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Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Fines Hospital, Idled Ammonia Plant

Posted on: Friday, 16 September 2005, 21:00 CDT

Sep. 15--The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality this week assessed fines against Jefferson County, a local hospital and an idled ammonia plant.

The commission, whose voting members approved the penalties Wednesday, fined Jefferson County $2,500 for failure to submit certification of an underground petroleum storage tank. The commission investigated the situation in mid-November and the county took action the next day, a commission spokeswoman said.

Tom Rugg, legal adviser to the Jefferson County Commissioners Court, said he found the situation somewhat surprising in that the county obviously operates fuel pumps for its vehicle fleet. Therefore, the state just as obviously should have been aware the county had an underground storage tank, he said.

Regardless, Rugg said the county is aware of the legal requirement to report the existence of such a tank to the state.

The state commission also fined Memorial Hermann Baptist Beaumont Hospital $750 for its failure to submit its certification of an underground storage tank.

Julia Hyett, the hospital's compliance officer, said in a prepared statement that in October 2004, the hospital learned from one of its contractors that a new underground storage tank had not been registered.

The hospital then submitted the appropriate documentation.

The remaining fine of $4,600 was assessed against BMC Holdings, the company that operated the Beaumont Methanol plant at 5470 N. Twin City Highway. An ammonia leak during an equipment change in July 2004 was not reported until August 2004, and such emission reports are required within 24 hours.

Beaumont Methanol idled the plant in December 2004 because of high natural gas prices and availability of its product elsewhere to its primary client.

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Copyright (c) 2005, The Beaumont Enterprise, Texas

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Source: The Beaumont Enterprise

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