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Author	Topic: Concerns spike after black piles identified as petroleum coke	Post a Reply Back to Topics

NHLiveFree Champion Author New Hampshire Posts:11,095 Points:1,623,180 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:07:44 AM Ignore NHLiveFree Report Abuse Petroleum coke, which is being stored in a massive black pile on the shores of the Detroit River, was described Wednesday as one of the world’s nastiest fuel products. “It’s the dirtiest of dirty fuels,” said Lorne Stockman, research director at Oil Change International, a Washington-based global oil industry watchdog and advocacy group. “You should be concerned if they are not storing it well or properly. I would kick up a fuss. I wouldn’t want (petroleum) coke dust blowing around my home.” The Star has learned more about the mysterious black piles on the U.S. side of the river just east of the Ambassador Bridge. The petroleum coke — or ‘petcoke’ as it’s called — recently started to be produced in much greater amounts at the nearby Marathon Oil refinery in Detroit. The refinery, Visit The Windsor Star for full article

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Petroleum coke, which is being stored in a massive black pile on the shores of the Detroit River, was described Wednesday as one of the world’s nastiest fuel products.

“It’s the dirtiest of dirty fuels,” said Lorne Stockman, research director at Oil Change International, a Washington-based global oil industry watchdog and advocacy group.

“You should be concerned if they are not storing it well or properly. I would kick up a fuss. I wouldn’t want (petroleum) coke dust blowing around my home.”

The Star has learned more about the mysterious black piles on the U.S. side of the river just east of the Ambassador Bridge.

The petroleum coke — or ‘petcoke’ as it’s called — recently started to be produced in much greater amounts at the nearby Marathon Oil refinery in Detroit.

The refinery,
Visit The Windsor Star for full article

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lesndave Champion Author Texas Posts:3,042 Points:702,130 Joined:May 2011	Message Posted: Mar 8, 2013 12:15:49 AM Ignore lesndave Report Abuse Repost
LetemEatCake Champion Author Oklahoma City Posts:5,596 Points:1,206,355 Joined:Mar 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 10:46:32 PM Ignore LetemEatCake Report Abuse This is good? A little wind, a little snow, a little rain and the Detroit River becomes gumbo composed of Petcoke. What a joy! Another waterway fouled by Coal! Unfortunately, I was in Cleveland during the late 40's and early 50's when coal dust was part of my Oxygen intake. Lucky I don't have lung cancer. Never again! Makes sense to me NOT! [Edited by: LetemEatCake at 3/7/2013 10:51:19 PM EST]
teafortwo Champion Author Washington Posts:22,112 Points:1,385,965 Joined:Feb 2009	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 6:38:06 PM Ignore teafortwo Report Abuse There are none so blind as those who will not see ....
PDQBlues Champion Author San Diego Posts:7,079 Points:1,449,300 Joined:Jan 2009	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 4:32:54 PM Ignore PDQBlues Report Abuse Gee, people get concern when they learn that toxic materials are being piled in their area and the winds blow it into their neighborhoods. Imagine that.
DanMtz Champion Author Oakland Posts:3,355 Points:1,243,325 Joined:Oct 2009	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 3:51:36 PM Ignore DanMtz Report Abuse Good stuff, full of heavy metals and easily breathed deep into the lungs.
MadFueler All-Star Author Winston-Salem Posts:928 Points:173,485 Joined:Sep 2012	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:00:53 PM Ignore MadFueler Report Abuse "... dirtier because of higher carbon emissions..." Shows an obvious bias. I would also question this because petcoke is a hydrocarbon and coal is just carbon. The sulfur can be scrubbed as it burns. This leaves the dust and heavy metals as legitimate concerns, but those can be ironed out. Better to burn this for energy than to waste it.
BurtB Champion Author Los Angeles Posts:5,172 Points:1,367,065 Joined:Jun 2006	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:38:33 PM Ignore BurtB Report Abuse surprise. The left tries to generate fear of something that is essentially safe. They can't move public opinion with facts, so they use misdirection. For the Left, humans are a virus on the earth. How does if feel to be led by a group that hates you?
85XJ Champion Author Toledo Posts:5,611 Points:1,281,740 Joined:Mar 2005	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 9:35:42 AM Ignore 85XJ Report Abuse That Matty Moroun is involved in something dirty doesn't surprise me. He fought against legislation that would help pay for a new bridge that would join Detroit and Windsor (and cut into his private bridge, the Ambassador Bridge, profits).
drpepperTX Champion Author Texas Posts:8,950 Points:753,185 Joined:Apr 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 8:33:26 AM Ignore drpepperTX Report Abuse Agreed cgrey8. Reposted article intended to inspire fear and paranoia. From the original article "The coke is not toxic, he said. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality said it was not aware of the massive black pile until this week, but confirmed Tuesday it is not necessarily a dangerous material. “It can be sold as it does have a combustion value to someone,” said Andy Hartz, southeast Michigan district coordinator for MDEQ. “It’s storage is not something that requires a permit from us. It is listed as a non-hazardous substance by the federal government.”
doeslayersr Champion Author Illinois Posts:9,121 Points:872,980 Joined:Dec 2010	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 7:58:45 AM Ignore doeslayersr Report Abuse Coke is also used to make steel. What is the problem here? None that I see.
wrunner Champion Author Virginia Posts:4,450 Points:1,137,560 Joined:Dec 2009	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 7:55:57 AM Ignore wrunner Report Abuse Nasty and dirty. Clean it up or store it properly or use it already or get rid of it or send it to China.
bar1035 Champion Author Charlotte Posts:9,167 Points:1,299,195 Joined:Aug 2006	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 7:21:55 AM Ignore bar1035 Report Abuse Repost. Thanks for reposting your comments cgrey8
mandoid Champion Author Colorado Springs Posts:7,306 Points:1,528,025 Joined:May 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 6:27:30 AM Ignore mandoid Report Abuse good comment ezexit [Edited by: mandoid at 3/7/2013 6:28:19 AM EST]
cgrey8 Champion Author Atlanta Posts:1,013 Points:260,190 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 6:27:05 AM Ignore cgrey8 Report Abuse Repost. So I'll repost my comments... It seems people care more about looks than anything else. So for some reason having these big piles out in the open is bad, but having those same piles somewhere out of sight is OK? That makes no sense for people that don't own land or have any kind of financial vestige to think they have some say in how land is used when what's happening isn't being found to break any laws. The only thing I can see as annoying about this practice is an increase in dust for the people in the surrounding areas. That would get annoying having a coat of black dust all over everything. And in that case, I can see them being required to wet-down the coke & cover the mounds to hold the dust problem down. But the use of the land in this way doesn't seem like it is anybody's business other than those selling & buying the coke and the code inspectors confirming that the handling is being done in a lawful way.
Yooperheart Champion Author Michigan Posts:3,425 Points:528,000 Joined:Feb 2010	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 5:26:08 AM Ignore Yooperheart Report Abuse And you may wonder why the city of Day-twah has been in decline. I just want to live theere. Sad theat theis stuff is shipped to China. thee results are thee same, destroy yet anotheer city or two. Shame thee industry could not have found anotheer way to use theis by-product.
pscamp Champion Author Ottawa Posts:3,285 Points:475,960 Joined:May 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 5:06:33 AM Ignore pscamp Report Abuse What???
SUPERSTEVIEO Champion Author Quebec Posts:3,523 Points:787,115 Joined:Oct 2010	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 4:59:44 AM Ignore SUPERSTEVIEO Report Abuse so they are waiting on the federal government to force them to do something.... great initiative!!!!! WOW!!!
OHMS Champion Author Orange County Posts:13,722 Points:1,692,855 Joined:May 2005	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 3:55:46 AM Ignore OHMS Report Abuse give O"Bamas prep H for black piles
teafortwo Champion Author Washington Posts:22,112 Points:1,385,965 Joined:Feb 2009	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 2:37:39 AM Ignore teafortwo Report Abuse So It is true there is a big difference between sweet crude and tarsands bitumen. FROM THE ARTICLE: The petroleum coke — or ‘Petcoke’ as It’s called — recently started to be produced in much greater amounts at the nearby Marathon Oil refinery in Detroit. The refinery, which sits behind Zug Island next to the I-75 freeway, completed a massive $2-billion facility upgrade last fall allowing it to process heavy Canadian crude oil brought in by pipeline from the Alberta oil sands. The refinery processes 120,000 barrels per day of crude oil. Petroleum coke is a fine powder which gets distilled and filtered out from the crude. It’s resold for such uses as producing asphalt or as a replacement for coal. Power plants have increasingly turned to burning Petcoke because it is 25 per cent cheaper than coal, said Stockman, who authored on a recent report on the growing use of the fuel and its environmental impacts. Petcoke looks and burns like coal, but is dirtier because of higher carbon emissions, Stockman said. Although not officially listed as a toxic or hazardous product, it can contain heavy metals or sulphur found inside tar sands crude oil, he said. “You wouldn’t want this stuff in your water (being next to the riverfront),” he said. “It could be leaching heavy metals and sulphur.” Petcoke has been handled in refineries in Texas, Louisiana and California, but is often loaded directly on to ships and sent overseas to be burned in locations such as China, Stockman said. “They don’t keep it on site for long periods,” he said. “They export millions of tons of the stuff.” Based on the amount of barrels being processed in Detroit, Stockman estimated 1,720 tons of coke were being produced daily. “It’s a byproduct of the dirtiest oil on the planet,” he said. “That’s what they are trading in.”
granitestater Champion Author New Hampshire Posts:8,829 Points:1,431,725 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 2:29:21 AM Ignore granitestater Report Abuse Not that kind of coke... Not that kind of coke, either... This coke is not for drinking or snorting. It's for burning...
EZExit Champion Author Phoenix Posts:10,446 Points:1,709,605 Joined:Aug 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 2:28:20 AM Ignore EZExit Report Abuse The most ironic part of this story, this is probably the cleanest portion of Detroit.
veemotors All-Star Author Alberta Posts:710 Points:66,320 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 2:22:59 AM Ignore veemotors Report Abuse Can the speculators snort it? If so there is a use for it.
TXRanger09 Champion Author Dallas Posts:2,511 Points:892,150 Joined:May 2009	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:54:04 AM Ignore TXRanger09 Report Abuse Marathon “goes above and beyond regulations” while handling petcoke on site, Daniels said. “It a very powdery substance so it’s kept in bins or covered to keep it from blowing around. Everything is covered and kept tight. It’s not something volatile or toxic, but since it is a fine powder there is a messiness factor when dealing with it.--------------- Refering to the picture in the article; Are the bins and coverings under that huge mountain of petcoke?
Ahking Champion Author Orange County Posts:3,507 Points:603,450 Joined:May 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:47:37 AM Ignore Ahking Report Abuse oh, so they are not selling it fast enough?
snagged Veteran Author Akron Posts:396 Points:111,430 Joined:Oct 2012	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:33:42 AM Ignore snagged Report Abuse Interesting. I never heard of this before.
charg3rguy1991 All-Star Author Greensboro Posts:761 Points:244,440 Joined:Sep 2012	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:25:12 AM Ignore charg3rguy1991 Report Abuse Don't they use this stuff at some power plants or something?
MN1 Champion Author Twin Cities Posts:3,364 Points:651,565 Joined:Jun 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:18:36 AM Ignore MN1 Report Abuse Great place to store it... on a river. Morons.
NHLiveFree Champion Author New Hampshire Posts:11,095 Points:1,623,180 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:17:12 AM Ignore NHLiveFree Report Abuse "Windsor’s residents might be in store for another whammy if Detroit Edison cuts a deal to purchase the petcoke to burn at its downwind coal-burning power plants in Monroe and River Rouge, said Stockman."
TIGERPAW46 Champion Author Florida Posts:7,131 Points:1,356,655 Joined:Mar 2004	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:09:32 AM Ignore TIGERPAW46 Report Abuse Like anything else it should be stored properly & if used in the USA proper USAge with appropriate pollution prevention should be used. Same applies to anywhere but of course we can't dictate what laws other countries approve, only make suggestions, unless the issue is worth a war.
KrsnaDragon Champion Author Montreal Posts:2,412 Points:532,275 Joined:Nov 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:08:43 AM Ignore KrsnaDragon Report Abuse Synthetic crude oil from the Alberta tar sands -- crude, or crud..?
NHLiveFree Champion Author New Hampshire Posts:11,095 Points:1,623,180 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:04:14 AM Ignore NHLiveFree Report Abuse "Dealing with such massive quantities of petroleum coke — especially those being generated from Alberta tar sands — is a relatively new issue for MDEQ, which is trying to get up to speed on the product and where it falls under regulations, Hartz said. Since last fall, a new crude oil pipeline has been bringing heavy crude to Detroit from Alberta, confirmed Brandon Daniels, a spokesman for Marathon Oil. He also verified that petcoke has started being produced in much greater amounts since the refinery’s expansion in November. He couldn’t say whether CSX and Transflo has been the sole customer taking in all the petcoke from the refinery, but Marathon in Detroit has been “selling it on the open market.”"
wshokie12 Champion Author Winston-Salem Posts:1,325 Points:217,535 Joined:Aug 2012	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 1:00:56 AM Ignore wshokie12 Report Abuse Okay.
rap12MA Veteran Author Boston Posts:461 Points:152,875 Joined:Mar 2012	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:55:08 AM Ignore rap12MA Report Abuse Ugh!
rtw777 Champion Author Florida Posts:9,401 Points:1,842,970 Joined:Jan 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:53:49 AM Ignore rtw777 Report Abuse Looks like Marathon is in trouble.
RitaVespa Champion Author Oregon Posts:2,981 Points:792,260 Joined:Jan 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:53:11 AM Ignore RitaVespa Report Abuse Ok
76chevy Champion Author Toledo Posts:3,992 Points:770,140 Joined:Jun 2010	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:48:32 AM Ignore 76chevy Report Abuse ?
yonasb Champion Author Houston Posts:3,463 Points:738,375 Joined:Apr 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:46:06 AM Ignore yonasb Report Abuse that is scary
andy1024 Champion Author Allentown Posts:1,702 Points:448,150 Joined:Dec 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:44:43 AM Ignore andy1024 Report Abuse They should cover it up, literally.
jkpsr Champion Author New Jersey Posts:4,084 Points:1,102,880 Joined:Jun 2005	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:44:42 AM Ignore jkpsr Report Abuse A necessary byproduct from refining the dirty Canadian crude. It should be used on roads, however, not burned.
EVBuddy Champion Author Nevada Posts:16,695 Points:3,032,570 Joined:Sep 2004	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:43:52 AM Ignore EVBuddy Report Abuse They sell that stuff on the west coast to I believe thr Japsnese
ItisAJeepThing Champion Author Tucson Posts:19,760 Points:2,152,555 Joined:Oct 2006	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:40:16 AM Ignore ItisAJeepThing Report Abuse Chemically speaking, this is one of the dirtiest forms of energy around. The Chinese will use it and burn it and pollute the whole world. Watch out for even the slightest spill near the Detroit River or say goodby to millions of gallons of drinking water.
unclenorman Champion Author Tampa Posts:1,348 Points:140,250 Joined:Jan 2012	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:38:32 AM Ignore unclenorman Report Abuse Deal with this NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
NHLiveFree Champion Author New Hampshire Posts:11,095 Points:1,623,180 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:37:25 AM Ignore NHLiveFree Report Abuse Can you say Marathon Refinery pa79th? "Coal or coke being stored along the Detroit River has long been linked to tumours in fish, said University of Windsor researcher Doug Haffner, who studies exposure and impacts of chemicals in the Great Lakes. He described it as a bigger problem than mercury or PCBs. “The biggest issue on the Detroit side is they are storing it right on the shore, so with any rain it moves right into the river,” he said. “You couldn’t put this in a worse place. Unless they are treating the runoff — and I doubt that — this should not be allowed in this day and age.”"
pa79th Champion Author Pennsylvania Posts:1,787 Points:1,217,825 Joined:Jun 2007	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:32:49 AM Ignore pa79th Report Abuse What does this have to do with the price of gasoline?
Bigwaynef Champion Author South Carolina Posts:11,480 Points:2,081,735 Joined:Dec 2006	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:32:43 AM Ignore Bigwaynef Report Abuse OK whose getting high off this stuff???
NHLiveFree Champion Author New Hampshire Posts:11,095 Points:1,623,180 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:31:52 AM Ignore NHLiveFree Report Abuse This is a Windsor Star followup to an earlier article that was also posted here early yesterday. This has full details on what was previously reported as mysterious huge piles of black powder appearing on the Detroit side of the Detroit River. The piles are adjacent to and below the Windsor Bridge owned by a notorious and controversial billionaire that owns both this land and the bridge! "The refinery, which sits behind Zug Island next to the I-75 freeway, completed a massive $2-billion facility upgrade last fall allowing it to process heavy Canadian crude oil brought in by pipeline from the Alberta oil sands. The refinery processes 120,000 barrels per day of crude oil. Petroleum coke is a fine powder which gets distilled and filtered out from the crude. It’s resold for such uses as producing asphalt or as a replacement for coal. Power plants have increasingly turned to burning petcoke because it is 25 per cent cheaper than coal, said Stockman, who authored on a recent report on the growing use of the fuel and its environmental impacts. Petcoke looks and burns like coal, but is dirtier because of higher carbon emissions, Stockman said. Although not officially listed as a toxic or hazardous product, it can contain heavy metals or sulphur found inside tar sands crude oil, he said. “You wouldn’t want this stuff in your water (being next to the riverfront),” he said. “It could be leaching heavy metals and sulphur.” Petcoke has been handled in refineries in Texas, Louisiana and California, but is often loaded directly on to ships and sent overseas to be burned in locations such as China, Stockman said. “They don’t keep it on site for long periods,” he said. “They export millions of tons of the stuff.”" Scary stuff just stored loose and uncovered immediately by the river! [Edited by: NHLiveFree at 3/7/2013 12:33:37 AM EST]
Cashless Champion Author Akron Posts:3,525 Points:735,280 Joined:Apr 2011	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:29:24 AM Ignore Cashless Report Abuse Sounds like this stuff can get dangerous in a hurry!
Aviator_Rob Champion Author New York Posts:3,800 Points:414,390 Joined:Mar 2012	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:29:21 AM Ignore Aviator_Rob Report Abuse People, just because you've never heard of something doesn't automatically mean it doesn't exist. A little bit of education goes a long way. There's more to the Internet than conspiracy theories and porn.
badharley Champion Author Tampa Posts:1,030 Points:741,285 Joined:Jul 2010	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:27:09 AM Ignore badharley Report Abuse Always something new.
DrLyon Champion Author Michigan Posts:6,650 Points:1,211,830 Joined:May 2006	Message Posted: Mar 7, 2013 12:27:07 AM Ignore DrLyon Report Abuse New pollution problem....