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COLUMBUS — “Emergency crews evacuated Heartland Petroleum after a pressure rupture was reported Monday morning.
According to authorities, crews first received a report of an explosion, but later determined that a piece of equipment had a pressure rupture. Crews were on the scene, located at 4001 E. Fifth Ave., around 5:45 a.m.
Investigators said that an employee was transferring vapors to a storage area when the rupture occurred.
Crews contained the situation by 6:30 a.m. There were no reports of injuries.”
— 10TV News
link to video
 COLUMBUS — “Crews were called to the scene before 7 a.m. When firefighters arrived, the plant’s control room had shut down operations, and the fire did not escape its initial area, Fowler said.
Fifth Avenue was closed at and beyond Yearling and Stelzer roads until midmorning as firefighters allowed the product remaining in one of the refinery’s lines to burn off, Fowler said.
Hazardous-materials crews responded to ensure that no oil escaped the property, Fowler said.
Complaints of ‘rotten egg’ and ‘burned rubber’ odors have plagued the Heartland plant since it opened in 2009. The plant cleans used motor oil so that it can be reused.
Last year, the state tried to shut down the plant after receiving hundreds of complaints, including 200 incidents of state workers saying that chemical leaks had made them sick.”
— Holly Zachariah, Columbus Dispatch
link to article
 COLUMBUS — “East Fifth Avenue was closed at Yearling Road on Saturday morning after a fire broke out at Heartland Petroleum.
Fire crews were called to the refinery just before 7 a.m. in 4000 block of East Fifth Avenue, 10TV News reported.
A representative with the Columbus Division of Fire said a leak in a site gauge ignited.
Investigators said the fire prompted an emergency shutdown at the refinery.
Hazardous materials crews, the environmental protection agency and arson investigators all responded to the scene to investigate.”
— 10 TV
link to article
— NBC4
COLUMBUS— “An East Side refinery with a history of foul odors was once again the subject of neighbors’ complaints today.
Inspectors from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agencytraveled to Heartland Petroleum’s used oil recycling operation, at 4001 E. 5th Ave, after it received four odor complaints, said Erin Strouse, an agency spokeswoman.
Unlike other episodes, Strouse said these odors were released as the refinery started up a new pollution filter, which she described as a ‘continuous steam cleaning system.’ Strouse said the company had sent emails Wednesday to the EPA and its neighbors warning that “some fumes” might escape during startup operations.
Complaints of ‘rotten egg’ and ‘burned rubber’ odors have plagued the plant since it opened in 2009. Heartland cleans used motor oil so that it can be reused. It shut down for about a month in November and December to add odor-reducing pollution filters.”
— Spencer Hunt, The Columbus Dispatch
Read the whole story here: http://www.dispatch.com/content/blogs/science-environment/2012/04/heartland-refinery.html
Company also fined $290,000 after odor complaints
 The Heartland Refinery, located at 4001 E. 5th Ave, shut down for about a month in November and December to add odor-reducing pollution filters. COLUMBUS — “The owners of a Columbus refinery have agreed to pay the state $290,000 in fines stemming from foul odors that plagued the East Side plant.
Heartland Petroleum also agreed to take extra steps to keep pollutants from escaping the refinery during cleaning operations. Those were the major terms of an settlement approved yesterday by Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Harland H. Hale.
The refinery, located at 4001 E. 5th Ave, shut down for about a month in November and December to add odor-reducing pollution filters. The settlement eliminates the need for a trial, which was supposed to begin this week.
The company was sued by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. Complaints of “rotten egg” and ‘burned rubber’ odors have plagued the plant since it opened in 2009. Heartland cleans used motor oil so that it can be reused.
Among those who regularly filed complaints are Designer Shoe Warehouse headquarters employees and Ohio Department of Job and Family Services workers. Both offices are in buildings located across the street.”
— Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch
Read the whole story: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/03/06/Odor-plagued-refinery-settles-lawsuit-with-state.html
 COLUMBUS — “An East Side oil refinery with a history of odor complaints could be shut down for as long as a month while it installs two pollution filters.
This is the second time in the past two months that the Heartland Petroleum plant has shut down to try to contain foul odors that spurred numerous neighbor complaints. The plant at 4001 E. 5th Ave. recycles used motor oil.
The decision partially settles an ongoing air-pollution case that the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency filed against Heartland. Franklin County Environmental Judge Harland H. Hale approved the agreement yesterday afternoon.
‘I suppose it’s fair to ask, ‘Judge, why do you keep holding these hearings, shutting down the plant, starting them up and shutting them down again?’ Hale said.”
— Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch
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COLUMBUS —”Heartland Petroleum will install new equipment at its east Columbus refinery to curb its ongoing air pollution problems.
The action comes days after the Ohio Attorney General’s office filed to temporarily shut down the east Columbus refinery.
Franklin County Environmental Judge Harland Hale’s office told 10TV there will be an EPA meeting with lawyers from both sides Thursday, Nov. 3, in an effort to resolve their issues concerning odor emissions within the refinery.
The Ohio Attorney General’s office filed a temporarily shut down order for Heartland Petroleum on Oct. 28, but the refinery is still open and hopes to stay open if the state believes the property is in compliance with environmental regulations, according to Franklin County Municipal Court Chief Environmental Specialist Bryan Wagner.
There will be a conference call with Judge Hale and attorneys on Nov. 4, to determine what the next step will be in this case.”
— Channel 10 Columbus
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COLUMBUS — “The state is taking steps to temporarily close an East Side refinery again, just 20 days after officials made a similar request.
The Ohio attorney general’s office and the state Environmental Protection Agency filed a request yesterday with Franklin County Environmental Court Judge Harland H. Hale to shut down Heartland Petroleum for its ‘ongoing air-pollution violations.’
‘For the protection of nearby workers and residents and to ensure compliance with Ohio laws and regulations, it is necessary that we seek a temporary shutdown of this facility while these recurring emissions problems are corrected,’ Attorney General Mike DeWine said in a statement.
The plant, at 4001 E. 5th Ave., opened in February 2009 and recycles used motor oil. It continually has received complaints from neighbors for ‘rotten egg’ and ‘burned rubber’ odors.”
— Charlie Boss, Columbus Dispatch
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 COLUMBUS — “An East Side refinery with a history of odor complaints was allowed to reopen yesterday and can continue to operate if it keeps the air clear.
A court order issued late Tuesday by Franklin County Environmental Judge Harland H. Hale allows Heartland Petroleum to resume operations after repairs the company made. Heartland cleans used motor oil so that it can be reused.
The refinery, 4001 E. 5th Ave., voluntarily shut down on Oct. 12 after reporting that emergency vents had malfunctioned.
Hale’s order also cancels a hearing next Thursday that the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency had requested. The state wanted Hale to order a shutdown after four incidents in which pollutants escaped from refinery valves in August and September.
The EPA filed an affidavit with Hale that stated ‘roughly 200 incidents’ were reported by sick Ohio Department of Job and Family Services employees who work across the street from Heartland.”
— Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch
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COLUMBUS — “An East Side refinery has temporarily closed to correct a problematic pressure valve, days after the state filed a court order seeking the plant’s closure over odor problems.
The management of Heartland Petroleum decided on Tuesday to suspend operations of its used-oil refinery at 4001 E. 5th Ave., according to a news release from Rob Schmidt, an attorney who represents the refinery.
But the company says its decision is unrelated to a recent court action sought by the Ohio attorney general and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
Refinery personnel had found a pressure-relief valve on a storage tank was intermittently venting, the release said. The company said, however, that it’s still in compliance with an August 2010 order from the Franklin County Environmental Court concerning its operations.
‘Although the problem that was observed was intermittent and, we believe at this time, did not lead to any significant odor release, Heartland refinery is aware of its obligations under the court’s order, and upon discovery of the problem began the process of shutting the refinery down,’ Schmidt said in his release.”
— Jim Woods, Columbus Dispatch
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 COLUMBUS – “The state is trying again to shut down an East Side refinery with a history of foul-odor complaints, including 200 incidents of state workers saying that the chemical leaks made them sick.
Officials with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office and state Environmental Protection Agency said yesterday that they filed a request with Franklin County Environmental Court Judge Harland H. Hale to shutter Heartland Petroleum’s used oil refinery at 4001 E. 5th Ave.
Hale has scheduled a hearing for Oct. 27.
The plant, which recycles used motor oil, opened in February 2009 and quickly became known for ‘rotten egg’ and ‘burned rubber’ odors that neighbors complained caused nausea, headaches and breathing problems.
…In June, environmental advocates with Ohio Citizen Action, which helped run a cleanup campaign with the refinery’s neighbors, praised Heartland for making improvements.
Rachael Belz, an Ohio Citizen Action program director, now said that a shutdown is warranted.
‘Obviously the problem could not be fixed while the plant was working,’ Belz said. ‘It seems like they’ve had a number of chances.’”
— Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch
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Heartland no stranger to odor complaints
 4001 East Fifth Avenue Columbus, OH COLUMBUS — “The state has asked a Franklin County judge to shut down an East Side oil recycling refinery that’s become notorious amongst its neighbors for foul odors.
The Ohio Attorney General’s Office filed a request with the county’s environmental court asking Judge Harland H. Hale to order a temporary shutdown at the Heartland Petroleum Refinery until the business makes the necessary fixes needed to cut the foul odors.
The request states that the refinery released “air emissions and/or odor emissions from its emergency valves on four different days from Aug. 17 through Sept. 13.
This isn’t the first time that the state has requested a shutdown of the refinery, which opened for business in February 2009. The refinery cleans and processes used motor oil for reuse.
On Aug. 31, 2010, Hale told company officials he was giving them one last chance to fix things before ordering it closed. A hearing for the state’s request has not yet been set.”
— Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch
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 Heartland Petroleum COLUMBUS — “An East Side oil refinery apparently is making changes to appease area residents and businesses, an environmental group is reporting.
Heartland Petroleum officials recently met with Ohio Citizen Action, which had sent more than 6,800 letters to the company complaining about odors at the refinery, where motor oil is recycled.
‘They are really focusing on resolving the problems instead of just covering them up,’ said Rachael Belz of Citizen Action.
The changes might appease neighbors, but Heartland still has to make its case to Franklin County Environmental Judge Harland H. Hale. In August, Hale ordered Heartland’s owners to hire a consultant to make improvements at the plant at 4001 E. 5th Ave.”
— Molly Gray, Columbus Dispatch
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COLUMBUS — “Heartland Petroleum, the trouble-plagued oil re-refinery on East 5th Avenue in Columbus, is making improvements. Warren Distribution, an Omaha-based aftermarket automotive parts manufacturer and supplier, bought Heartland in July 2010. The next month, the Franklin County Municipal Court ordered Heartland Petroleum to hire a third party consultant to audit the facility and make recommendations. This review was completed on March 11, 2011 and submitted to the state.
After reading the review, Ohio Citizen Action met with management at Heartland to discuss what current changes are underway —
- New staffing to bring in more experience
- Increased operations staffing for all shifts-bringing continuity to training and expertise
- refinery plant manager with 25 years experience joined staff in late December and the laboratory manager was promoted to operations supervisor to bring increased quality control to the process
- New vent and vent lines on three vessels
- Continued work on standard operating procedures
- Chemical process to clean return lines to get rid of sludge and reduce odors
- Increased preventative maintenance
Ohio Citizen Action members and friends sent 6,870 letters, messages, and children’s illustrations to management at Heartland, urging them to make the necessary improvements to reduce pollution and odors coming from the plant and to increase worker safety.
— Kate Russell, Columbus Organizer, Ohio Citizen Action
COLUMBUS — “The Heartland facility has experienced equipment failures and other events, which industry terms ‘near-miss’ incidents. Such incidents are serious, in our view, and suggest opportunity for improvement in facility design, equipment cleaning practices, and management of change (MOC) processes. Heartland personnel must be suitably trained and prepared to respond safely, in order to minimize the impact to the plant, the environment, and the surrounding community.
Since operations commenced in early 2009, plant reliability issues have caused several emergency shutdowns and emissions events. Unsuitable baghouse components were a cause of one event, and this situation has been rectified. However, a primary remaining concern is the frequency of shutdowns caused by the unreliable electrical power to the plant. Other aspects that may contribute to longer term unreliability are management policies.”
— Baker and O’Brien, Inc. and HDR Engineering, prepared in compliance with the Order of the Franklin County Municipal Court, Environmental Division, Case Number 2010 EVH 060308
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