7’s George Hess noted that these grants have been given out on a competitive basis for approximately 10 years. “Over the years we have given them to the departments of agriculture in Iowa and Kansas to focus on activities associated with the Clean Air Act-Section 112r and specifically the risk management program,” Hess reported. “Region 7 has approximately 2,500 facilities, and approximately 80 percent are anhydrous ammonia retailers. I believe ours is the only EPA region to give out these types of grants at this time.” According to EPA, Region 7 receives more accidental release reports for ammonia than for any other chemical. In addition to releases caused by transportation accidents, human error, and equipment failure, a number have been caused by anhydrous ammonia thefts because it is a key ingredient in the illegal production of methamphetamine. Retailers were first required to be in risk management compliance in 1999, when EPA started facility inspections and enforcement of the program, which includes five components: hazard assessment system, management, accident prevention, emergency response, and submittal of a risk management plan.
K+S 3Q income off 98 percent
Kassel, Germany-K+S Group reported a 98 percent drop in third-quarter operating earnings, to E9.4 million compared to the year-ago E502.2 million. Revenues were off 52 percent, to E698.1 million. The company cited significant revenue decreases in the potash and nitrogen fertilizer sectors. For nitrogen, the company reported higher raw material costs for complex fertilizers, as well as inventory write-downs. Citing low potash soil content and two very large harvests, as well as low fertilizer inventories, K+S expects a big turnaround in sales volumes in 2010, particularly for potash. Wire reports late in the week cited analysts as saying K+S may need to sell shares in order to shore up its finances.
Some urea spilled in CN derailment
Edmonton, Alberta-CN rail officials report that only a small amount of urea was spilled from at least two fertilizer hopper cars when a train derailed at the Scotford railyard north of Fort Saskatchewan northeast of Alberta. “There were no environmental issues, no injuries and no dangerous goods involved,” reported CN spokesman Kevin Franchuk. No immediate estimate of the amount of spilled urea was available, but Franchuk told Green Markets that two of six hopper cars were empty, two remained upright, and the two that tipped over were filled with urea. Franchuk said the cause of the derailment is still under investigation. He said a total of eight cars derailed as the 64-car train, with three locomotives, moved slowly through the railyard about 3 p.m. Nov. 8. Crews spent several hours uprighting the cars and cleaning up the spill. Some yard traffic was affected, but since Scotford is on a secondary line, there were no main line CN interruptions.
Mosaic updates market on Esterhazy brine inflow
Plymouth, Minn.-The Mosaic Co. on Nov. 12 responded to market rumors about elevated levels of brine inflow in the mined-out area at its Esterhazy, Sask., potash mine. The company said that brine inflow rates rise and fall regularly. The current rate of brine inflow is elevated, but within the historical range of inflows at Esterhazy. The company says it is evaluating the inflow and is managing it as in the past. Mosaic said it has successfully mitigated brine inflows at its Esterhazy mine since 1985. The Esterhazy mine has an annual production capacity of approximately 5.3 million mt. The last reported new inflow development at the mine was reported in 2007 (GM Jan. 29, 2007). Mosaic and PotashCorp are currently in litigation over how much longer PotashCorp will be entitled to a share of the potash from the mine (GM Aug. 17, 2009) – PotashCorp says until 2012, Mosaic says 2010.
Reclaimed mine blocks Florida fire department
Tampa-Despite being blocked by rough terrain in an area previously mined for phosphate, fire officials said two blazes on state park land near the Alafia River south of Tampa in Hillsborough County were contained last week, according to local news reports. The land was owned by a predecessor of IMC, which merged with Cargill to form The Mosaic Co., according to Mosaic spokesman David Townsend. Fire officials said the two fires were approximately a half-mile apart and affected about 500 acres. The problem initially containing the blazes occurred when firefighters encountered a reclaimed phosphate mining area with high hills and deep gulches. Rain the following days helped extinguish any areas that were still smoldering.