GNIC resumes wharf operations after chemical spill clean-up

The GNIC Wharf yesterday afternoon
The GNIC Wharf yesterday afternoon

Operations at the Guyana National Industrial Company Incorporated (GNIC) wharf at Lombard Street, Georgetown, resumed on Thursday after a one-day suspension following a chemical spill.

Ramgobin Ramkissoon, head of the GNIC’s Special Projects Unit, told Stabroek News that the operations resumed on Thursday after they received the relevant clearance from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

On Wednesday morning, there was spillage of the non-toxic chemical “Rheduce” in and around the GNIC compound. This resulted in the EPA, Civil Defence Commission (CDC), Guyana Fire Service (GFS) and Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) responding to conduct a risk assessment.

When Stabroek News visited the site, a yellow substance were seen in the drains surrounding the wharf and on the streets.

A statement issued by GNIC on Wednesday said the container with the chemical, Rheduce, was “ruptured” during the handling of cargo at the GNIC Terminal. “The chemical, which is non-hazardous, non-toxic and harmless to human and marine life, was stored in a designated area. It leaked but accumulated in a small area around the said container. The response action to mop up the substance was awaited. However the rain came and caused a spread of the substance,” it explained.

The chemical was kept in a 40-tonne container tank.

EPA Senior Environmental Officer Tashana Redman was reported by the Department of Public Information (DPI) as saying that approximately 1,000 litres of the chemical leaked. Ramkissoon told Stabroek News that the spill occurred sometime between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning and most workers only learnt of it when they arrived at work on Wednesday.

He further noted that because of the rainfall, the substance flowed from the storage area to the front of the compound, resulting in some persons raising concerns.

“It was raining through the night and the storage area is higher than the front lands, so the water flowed down and the chemical flowed with it and got into the drains and to the front of the compound,” he explained, while noting that the chemical was not hazardous or toxic to humans or the environment.

Asked to comment on the delay in notifying the EPA about the spill, he said that it occurred during Tuesday night into Wednesday morning and at that time they could not reach anyone at the EPA. With that, he said the EPA was informed after workers were alerted to the situation on Wednesday morning.

On Wednesday the EPA spearheaded the cleanup exercise and private company Tiger Tanks, which has been set up to work in the oil and gas sector, took on the job. Stabroek News understands that the procuring entity, Schlumberger, stood the cost for the cleanup.

This newspaper was told that truckloads of white sand were spread over the chemical to absorb it and then removed several hours later. In the case for removing the chemical from the drains, the company utilise a suction pipe to retrieve the chemical.

According to an entry on the Schlumberger website, Rheduce is a dispersant that used as a thinner and conditioner to reduce overall viscosity and gel strengths through the action of macromolecules that disperse solids in the mud without the need for dilution or changing the synthetic-to-water ratio.