A subsidiary of CF Industries has been fined $90,000 plus a $22,500 victim surcharge fee for an ammonia leak in Lambton County.
Terra International, a producer of urea and ammonia products in St. Clair Township, faced one charge of violating the Environmental Protection Act in connection with an ammonia gas release that took place in August 2016.
The incident was first reported to authorities on August 11, 2016, but it’s not clear when the leak began.
According to the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, the company reported an ammonia gas release to their Spills Action Centre.
More than 8.5 tonnes of liquid ammonia was released and contained, resulting in a release of 997 kg of ammonia gas into the air over a two-hour period.
When Terra International, which is owned by CF Industries, searched for the source, it found a fault in an ammonia pump and that led to the failure of a vent pipe that contained liquid ammonia.
