UNION TEXAS EYES ETHYLENE PLANT PROJECT

Union Texas Products Corp. plans a $20 million upgrade of the wastewater treatment system at its jointly owned Geismar, La., ethylene plant. Installation is to begin this summer. When the upgraded wastewater treatment system complete in early 1992, it will enable the Geismar plant to comply with new emissions reduction goals of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, Union Texas said.

June 17, 1991

2 min read

Union Texas Products Corp. plans a $20 million upgrade of the wastewater treatment system at its jointly owned Geismar, La., ethylene plant.

Installation is to begin this summer. When the upgraded wastewater treatment system complete in early 1992, it will enable the Geismar plant to comply with new emissions reduction goals of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, Union Texas said.

The new treatment system will reduce hydrocarbon emissions by 60 tons/year and reduce odors from the plant by using steam to vaporize hydrocarbons in its wastewater. System throughput will be about 350 gal/min.

Oil recovered from treated wastewater can be sold or reused in the ethylene manufacturing process.

The project includes replacing two oxidation ponds with aboveground tanks in which microbes will treat plant wastewater to assure it meets EPA and DEQ discharge criteria.

Union Texas is sending letters and fact sheets explaining the upgrade to residents and other manufacturing facilities within 3 miles of the plant.

A recent $86 million expansion, which included installation of advanced environmental controls, increased the plant's gross production capacity to about 1.2 billion lb/year.

The plant is on the Mississippi River 20 miles southeast of Baton Rouge, La.

Union Texas operates and owns a 42% interest in the Geismar plant, with other interests held by BASF AG 42% and General Electric Co. 16%.