A customer called with a heads-up that PIG® Oil-Only Absorbent Mat appears in a new Weather Channel video. Oil was accidentally pumped into a basement, and our Mat Pads were part of the cleanup (see below for a frame from the video).

Imagine waking up to overpowering oil fumes when you’re home is heated by natural gas! Our best wishes to the family involved!

Hey, guess whose products will be used throughout the 118 venues of the 2010 Winter Olympics?!

I mean besides the usual suspects.

Image © Norman7 | Dreamstime.com

You guessed it—PIG® products! The ones shown below (dozens of each!) were ordered for controlling leaks and spills.

Are we thrilled? Ab-sow-luge-ly!!

PIG® Spill Kit in a 95-Gallon Overpack Salvage Drum

PIG® Spill Kit in a 20-Gallon Overpack Salvage Drum

PIG® Poly Spill Containment Pallet

News item: Clorox to stop using chlorine to make bleach

Okay, time out.

So Clorox is going to stop using chlorine gas which is transported by rail—the safest form of transportation—in double-walled, insulated tanker cars with reinforced ends and all of the valves and gateways guarded. (Thank you FEMA AW 147 rail car incident class that I took two weeks ago!!)

Greenpeace applauds, the news release says, but that questioning voice you hear above the clapping is mine.

Let’s all put on our properly fit-tested SCBAs so we’re not overcome by the green cloud and consider what this means.

Now Clorox will be transporting bulk quantities of liquid sodium hypochlorite, which can be shipped in a “general service” single-wall rail tank car with no reinforced ends and no protection on the valves and gateways.

In the event of a derailment, guess which of these two types of rail car is more likely to breech???

With chlorine gas, you can evacuate the area and let the cloud dissipate. With a sodium hypochlorite spill, you’ll be digging up soil for months—and guess what:  That soil’s offgassing the pollutants the entire time. 

And guess what else—just because Clorox is going to stop using chlorine doesn’t necessarily translate to less chlorine on the rails or on the road.  

Guess how you make sodium hypochlorite: You react dilute a caustic soda solution with liquid or gaseous chlorine.   So chlorine is still going to be transported.  Most likely by rail.

This is a good thing??  What am I missing?

Yes, it will be safer for Clorox employees— and kudos to Clorox for that—but I just don’t see the environmental triumph. 

Image © Beth Van Trees - Fotolia.com

Click here to see a TV clip in which a box of PIG® Wipers appears TWICE! Watch at least the first 38 seconds  : ) The video also gives interesting information on environmental efforts by NASCAR.

This appearance happened with the help of a friend from Safety-Kleen. Thanks, (name).

By the way, we also sell the type of  used oil storage tank being poured into below (in a screen shot from the video).

A fellow Pigger (whose identity I’ll protect) just loves the idea of bacon-scented perfume.

He (yes, He—are you surprised that it’s a guy?) found perfume like this online and sent an excited email to some of us:

Here it is! YUM

I feel sorry for his girlfriend. I feel a little better if I picture his specially-purchased bottle of bacon-scented perfume tipping over and everything running out, lost forever except for delicious fumes that don’t last too long.

This is a good time to mention that we’ve taken calls here in New Pig Tech about shipping perfume. We’ve had customers who need an absorbent for the master cartons. We recommend PIG® BubbleZorb® Absorbent Mat (which has cushioning bubbles) in rolls or pads, or PIG® Universal Absorbent Mat. In case there’s a spill, the Mats will save the day.

Woman image © ksp photo - Fotolia.com
Bacon image © robert lerich - Fotolia.com

Ever wonder if one of the overhead compartments on your plane contained 20 pounds of toxic metal?

Me either.

But I may ponder that on my next flight, now that I’ve heard about the guy with mercury in his suitcase.

Maybe I’ll start packing a Mercury Spill Kit in my own carry-on …

Image © Cerae - Fotolia.com

Related posts:

Mercury spill and pilfering wreaks havoc at high school

So, what do you do when you run out of PIG® Mat? Call 1-800-HOT-HOGS® or visit newpig.com, of course.

Any other options? Apparently, yes … yes, there are.

Check out this story about oil spills, cleanups and 18,000 pounds of hair.

Ewww …

Image © ZM Photography - Fotolia.com

The National Truck Driving Championships will happen in Pittsburgh August 18-22. They bring together winners of state and regional competitions to demonstrate their professionalism in driving, inspection and knowledge.

This video featuring UPS drivers at the 2008 National Championships (Episode 1 of 6) caught my eye because UPS is one of our main carriers. I feel like a better person for having watched it. The drivers and their families personify salt of the earth. Look at the truckers’ pride in excelling at their jobs, and their families’ pride in them. Great stuff.

That gives me extra pride that trucks steadily stream in and out of New Pig. Not only that, but there are trucks all across the country equipped with a variety of PIG® products for responding to on-the-road leaks and spills (see below). Safe travels, drivers.

Image © Elenathewise - Fotolia.com

PIG® products for trucks:

PIG® Pop-Up Containment Pools

PIG® Repair Putties

PIG® Universal Spill Kits in Bags

PIG® Oil-Only Spill Kits in Bags

PIG® Hazardous Materials Spill Kits in Bags

Related posts:

New in loading dock safety: “Trailer occupied” lights

Map-A-Spill special edition: Burger and beer spills spawn best news lead ever

Last-minute Friday-the-13th story of quick spill response

Mud flaps that increase safety and cut fuel use up to 3.5%