Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 003C Hazard:

OSH ACT of 1970 Section (5)(a)(1): The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees, in that employees were exposed to respiratory hazards during tank gauging and crude oil sampling operations: (a) Now or Never Trucking Inc, at Weld County Roads 40 and 13, W 0.5 mile, S 0.1 mile, Gaddis Horizontal Pad, Johnstown, CO: On and preceding 7/13/14, Now or Never Trucking Inc did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees, in that employees were exposed to respiratory hazards during tank gauging and crude oil sampling operations. Employees performed gauging and sampling of crude oil at the oil well tank battery. Employees performed these tasks at open thief hatches and adjacent to opened blow down vents. Flammable hydrocarbon gases were vented through open thief hatches and blow down vents. On 7/13/14 a worker was exposed to an oxygen deficient atmosphere and high concentrations of hydrocarbon gases and vapors. The employer did not develop and utilize procedures for gauging and sampling that did not expose employees to an oxygen deficient atmosphere and hydrocarbon gases and vapors. This condition exposed employees to respiratory hazards. Abatement Note: Among other methods, feasible abatement methods include: (1) Installation and use of ground level tank gauges to eliminate need for employees to climb onto tanks to perform tank gauging. Refer to American Petroleum Institute Manual of Petroleum Measurement Standards Chapter 3.1B "Standard Practice for Level Measurement of Liquid Hydrocarbons in Stationary Tanks by Automatic Tank Gauging". (2) Use of crude oil sampling methods that do not require access through an open thief hatch, i.e., tank taps or use of vapor control valves with restricted or closed sampling equipment. Refer to American Petroleum Institute Manual of Petroleum Measurement Standards Chapter 8.1 "Standard Practice for Manual Sampling of Petroleum and Petroleum Products" Section 9 "Sampling Requirements, Considerations, and Procedures".