{"id":10546,"date":"2021-12-07T08:05:44","date_gmt":"2021-12-07T08:05:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/whatliesbeneathrattlechainlagoon.org.uk\/?p=10546"},"modified":"2021-12-06T17:06:58","modified_gmt":"2021-12-06T17:06:58","slug":"rhodiasolvays-silver-bow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/whatliesbeneathrattlechainlagoon.org.uk\/?p=10546","title":{"rendered":"Rhodia\/Solvay’s Silver Bow"},"content":{"rendered":"
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#MASKINGMORETHANCHEMISTRY<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

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There is one thing that is certain with major chemical industrial polluters, they not only pollute the environment and despoil people’s lives when in business, but when their plants and associated waste dumps are left behind, the toxic legacy is left with the communities who continue to suffer the blight.<\/p>\n

In the case of Albright and Wilson, their former sites have all gone the same way after having been mothballed- about as much use and relevance as the organisation “Scientists for EU” you might say\u00a0 \ud83d\ude06 \ud83d\ude06 \ud83d\ude06 \ud83d\ude06 \u00a0. Some of these were taken on by the French company Rhodia, (without much change) and subsequently Solvay. Whitehaven<\/a>, Portishead<\/a> and Avonmouth have all gone, but other sites used in the production of White phosphorus abroad give some interesting clues as to what such plants emitted, as well as more interestingly to me, what lies beneath rattlechain lagoon!<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The disastrous Long Harbour venture where Albright and Wilson blighted that community with pollution killing thousands of fish has been documented HERE<\/a>. Another lesser known P4 production site which Rhodia and then Solvay took on and acquired into decommissioning is located in the state of Montana. It is known as the Silver Bow<\/span> <\/strong>complex. This was no Christmas present gift wrapped type of affair however.<\/p>\n

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This site occupying approximately 1.25 square miles was originally a French owned\u00a0“Rh\u00f6ne-Poul\u00e8nc”<\/a> company site, of which the chemicals division was spun off into “Rhodia”<\/strong> in 1997 , who of course would take over Albright and Wilson<\/strong> just a couple of years later, only to be swallowed up by Solvay<\/strong> in 2011.<\/p>\n

According to a formal EPA document,<\/p>\n

“The Facility was constructed in the early 1950s to produce elemental phosphorus. The<\/span><\/em>
\ncrude phosphorus stored in the clarifier was a by-product of elemental phosphorus<\/span><\/em>
\nproduction. During the operating life of the Facility, much of the crude phosphorus by-product collected in the clarifier was further processed on-site to recover any remaining<\/span><\/em>
\nelemental phosphorus. In 1997, processing was terminated at the Facility and the crude<\/span><\/em>
\nphosphorus sludge remaining in the clarifier, and other locations around the Facility, could no longer be processed on-site.”<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Another large document<\/p>\n

TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR WHITE PHOSPHORUS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Prepared by: Sciences International, Inc. Under Subcontract to: Research Triangle Institute Under Contract No. 205-93-0606 Prepared for: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Public Health Service Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry September 1997<\/strong><\/p>\n

gives some interesting perspective about WP production sites in the US at the close of the millennium.<\/p>\n

\u201c4.1 PRODUCTION <\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The domestic production capacity of elemental phosphorus in 1992 was 294,000 tons (SRI 1992). The demand for elemental phosphorus is expected to decrease (l-2%) during this decade (CMR 1991). The three companies that presently manufacture elemental phosphorus in the United States for sale or distribution are FMC Corp., Pocatello, Idaho; Monsanto Co., Soda Springs, Idaho; and Rhone-Poulenc Inc., Silver Bow, Montana (SRI 1995).\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The operation of this site appears to have been a major blot on the landscape, aren’t they all, with over a million pounds of P4 stated to be on site.<\/p>\n

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Even worse, a reported 4,035 pounds of this chemical were apparently being emitted to air from this plant, source\u00a0 Toxics Release Inventory (TR193 1995).<\/p>\n

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Another EPA report dated 2003 concerning the FMC Pocatello plant mentions the Silver Bow site several times in looking at other White phosphorus producing sites and historic ponds contaminated with this chemical in relation to potential treatments.<\/p>\n

epa542r03013<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n