We knew its role in the appearance of green tides of toxic algae in Brittany and severe air pollution in Ile-de-France. The colossal explosion in the port of Beirut, Lebanon on August 4, which left 188 people dead according to the latest report, highlighted the dangers of ammonium nitrate (read further) , this fertilizer of so common use that it makes France the leading European consumer and the 3rd worldwide.
Almost 20 years after the explosion of AZF, in Toulouse, where he was also involved, it is still found everywhere: of the 108 French establishments authorized to hold more than 5,000 tons, almost double that of Beirut, and therefore classified Seveso high threshold, two are in Ile-de-France: a manufacturer in Grandpuits and a giant storage site in Gouaix, both in Seine-et-Marne. The maximum volumes that they are authorized to store have, on the other hand, been withdrawn from public data "for security reasons", clearly for fear of attacks.
An argument that can be puzzling since the storage of 1,250 to 5,000 tonnes, subject to authorization, is not surrounded by the same mystery. "We can consider that we say too much or not enough ..." concedes, laconic, an official specializing in classified installations.
According to the database of classified installations GeoRisques, the Ile-de-France region thus has 16 other establishments subject to authorization for ammonium nitrate. "These are ceilings not to be exceeded," specifies Alexandre Leornardi, head of the risks and prevention office at the regional and interdepartmental Directorate for the Environment (Drie). As these are mainly agricultural fertilizers, they are probably not full all year round ”, but only during the spreading season, from February to May.
No obligation to declare for storages of less than 250 tonnes
But it is not this large storage area that most worries Paul Poulain, a specialist in fire safety and in controlling industrial risks. "The sites subject to declaration (from 250 tonnes), those subject to authorization (from 1250 tonnes) are referenced and checked, the Seveso (above 5000 tonnes) are known and regularly inspected even if the difficulty remains to enforce regulations. The real problem is all the other storages of less than 250 tonnes which are not subject to anything! "
Clearly, it is possible to store 249 tons of ammonium nitrates in your garage without having to refer it to anyone. Or rather every farmer in his barn.
And there are many, since according to the latest data published in 2017 by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the agricultural world in France consumes 1.6 million tonnes. On the scale of Ile-de-France, not counting local production, Seine-et-Marne is the largest importer of fertilizers and nitrogen compounds with a volume of between 50,000 and 500,000 tonnes, depending on departmental customs which have not published the details by type of fertilizer. Val-d'Oise, Essonne and Yvelines are in the lower range, between 5,000 and 50,000 tonnes.
A risk of explosion "when the fertilizer is contaminated by incompatible materials"
"In practice, these are fertilizers stored with farmers, not always in optimal conditions", deplores Paul Poulain, partner of a design office in charge of inspections on behalf of the State. “The danger associated with ammonitrates is detonation”, underlines the Ministry of Agriculture, which recalls the best practices on its site.
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Officially, ammonium nitrate, even very concentrated, is considered "an occasional explosive". That is, an explosion can only occur if, for example, the fertilizer is contaminated with incompatible materials. "It is not considered an explosive in the absence of fuel, but the fuel is almost permanently present: fuel or even a simple dust is sufficient," says Paul Poulain.
A product that travels "in big bags" on the platforms of trucks
The Robin des Bois association for the defense of the environment does not hesitate to speak of a “scandal”. On its site, it has listed dozens of disasters and thousands of deaths internationally related to ammonium nitrate explosions. “You have to understand the circuit of this product which travels on roads and highways, explains its director, Jacky Bonnemains. In Ile-de-France, there is the producer, in Grandpuits, the large storage sites like Sica in Seine-et-Marne, then the agricultural cooperatives and finally the farmers themselves. Ammonium nitrate travels a lot in big bags on truck beds. And the accidents are not exceptional, with one or two big bags pouring over the side. "
“Any farmer can store 240 tonnes without anyone knowing. Imagine the firefighters who intervene in a fire with a gun and are not aware of the presence of ammonium nitrate… And the residents are not better informed ”, insists Jacky Bonnemains.
"A dramatic sequence which occurred in particular on October 2, 2003, in Saint-Romain-en-Jarez (Loire)", recalls Paul Poulain. That evening, a fire in a cold store on a farm resulted in the explosion of 3.5 tons of ammonitrate, the existence of which had been killed by the farmer. Assessment: 17 of the 26 injured are firefighters, three are very seriously affected.
Six accidents in Ile-de-France over the past ten years
The Analysis, Research and Information on Accidents (Aria) database, provided by the Industrial Risks and Pollution Analysis Office, lists six accidents linked to ammonitrate in Ile-de-France over the past ten years, including two exposure to fire. To reduce the risks, it also distributes a sheet dedicated to the dangers and precautions to be taken with this substance.
While some departmental fire and rescue services (Sdis) are increasing information campaigns among farmers, the regulations still do not require the listing of storage below 250 tonnes. “There is no card or file that tells us upstream on the presence or not of ammonium nitrate, explains Commander Christelle Magimel, chief of staff to the director of Sdis 78, the Yvelines firefighters. But as soon as we intervene in a farm, we get information from the farmer on fertilizer storage and their type ”.
The professional also ensures that “the risk of explosion occurs in very specific conditions. It is systematically the risk that we will try to avoid, according to an operational procedure well known to all stakeholders. If the fire is not in the immediate vicinity, the building is protected as much as possible, even if it means extracting the products to secure them. To limit the risks, firefighters rely on proximity. “Locally, the heads of centers often know the farmers, as part of their advisory role. It allows them to have information, ”adds the commander.
"It's time to regulate and put in the means"
An unacceptable situation for Paul Poulain, who turns into a real whistleblower. “As a reminder, AZF was 350 tonnes,” he insists. Imagine three or four neighboring farmers and the chain reaction! Today, we do not even know what the Seveso neighbors are storing…. Beirut made an impression. This is the time to regulate and to put the means ”, insists the one who also relies on a report of the Senate commission of inquiry on Lubrizol (the fire near Rouen on September 26, 2019), chaired by Hervé Maurey, senator from Eure.
“Lubrizol should be the opportunity to take a new step in the prevention of industrial risks, write the senators. The committee of inquiry deplores the serious shortcomings which undermine the effectiveness of industrial accident prevention mechanisms: too often, manufacturers themselves do not know precisely the nature of the products they use or store; the regulations do not take sufficient account of the reality of the spatial organization of activities and the results of the checks carried out by the administration are not always followed up. "
The commission of inquiry therefore makes recommendations “to truly prevent and predict accidents and no longer suffer the consequences”. "Like the terrorist risk or the health risk, the industrial risk must really be taken into account by all - State, companies, local authorities and citizens", warn the senators.
What is Ammonium Nitrate
With the chemical formula NH4NO3, ammonium nitrate is primarily used as a nitrogen fertilizer under the name ammonitrate to provide plants with nitrogen that they cannot naturally fix. It is also used in the composition of certain explosives.
In 1909, the German chemist Fritz Haber developed a process for synthesizing ammonia (composed of molecules of nitrogen and hydrogen). On the eve of the First World War, the German engineer and chemist Carl Bosch supervised the team of the BASF chemical group, which developed the first industrial application: the Haber process became the Haber-Bosch process.
The economic impact is considerable since it allows nitrogen to be fixed in large quantities and at a low cost. The ammonia can then be transformed into nitrogen oxide (for anesthetics or aerosol propellant) and then into nitric acid, a precursor of gunpowder and high explosives. From 1914 to 1918, all BASF production was used by the German army. And Fritz Haber was honored with the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1918.
But it was at the end of the Second World War that mineral fertilizers were everywhere. They allow agriculture to free itself from its dependence on livestock and its slurry. Determined to make France the breadbasket of Europe, de Gaulle encouraged the expansion of cultures and the regions specialized. Ammonium nitrate and the Haber-Bosch process are therefore at the origin of the agricultural revolution that has shaped today's landscapes. With its shortcomings: air pollution, green algae and risk of accident.