The New South Wales State Government demanded Orica shut down its plant near Newcastle after a serious ammonia spill last month. Now, according to The Australian, 20,000 litres of ammonium nitrate solution overflowed from a tank, forcing Kooragang Island to close again.
A failed computer card control system is said to have caused the leak, which meant the plant didn?t shut down before the overflow occurred.
The Sydney Morning Herald reports that while the section of the site that produces nitric acid was reopened, the ammonia plant, responsible for a release of hexavalent chromium in August, remained closed, as it has been for over 20 weeks.
The closure could perpetuate shortages of ammonium nitrate, affecting supplies of explosives in quarries and mines, particularly in the Hunter Valley. Orica provides explosives to 80 per cent of mines and quarries in NSW, as well as many other operators across Australia and abroad.
Orica, however, is adamant the plant reopening will continue apace.
?Now that the cause of this recent incident is clear, I am satisfied that we can recommence the re-start of the nitric acid and ammonium nitrate plants,? said Orica site manager Sean Winstone. ?All of the critical computer systems involved in the re-start of those plants have back-up systems. In addition, there are independent trip systems in place to safely shut the plant down if any issues occur during start-up.?
The spill ? the fourth in the facility ? was described by the company as ?weak,? and is said to be of no hazard to locals? health by the EPA and NSW Health.
?Orica is committed to the safe operation of our Kooragang Island plant and to being a responsible corporate neighbour in the Newcastle community,? said the company in a statement. ?Orica has put in place a team of experts to manage and oversee the start-up of the nitric acid and ammonium nitrate plants, with technical experts supervising the process. Orica is contacting key stakeholders to advise them of the EPA’s approval to re-start the nitric acid and ammonium nitrate plants, and has put in place a program of communication activities to advise the community of the progress of start-up activities.?
The acting chief executive of the NSW Minerals Council, Sue-Ern Tan, told the SMH open-cut mines had been affected.
?Supplies were low and not readily available from other sources,” she said. ”Some companies sought to source small quantities of explosives from as far away as Western Australia and Indonesia.”
Sources: The Australian, Sydney Morning Herald, Orica