Open burning event scheduled to occur at Mantle Well site in Assumption Parish
http://www.deq.louisiana.gov/portal/portals/0/news/pdf/MantleWellBlowoutCleanup_PR.pdf
DEQ Communications - 4 hours ago
http://www.deq.louisiana.gov/portal/
Mantle Oil and Gas, LLC will use an air curtain destructor to burn road board used in the cleanup of a well blowout that occurred in Assumption Parish in August, 2010. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality issued the facility a permit to use the air curtain destructor and the burn will begin on Monday. The burn is a necessary waste handling measure that will burn more than 200 tons of road board.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
hydrogen sulfide
Yesterday, the peak hydrogen sulfide reading in Chalmette Vista was 16 ppb. Some studies have shown "former workers and residents living downwind of a crude oil processing plant had neurophysiological abnormalities. Residents in this study were exposed to hydrogen sulfide at 10 ppb, although concentrations occasionally reached 100 ppb. "
(from Earthworks) .
(from Earthworks) .
Monday, September 26, 2011
sulfur dioxide exceedances
Sulfur dioxide peaks in Chalmette Vista 9-25-2011 177 ppb
and 9-26-2011 226 ppb
the EPA one-hour health standard for sulfur dioxide is 75 ppb
Sunday, September 25, 2011
coke barn repairs update
These broken roof panels can be carried by wind and tropical storms onto adjacent worksites or into residential neighborhoods, causing physical harm.
pg 39 ExxonMobil CRLCC proposed the following repair plan for the coke barn
1) Remove all of the sheeting (roof panels), purlins, roof struts, bracing, and roof rafters.
2) Wash concrete pad/floor of building to removee any remaining coke particulates to eleimanate potential of particulate emissions after roof panels are removed.
LDEQ will include a Specific Requirement in Permit renewal requiring these activities be completed before March 31, 2012.
Friday, September 23, 2011
EPA Vetoes Air Permit
Remands to LDEQ for Further Review
(St. Bernard Parish, LA) – EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson on Wednesday, September 21, 2011, rejected a Clean Air Act permit for Murphy Oil, Inc.'s Meraux, Louisiana refinery.
The pollution permit is for a processing unit for low-benzene gasoline products at Murphy Oil's Meraux refinery and is part of the EPA’s clean fuel mandates. The benzene reducing unit was constructed and placed into service in March 2011 at the Meraux, Louisiana refinery. Early this month, Valero Energy Corporation announced its agreement to purchase the Meraux refinery pending regulatory approvals.
LDEQ based the permit limits on pollution estimates that fell below a threshold for installation of state-of-the-art pollution controls (known as Best Available Control Technology). The Concerned Citizens’ petition to EPA, however, showed that LDEQ miscalculated and that changes to the refinery are "major," triggering the requirement for more stringent pollution control technology. The petition also showed that LDEQ failed to gather enough emission data to make a reliable judgment about whether Murphy’s application triggered the requirement for state-of-the-art controls. EPA agreed, objected to Murphy Oil's permit, and remanded the permit application to LDEQ for further review.
The EPA granted the citizen's petition that LDEQ failed to provide adequate public comment responses regarding sufficient information in the permit records. EPA wrote, "We cannot determine whether all necessary information is located within the permit records." "Many of the emission calculations were illegible and supported only by reference to personal emails between Murphy Oil employees and their consultant."
Comments made by Concerned Citizens in the July 2009 public hearing explained “it is difficult, if not impossible to comment .... without seeing the basis of emission calculations." Public records requests by the Concerned Citizens for specific information from LDEQ on Murphy Oil's emissions calculations were unanswered.
The EPA also agreed that data for certain emission calculations were not included in the permit record, including the releases made during emergency flaring, emissions due to malfunctions at the benzene unit, and the total estimated sulfur content of the refinery fuel gas. LDEQ must also respond to public comments on emission increases due to roof landings for the floating roof tanks.
The Concerned Citizen’s view the petition to EPA as part of their ongoing participation in the public permitting process. Concerned Citizens is a residents’ advocacy group whose purpose is to protect the health, safety, environment, and quality of life of Meraux and the surrounding communities in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Candidate Forums
SEPTEMBER 26th, 27th, 28th 7pm Alliance for Good Government Candidate Forums @Nunez Community College Auditorium
Sept. 26th
Sept. 27th All Council District Seats
Sept. 28th
OCTOBER 1st 6PM Pastor's Coalition Candidate Forum @ 1st Baptist Church
The St. Bernard Pastor's Coalition will sponsor a forum for candidates for St. Bernard Parish president and St. Bernard sheriff. The event is scheduled for 6 p.m. Oct. 1 at the First Baptist Church, 305 E.
St. Bernard Highway in Chalmette.
The coalition said the four candidates for sheriff and the four candidates for parish president have been invited.
The St. Bernard Parish Pastor's Coalition, a group of nearly 30 evangelical churches in the parish, does not endorse candidates for office. The election is Oct. 22. Runoffs, if necessary, will be Nov. 19.
September 29th, October 5th, October 18th 6pm St. Bernard Parish Chamber of Commerce Political Forum @ St. Bernard Parish Council Chambers
Sept 29th Louisiana State House and Senate Seats and St. Bernard Parish Councilman-At-Large East and West Seat Candidates
Oct 5th St. Bernard Parish President, Sherifff, Assessor, and Clerk of Court Candidates
Oct 12th All St. Bernard Parish Council Distict Seat
Location: St. Bernrad Parish Council Chambers. Chamber of Commerce Members are asked to send questions, noting the specific candidate to question. Opportunty to submit questions is only available to Chamber Members. http://www.stbernardchamber.org/
Sept. 26th
Sept. 27th All Council District Seats
Sept. 28th
OCTOBER 1st 6PM Pastor's Coalition Candidate Forum @ 1st Baptist Church
The St. Bernard Pastor's Coalition will sponsor a forum for candidates for St. Bernard Parish president and St. Bernard sheriff. The event is scheduled for 6 p.m. Oct. 1 at the First Baptist Church, 305 E.
St. Bernard Highway in Chalmette.
The coalition said the four candidates for sheriff and the four candidates for parish president have been invited.
The St. Bernard Parish Pastor's Coalition, a group of nearly 30 evangelical churches in the parish, does not endorse candidates for office. The election is Oct. 22. Runoffs, if necessary, will be Nov. 19.
September 29th, October 5th, October 18th 6pm St. Bernard Parish Chamber of Commerce Political Forum @ St. Bernard Parish Council Chambers
Sept 29th Louisiana State House and Senate Seats and St. Bernard Parish Councilman-At-Large East and West Seat Candidates
Oct 5th St. Bernard Parish President, Sherifff, Assessor, and Clerk of Court Candidates
Oct 12th All St. Bernard Parish Council Distict Seat
Location: St. Bernrad Parish Council Chambers. Chamber of Commerce Members are asked to send questions, noting the specific candidate to question. Opportunty to submit questions is only available to Chamber Members. http://www.stbernardchamber.org/
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
air strikes
St. Bernard Parish’s failure to meet EPA’s new health protection standard of 75 parts per billion (ppb) for sulfur dioxide (SO2) concentrations in community air may have a connection to lax emissions controls. More stringent, state-of-the-art pollution controls may provide a solution.
In May 2011, the LDEQ recommended a non-attainment status for air quality in St. Bernard Parish based on community monitors that demonstrate exceedingly high sulfur dioxide levels. With such exceedingly high air concentration levels, even small increments exacerbate the adverse health effects.
Last week, Murphy Oil had a sulfur dioxide (SO2) release of about 450 pounds, just under the reportable quantity of 500 pounds for SO2. Yet, the community ambient air monitor on nearby Ventura Drive measured a reading of 54 ppb SO2 hourly average. The actual real time readings are higher than the displayed averages. In the same time frame, another “air-strike” or spike in SO2 readings occurred further west in Chalmette, along the ExxonMobil refinery corridor where the LDEQ Chalmette Vista air monitor measured 196 ppb SO2 hourly average.
.
In May 2011, the LDEQ recommended a non-attainment status for air quality in St. Bernard Parish based on community monitors that demonstrate exceedingly high sulfur dioxide levels. With such exceedingly high air concentration levels, even small increments exacerbate the adverse health effects.
Last week, Murphy Oil had a sulfur dioxide (SO2) release of about 450 pounds, just under the reportable quantity of 500 pounds for SO2. Yet, the community ambient air monitor on nearby Ventura Drive measured a reading of 54 ppb SO2 hourly average. The actual real time readings are higher than the displayed averages. In the same time frame, another “air-strike” or spike in SO2 readings occurred further west in Chalmette, along the ExxonMobil refinery corridor where the LDEQ Chalmette Vista air monitor measured 196 ppb SO2 hourly average.
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