No agency's checking on Imperial Sugar's rebuild in Port Wentworth, Ga.

Oct 04, 2009 (Savannah Morning News - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- IPSU | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- Imperial Sugar Co. says the Port Wentworth sugar refinery it is rebuilding reflects state-of-the art technology.

New structures are replacing those destroyed in the Feb. 7, 2008, explosions and fires that killed 14 people and injured many more.

"We'll have one of the most modern sugar packaging facilities anywhere in the country," President and CEO John Sheptor has said. "It certainly will be the safest."

But at least for now, the public must take the company's word on such assurances.

No agency is making sure the way the plant is rebuilt minimizes combustible sugar dust buildups -- which investigators say fueled the inferno.

That alarms U.S. Rep. John Barrow, who says legislation he is co-sponsoring might correct the problem.

"While I appreciate Imperial Sugar's promise to build the safest plants in the country," the Savannah Democrat said, "that's just not good enough.

"We're dealing with a known explosive, and we need to make sure that the plant is built to the highest safety standards possible."

Imperial says it will follow the recommendations of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, which recently released its final report on the disaster.

Poor equipment design contributed to the disaster and improvements are needed at the new plant, the board concluded.

It called on Imperial to apply design standards the National Fire Protection Association says minimize combustible dust risks.

Imperial has retained consultants it calls "the world's leading experts" on combustible dust fire prevention.

Ralph Clements, vice president of manufacturing and engineering, told the board the rebuilt plant will be the "safest ... of its kind in the entire country."

In the process, Clements said, Imperial will "meet or exceed" the board's recommendations.

Board not following up

But Chemical Safety Board Chairman John Bresland said his organization -- which is advisory, not regulatory -- won't follow up to make sure its advice is followed.

"That is outside our agency's authority," Bresland said.

He said such follow-up is the job of the state or the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

But neither the state nor OSHA plans to inspect the refinery project.

The state delegated authority for fire safety inspections of buildings such as the refinery to Chatham County in 1998.

The county sought the transfer because it was taking too long for the state to inspect local commercial projects, said County Attorney Jon Hart.

Under state law, the state bears no legal responsibility "for any fire or hazard ... by reason of inspection or other action taken or not taken."

Hart said the county doesn't conduct fire safety inspections at industrial facilities, in part because it lacks the staff and expertise.

But county building inspectors have scrutinized foundations, silo walls, steel frames, wiring and other features of the reconstruction at Port Wentworth.

A major focus of those inspections, said Grigori Anderson, director of building safety and regulatory services, is "structural integrity."

But Anderson said the county doesn't concern itself with plant design features related to sugar manufacturing.

The company is relying on its own experts to inspect those features and other aspects of the project involving complex technology, Anderson said.

"We don't have the expertise," he said.

Following the disaster, OSHA sought $8.8 million in fines against Imperial for alleged safety violations at Port Wentworth and at the company's plant in Gramercy, La. Imperial is appealing.

OSHA spokesman Michael Wald said the agency inspects facilities only for compliance with rules to protect workers. Deaths, multiple injuries, complaints or implementation of OSHA safety enforcement priorities could trigger an inspection, Wald said.

"We're not national building inspectors," Wald said. "We're not going to make a judgment concerning the appropriateness of the engineering or other features of a project."

He said any OSHA construction site inspection would be limited to issues affecting the safety and health of the construction workers.

"Imperial Sugar may be doing their best," Barrow said, "but they're operating in the same regulatory limbo as they were when this tragedy occurred.

"OSHA doesn't have any say on how a company should build a facility, just on how the building should perform."

Barrow said the bill he and Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., are cosponsoring would require OSHA to adopt dust standards. He and Miller reintroduced it this year after it passed in the House last year but stalled in the Senate.

They shelved the legislation when OSHA began working on rules this spring. But they recently renewed their push, saying it appears it will take OSHA years to finish the job.

Under the bill, OSHA would have to issue interim standards within 90 days after the measure became law. They would take effect 30 days later.

Rep. Jack Kingston, a Savannah Republican, supports the bill. But Georgia's U.S. senators -- Republicans Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson -- oppose it.

Although much of the work on the new refinery is done or near completion, that doesn't necessarily exempt it from new rules, Barrow said.

Such regulations could require existing facilities that don't meet combustible dust safety criteria to be retrofitted, he said.

The company has said it would welcome new, stronger OSHA combustible dust rules.

State Rep. Bob Bryant, D-Garden City, said he also is concerned design-related reconstruction issues have fallen through the regulatory cracks.

"I can understand that the county may not be able to deal with it," said ryant, whose district includes the plant, "but the expertise exists at the federal level, and I think the federal government should deal with it."

Bryant, an early supporter of stronger OSHA standards, said he plans to discuss the issue with Barrow and Kingston.

Mark Tate, a lawyer for people suing Imperial, cited key findings of the safety board's report.

The board, Tate noted, found company officials long knew about the dangers of sugar dust but failed to eliminate them. Imperial has not contested that conclusion.

"I think it's a prescription for disaster to let a company that has a record of ignoring worker safety rebuild without oversight," he said.

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