Emergency Permit for Blue Diamond Growers to Treat Spent Aluminum and Magnesium Phosphide

Emergency Permit for Blue Diamond Growers to Treat Spent Aluminum and Magnesium Phosphide

BDG fumigates its nut products with pesticides containing the active ingredients aluminum phosphide and magnesium phosphide. The fumigation is conducted in enclosed structures such as warehouses, storage bins and silo; these structures are tightly sealed during the fumigation. When the fumigation is complete, the spent pesticide residues are removed from the warehouse, bin or silo. DTSC determined that, for public safety reasons and to minimize exposure of the BDG employees and the public to the hazards posed by the partially-spent waste aluminum and magnesium phosphide pesticide residues, it is essential that BDG be able to, on an ongoing basis, immediately place these hazardous wastes into the deactivation treatment process. DTSC is issuing this emergency permit as interim authorization to store and treat these wastes, while a permanent regulatory or statutory means of authorization is identified. Because of the nature of the partially-spent waste residual, it cannot be shipped to another facility for treatment. The partially-spent residuals continually produce phosphine gas. This gas must be allowed to escape, or the gas pressure may build up to dangerous levels. The MSDS for Phostoxin, one of the widely-used of such products, state: "The phosphine [gas], if it is allowed to concentrate in a confined area, may be toxic and/or flammable." This characteristic makes the waste residuals unsafe to containerize for offsite shipment. BDG is in the process of converting the Sacramento facility fumigation process from the tablet-form to the pesticide to a gas-dispenser system. When conversion is completed, the Sacramento facility will no longer be using aluminum phosphide. The fumigant will VaporPhos, which is phosphine gas; there will be no residual materials to deactivate. As of Dec 2008, construction of the gas system is almost completed, and most of the product (nut) storage units are already being fumigated with VaporPhos. Only a small part of the fumigation is currently being done with the metallic phosphides. BDG expects that the full conversion will be completed and functioning well within the 45-day effective period of this emergency permit. BDG must notify DTSC and local regulatory agencies when the gas-dispenser system is completed, no more phosphide residuals will be treated, and the current treatment containers and secondary containment impound have been cleaned of all residues. This notification must occur before the last effective date of this emergency permit, January 26, 2006.

Sacramento