Washington, D.C.-Faulty or corroded wells have been identified in nearly every fertilizer tank failure since 1995, according to the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB). The CSB issued an accounting as part of its final report and recommendations on the Nov. 12, 2008, catastrophic collapse at Chesapeake, Va., which released 2 million gallons of liquid urea ammonia nitrate. CSB’s recap, which includes a brief description of each incident, along with number of tanks involved, cause if determined, the consequence to communities and waterways, and injuries or deaths, is as follows:
- Poneto, Ind., 1995 – a 500,000-gallon tank rupture
- Pacific Junction, Iowa, March 1997 – a 1-million gallon tank rupture and cascading failure of two other tanks; release to Missouri River was prevented by a temporary dike
- Dixon, Calif., February 1999 – a 250,000-gallon release by tank rupture during transfer out of leaking tank; one killed and two hospitalized
- Maumee, Ohio, July 1999 – failure of two fertilizer storage tanks
- Webberville, Mich., July 1999 – a 1-million gallon tank rupture at seams; two hospitalized
- Cincinnati, Ohio, Jan. 8, 2000 – 379,000 gallons released into Ohio River in million-gallon tank rupture; containing walls and two vehicles destroyed
- Morral, Ohio, Jan. 26, 2000 – a 1.5-million gallon tank rupture
- Morral, Ohio, March 3 and 8, 2000 – two separate tank ruptures days apart; community and school evacuation
- Wilmington, N.C., Nov. 7, 2008 – fertilizer tank failure at seam between shell and bottom caused release to waterway
- Ashkym, Ill., Dec. 16, 2008 – 500,000-gallon release due to storage tank catastrophic failure and cascading failure of two smaller tanks
Investigation is still underway in this latest incident, according to the Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Assn. (IFCA). IFCA told Green Markets that containment and load-out containment requirements by the Illinois Dept. of Agriculture didn’t come into play since the tank incurred a catastrophic failure and blew apart. The pressure of the release threw the fertilizer across and over the containment wall. Investigators still trying to determine the cause of the failure indicated the tank had passed previous inspection.