LA Bucket Brigade : Refinery Accident Database

About the Database

Motiva Enterprises (1406), Norco

Releases of Sanitary Sewage

LDEQ Accident Number Accident Date	Point Source(s)	Notes	Amount of Release
81353 2005-08-16	Sanitary sewer lift station Wastewater treatment facility, LPDES Outfall 06	Cause: A portion of the treatment process for the released material was bypassed -- traced to maintenance work performed on 08/11/05 to install a conduit seal on the lift station; the lift station was incorrectly re-wired after the installation, which disabled the automatic start function of the lift station pump. Followup: No Notes: Control switch on sanitary lift station pump was switched from automatic to manual position, starting the pump and stopping overflow. A vacuum truck was used to removed the liquid from the lift station and prevent additional overflow. While a portion of the process was bypassed, Motiva noted that the material did receive treatment prior to discharg	50.0 gallons
81353 2005-08-16	Sanitary sewer lift station Wastewater treatment facility, LPDES Outfall 06	Cause: A portion of the treatment process for the released material was bypassed -- traced to maintenance work performed on 08/11/05 to install a conduit seal on the lift station; the lift station was incorrectly re-wired after the installation, which disabled the automatic start function of the lift station pump. Followup: No Notes: Control switch on sanitary lift station pump was switched from automatic to manual position, starting the pump and stopping overflow. A vacuum truck was used to removed the liquid from the lift station and prevent additional overflow. While a portion of the process was bypassed, Motiva noted that the material did receive treatment prior to discharg
79889 2005-06-16	Sanitary sewer line serving the Central Refining Control Room	Cause: Sanitary sewer line serving the Central Refining Control Room became plugged, resulting in overflow of sewer clean-out hub. This sewage flowed into nearby stormwater drain. The sanitary sewage was routed to the refinery effluent treatment system and subsequently discharged through LPDES Outfall per permit. Followup: No Notes: Maintenance personnel were immediately notified. The line was unplugged and flow returned to normal. Motiva notes that although a portion of the treatment system was bypassed, the material did receive treatment prior to discharge.
77243 2005-02-27	Alkylation Unit Control Room Sanitary Sewer Discharge Line	Cause: Sanitary Sewage discharge line serving the Alkylation Unit Control Room became plugged, causing water to overflow to effluent system. Followup: Yes Notes: Sewage was diverted from normal treatment to the refinery wastewater treatment system due to a clogged pipe. The clogged pipe was repaired within 24 hours and flow was returned to normal. Motiva noted that even though a portion of the treatment system was bypassed, the material did receive some treatment prior to discharge.
120618 2010-01-08	Berth 4 [sewer sump]; Outfall 002	Cause: COLD WEATHER. Sewer sump on Berth 4 overflowed, spilled approximately 5 gal of sewage/potable water into the Mississippi through LPDES Outfall 002 due to freezing conditions that froze discharge pipe downstream. Followup: No Notes: BRQ. Refinery letter states that "final calculations confirm that no reportable quantities were exceeded." Piping not damaged, blockage thawed naturally.