ENCH 4300 – Chemical System Design

Spring 2021
Assignment 2
Due Date: Thursday March 25th, 2020

Write up a report analyzing one of the following case studies from an environmental and
human health perspective. For example, does this process fall under any of the environmental
regulations discussed in class (e.g., CAA, CWA, RCRA)? If CAA, is it a major or a minor source?
What, if any, technology should have been implemented to control emissions/discharges? If
RCRA, what was its generator status? Which, if any, of these laws/guidelines did each company
in question fail to follow that led to chemical release? How was the disaster dealt with, and
how is the location used now? This report should include the following sections: introduction,
process overview, environmental assessment, chemical release summary, discussion, and
conclusions/recommendations. See instructor with any questions.

Suggested Outline and Writing Prompts

I. Introduction
Where was the facility located? What compan(ies) were involved? What chemical(s) or
product(s) were manufactured at the site?
II. Environmental Assessment
Type(s) of waste discharged and/or stored? Rules/regulations the facility fell under?
III. Chemical Release Summary
Regulation/permit violations? Environmental consequences? Describe the cleanup required,
and the related cost. How is the location used now?
IV. Discussion
How could this have been prevented? Ethics of who was held responsible versus who was to
blame. Are the rules/regulations sufficient as is?
V. Conclusions/Recommendations
Describe the key takeaways you learned from this assignment. How has the industry changed
since this incident? What issues still need to be addressed?
Case Studies:
 Allied Paper
In the early 1900s, this area along the Kalamazoo River had the largest concentration of paper
mills in the world. WWastewater from former paper mill operations, including operations at
the Plainwell Paper Mill property, and the later dismantling of dams on the Kalamazoo River
resulted in the contamination of area soils and river sediments with polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCBs), which can pose a threat to human health and the environment.
 American Cyanamid
For more than nine decades, various companies used facilities at the 575-acre site in
Bridgewater Township and the Borough of Bound Brook, Somerset County, New Jersey, to
manufacture a range of chemical products, including rubber-based chemicals, dyes, pigments,
petroleum-based products and pharmaceuticals. Industrial operations began at the site in 1915
when Calco Chemical Company manufactured chemicals and dyes. In 1929, American
Cyanamid Company purchased the facility and made a range of industrial and pharmaceutical
chemicals at the site through World War II and into the second half of the 20th century.
Historical chemical manufacturing and waste disposal practices led to contamination of site
soil, sediment, and groundwater.
 Diamond Alkali
The Site includes the location of a former pesticide manufacturing plant and the surrounding
properties at 80 and 120 Lister Avenue, a 17-mile tidal stretch of the Lower Passaic River and
Newark Bay. Over the years, dioxin, pesticides and other hazardous substances contaminated
all three portions of the Site. From 1951 through 1969, Diamond Alkali Company manufactured
pesticides at the land part of the Site. Manufacturing continued under subsequent owners until
1983.
 Newport Pigment Plant (DuPont)
In 1902, Krebs Pigment & Color Corporation began making a paint pigment called lithopone at
the site. DuPont purchased the property in 1929 and continued lithopone production until
1952, when demand for lithopone declined. In addition to lithopone, DuPont manufactured
other organic and inorganic paint pigments, as well as other products, including chromium
dioxide. Chromium dioxide production expanded in the 1970s with construction of the Holly
Run Plant. Ciba-Geigy Corporation (later Ciba Specialty Chemicals Company) purchased the
main pigment manufacturing facility in 1984. DuPont continued to operate the Holly Run Plant,
manufacturing chromium dioxide magnetic recording tape until 2000. BASF Corporation
purchased the pigment manufacturing facility in 2009. It continues to operate the facility
today. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, DuPont and DNREC’s analysis of ground water
samples from on-site monitoring wells found elevated concentrations of heavy metals and
volatile organic compounds.
 Landia Chemical Co.
The site includes two industrial properties in Lakeland, Florida. The Landia Chemical Company
and Florida Favorite Fertilizer (FFF) used the site for pesticide and fertilizer blending operations
for many years beginning in the 1930s. These operations, as well as storage of various
chemicals on site, led to contaminated soil, groundwater and sediments.
 Reilly Tar & Chemical Corp.
Beginning in 1921, the Republic Creosote Company used the southern part of the site to distill
coal tar and treat wood. Wood treating operations ended in 1972. In 1941, several chemical
plants began operating on the northern part of the site. In the 1950s, Reilly Tar & Chemical
Corporation (Reilly) started producing specialty chemicals on the northern part of the site.
Reilly eventually expanded its operations to include parts of the Maywood property. Site
operations contaminated soil and ground water with volatile organic contaminants (VOCs),
semi-VOCs, and carcinogenic polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (CPAHs).
 Case Study

• American Cyanamid

For more than nine decades, various companies used facilities at the 575-acre site in
Bridgewater Township and the Borough of Bound Brook, Somerset County, New Jersey, to
manufacture a range of chemical products, including rubber-based chemicals, dyes, pigments,
petroleum-based products and pharmaceuticals. Industrial operations began at the site in 1915
when Calco Chemical Company manufactured chemicals and dyes. In 1929, American
Cyanamid Company purchased the facility and made a range of industrial and pharmaceutical
chemicals at the site through World War II and into the second half of the 20th century.
Historical chemical manufacturing and waste disposal practices led to contamination of site
soil, sediment, and groundwater.

Introduction