EPA: Chemical at center of West blast not 'extremely hazardous'
WEST, Texas — The head of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board is calling the fertilizer plant explosion in West last month the worst catastrophe his agency has ever seen.
Fifteen people died and 200 others were injured last month when the West Fertilizer Company exploded. The Texas Department of Insurance estimates it caused at least $100 million in damages.
It’s all being blamed on a chemical that federal regulators don't consider a major hazard: Ammonium nitrate, a common, effective, generally safe fertilizer sold to farmers all over the country.
It’s also a highly explosive chemical oxidizer that — according to chemist Neil Carman of the Lone Star Sierra Club — is capable of doing massive damage under the right conditions.
http://www.wfaa.com/news/investigates/Investigates-Why-ammonium-nitrate-is-not-an-Extremely-Hazardous-Chemical-209389961.html