Release from L Furnace also is investigated

by Randy Leonard

The owner of the Sparrows Point steel mill is in negotiations over air violations, and an investigation into a Sept. 29 incident involving the L Blast Furnace is ongoing, according to a Severstal spokeswoman and the Maryland Department of the Environment.
    The Michigan-based subsidiary of the Russian steel giant failed to control emission of volatile organic compounds, air toxins and particulate matter at Sparrows Point, according to a Sept. 24 letter to the company from the MDE.
   

Those violations occurred at the cold mill, basic oxygen furnace and sinter plant and were presented to the MDE in quarterly reports, according to the letter and Severstal spokeswoman Bette Kovach.
    In the letter, the MDE mentioned possible fines and offered Severstal the opportunity to meet with state environmental officials.
    “We have met with the company,” MDE spokes-man Jay Apperson said Monday, but he would not elaborate on the discussions.
    A Sept. 29 incident involving a three-minute pressure release resulted in 200-foot-high flames  ignited brush and four trash bins, according to information from the company and the Baltimore County Fire Department.
    The original statement by the company indicated a relief valve had opened. Subsequent investigation led the company to uncover more information, Kovach said. Multiple valves had opened, Severstal later reported.
    Such pressure relief occurrences are rare and usually last 30 seconds or less, according to Severstal’s October newsletter. The incident is still being investigated, Apperson said.