Mile 167.0 - RBD Mosaic Faustina and American Styrenics

167 RBD Mosaic Faustina and American Styrenics

The Mosaic Company’s Faustina plant sits on a 2,850-acre site and was owned by Gulf Oil Corp. between 1967 and 1972, the Williams Co. between 1972 and 1986, Freeport-McMoran Corp. from 1986 to 1983, IMC Global from 1993 to 2004, and was bought by Mosaic on Oct. 22, 2004. The Mosaic Company’s Faustina plant produces ammonia and receives phosphoric acid from Mosaic’s Uncle Sam plant to make diammonium phosphate (DAP), monoammonium phosphate (MAP), and Mosaic MicroEssentials® products. Diammonium phosphate (DAP) is a dark grey granular material; if you see a dark grey granular material in barges being loaded onto ships around here, it’s probably DAP. In 2006 an explosion at Mosaic Faustina rattled houses several blocks away but no one was injured. The facility has more than 1,400 acres of waste pits and ponds behind it. The American Styrenics plant is on the downriver side of Mosaic. They produce styrene monomer from benzene and ethylene for the production of polystyrene, styrene-butadiene copolymers, and other plastics. Toxic Releases (TRI) for 2013 in pounds: Mosaic Faustina: Air: 1,649,888; Water: 32,543 and American Styrenics: Air: 120,550; Water: 1,946. (Paul Orr)