Debbie Stilphen, the public information officer with the Santa Rosa County Health Department, does not anticipate issuing any health alerts following a small leakage of Trimethylamine at the Taminco facility in Pace this week.
According to Maranda Demuth, a corporate communications representative with Eastman Chemical Company, which recently acquired Taminco, said the incident occurred on Sunday, when officials discovered a small crack on a tank nozzle at the Pace facility. Immediately after the discovery, the tank was taken off line and the leak was stopped.
The leak resulted in small amount of Trimethylamine being released. Stilphen said 65 pounds of the substance leaked. Since the amount of this chemical was below 100 pounds, the incident was not reported to the Environmental Protection Agency.
“If it’s 100 pounds or more it has to be reported for this chemical,” Stilphen said.
“Methylamine has a potent 'fishy' odor and a low odor threshold,” Demuth said. “This means that a very small leak can result in odors that may be detected outside the Pace facility’s boundary.”
Although the odor from Methylamine was unpleasant to residents, Demuth said it is not expected to pose any harm to human health or to the environment based on the limits established by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, for employee safety.
Stilphen suggests residents who exhibit sensitivity to the odor, like respiratory, skin or eye irritation, should contact their health care provider. Other than media-related inquiries, Stilphen said she was unaware of any health-related calls regarding the leakage incident.
Demuth said Taminco immediately notified the National Response Center and State Watch Office to report the incident. Taminco is also working with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to address any concerns.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Officials: no health alerts expected to be issued regarding chemical leakage at Taminco facility