Chemical Facility News

On August 18, 1990, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90) was enacted into law. Section 4202 of that Act amended the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA or Clean Water Act) to require tank vessels and marine transportation-related facilities to prepare and submit to the US Coast Guard plans for responding, to the maximum extent practicable, to a worse case discharge, and to a substantial threat of such a discharge, of oil or a hazardous substance carried in bulk as cargo.

The Coast Guard is alerting residents of ice-breaking activities scheduled to begin Tuesday and last into the weekend. The nearest towns to Pere Marquette Lake are Ludington and Scottville, Mich. The research vessel Sikuliaq is scheduled to transit through Pere Marquette Lake multiple times in order to gain access to Ludington's Occidental Chemical Facility, Feb. 18-22. The vessel has icebreaking capabilities. All ice fishermen should remove their ice shacks and equipment from these areas. Snowmobilers, all-terrain vehicle operators and other recreational users of the ice should plan their activities carefully, avoid shipping channels, and use caution near these areas of operation.

Coast Guard boat crews from Station Port Aransas have set up a 1 mile safety zone around vessel VENUSGAS within the La Quinta marine channel in Ingleside, Texas until 4:30 p.m. today while a space inside the vessel is being ventilated. Alarms reported the release of vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) early yesterday morning at the Occidental chemical facility. The source of the release was the VENUSGAS which was moored at the end of their pier. After a hazardous materials inspection team entered the vessel this morning and began ventilating the space, all levels of VCM are reported to be negligible and contained within the vessel. The ventilation of the space has no impact on the outlying community.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved an innovative new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal and related facilities proposed by Ingleside Energy Center and San Patricio Pipeline to be located in San Patricio County, Texas. The Commission granted Ingleside Energy Center authority under Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act to construct a new terminal designed to provide an option for extracting natural gas liquids in addition to importing, storing and vaporizing one billion cubic feet (Bcf) of gas per day. The project would be constructed on the shoreline of Corpus Christi Bay near Ingleside, Texas, on a site owned by the applicants’ parent company, Occidental Chemical Corp. “I congratulate the Commission staff for processing this application so expeditiously.

WASHINGTON - Coast Guard Director of Port Security, Rear Adm. Craig E. Bone, testified today on chemical facility security before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “Considering the vast economic utility of our ports, waterways and coastal approaches, it is clear that a terrorist incident against a facility in our marine transportation system could have a disastrous impact on public safety, the environment, our nation’s economy, and international trade. Such an incident, if it were to occur in a strategic port, could also threaten our military mobilization capabilities. An incident at one of the 350 chemical…

Coast Guard Director of Port Security, Rear Adm. Craig E. Bone, testified today on chemical facility security before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. His written statement submitted for the record, follows. "Good morning Madam Chairperson and distinguished members of the Committee. It is a pleasure to be here today to discuss the U.S. Coast Guard’s role in securing the chemical facilities on the navigational waterways of the United States. The men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard and the Department of Homeland Security remain committed to improving maritime homeland security each and every day through continued interagency cooperation and assistance from our partners at the local, state and international levels, as well as maritime industry stakeholders.

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a news release stating that it has issued an advance copy of its amendment to the chemical facility anti-terrorism standards regulations. DHS also posted a list of the chemicals of interest. Domestic facilities possessing chemicals of interest at or above the screening threshold quantity (STQ) must submit certain information to DHS so that the agency can determine whether the facility presents a high level of security risk. The official version of the amendment and the list of chemicals of interest will be published in the Federal Register in the near future. While this rulemaking does not directly affect maritime interests, it provides insight into the approach being taken by DHS regarding anti-terrorism issues. [Source: HK Law]

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking seeking comment on draft regulations that would establish chemical facility anti-terrorism standards and on several practical and policy issues integral to the development of a chemical facility security program. Comments on the proposal should be submitted by February 7, 2007. Various facilities, including those currently regulated by the US Coast Guard under the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 (MTSA), would be exempt from the application of the proposed requirements. Source: HK Law