Ansul is a corporation headquartered in

Marinette, Wisconsin Marinette is a city in and the county seat of Marinette County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the south bank of the Menominee River, at its mouth at Green Bay, part of Lake Michigan; to the north is Stephenson Island, part of th ...

that manufactures fire suppression systems, extinguishers, and offers fire training. Ansul's initial activities included production of cattle feed, refrigerants and selected

specialty chemicals Speciality chemicals (also called specialties or effect chemicals) are particular chemical products which provide a wide variety of effects on which many other industry sectors rely. Some of the categories of speciality chemicals are adhesives, agr ...

. The name Ansul comes from ANhydrous SULfur dioxide ( SO₂), which was sold to die works and fruit preservers, and later as a

refrigerant A refrigerant is a working fluid used in the refrigeration cycle of air conditioning systems and heat pumps where in most cases they undergo a repeated phase transition from a liquid to a gas and back again. Refrigerants are heavily regulate ...

.ANSUL: Who We Are
Production of fire suppression chemicals began in 1934. Virginia Chemicals, Inc. (now part of

Celanese Corporation Celanese Corporation, formerly known as Hoechst Celanese, is an American technology and specialty materials company headquartered in Irving, Texas. A Fortune 500 corporation, the company is the world’s leading producer of acetic acid, produci ...

) acquired the Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Products Division of The Ansul Company in 1967, and by 1983 Ansul had discontinued all other production at the facility in Marinette. The US government is a major customer for Ansul. The ANSUL name is a premium brand of Tyco Fire Protection Products. The full line of ANSUL special hazard fire protection products includes fire extinguishers and hand line units; pre-engineered restaurant, vehicle, and industrial systems; sophisticated fire detection/suppression systems, and a complete line of dry chemical, foam, and gaseous extinguishing agents.About ANSUL
/ref> A common hand-held fire extinguisher produced by Ansul that many consumers may recognize is the SENTRY brand stored-pressure fire extinguisher.SENTRY Fire Extinguishers
/ref>

History

Ansul was created by Francis "Frank" G. Hood from the bankrupt Bastol Company, an enterprise started in Marinette in 1912. It remained independent until 1978, when it was acquired by

Wormald International Wormald is an Australian fire protection brand founded in 1889. Founded as an importer and distributor of fire doors and fire sprinklers, it grew over the decades into a diversified manufacturer of steel and metal products as well as a leader in t ...

, an Australian corporation. Wormald was in turn acquired by

Tyco International Tyco International plc was a security systems company incorporated in the Republic of Ireland, with operational headquarters in Princeton, New Jersey, United States (Tyco International (US) Inc.). Tyco International was composed of two major b ...

in 1990. Ansul now exists as a brand of the Tyco Fire Protection segment of Tyco International,Tyco International. ''2011 Annual Report''
/ref> which in turn is part of

Johnson Controls Johnson Controls International is an American Irish-domiciled multinational conglomerate headquartered in Cork, Ireland, that produces fire, HVAC, and security equipment for buildings. As of mid-2019, it employed 105,000 people in around 2,0 ...

International plc. The company changed its name over the years but always kept Ansul as part of its name. From 1915 to 1963 it was the Ansul Chemical Company, from 1963 to 1981: the Ansul Company, and from 1981 to 1995 Ansul Fire Protection. The current name has been used since 1995.

Leadership

Early leadership was quite stable, primarily under the Hood family. Once the company was acquired, turnover has been much more rapid as evidenced by this chronology of the presidents of Ansul: *1915–1938: Francis "Frank" G. Hood *1938–1948:

Harvey V. Higley Harvey Vanzandt Higley (October 26, 1892 – October 15, 1986) was born in Cheshire, Ohio, and studied chemistry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, graduating in October 1915. After serving in World War I he went to work for the Ansul C ...

*1948–1949: Francis J. Hood *1949–1974: Robert C. Hood *1974–1976: Morris L. Neuville *1976–1980: Terrell L. Ruhlman *1980–1983: William A. Rickel *1983–1986: Marc V. Gross *1987–1990: J. Donald Roland *1990–1992: Mark E. Mathisen *1992–2002: Karl J. Kinkead *2002–2007: Mark VanDoverPress Release Detail, "Tyco Safety Products Announces Integration of Fire Suppression and Fire & Building Products Business Units" (12/17/2007)
/ref> *2007–Aug 2007 as vice president.: Colleen Repplier *2006–present (2017): George R. Oliver (President of Tyco Fire Protection, formerly Tyco Safety Products)

Product categories and trade names

ANSUL is the registered trade name for Ansul's products and is often used in conjunction with the trade name for their specific products, such as ANSUL SENTRY fire extinguishers.

Portable fire extinguishers

* RED LINE * SENTRY * CLEANGUARD * K-GUARD

Large manual handline units

* MAGNUM

Vehicle fire suppression systems

* Checkfire

Restaurant fire suppression systems

* PIRANHA * K-GUARD (Kitchen-Class Fire Extinguishers)
R-102
* Kitchen Knight II (KK-II)

Industrial fire suppression systems

* I-101

Clean-agent fire suppression systems

* INERGEN * SAPPHIRE

Carbon dioxide fire suppression systems

(No trade names known in this category)

Water-atomizing fire suppression systems

* AQUASONIC

Detection and control equipment

* AUTOPULSE * VESDA

Dry chemical and dry powder agents

* FORAY * MET-L-X * LITH-X * NA-X * COPPER POWDER NAVY 125S * PLUS-FIFTY-B * PLUS-FIFTY-C * MET-L-KYL..

Firefighting foam products

* TARGET-7

Spill control products

* SPILL-X * SPILL-X-A * SPILL-X-S * SPILL-X-C * SPILL-X-FP

Recalls

2001: In certain circumstances, seemingly isolated to

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. It is a commercial term, limited to food sold ...

restaurants, detection cables in R-102 systems can fray, fatigue, and fail. Ansul will pay the suppression company to make repairs. 2006: Ansul cooperated with the

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (USCPSC, CPSC, or commission) is an independent agency of the United States government. The CPSC seeks to promote the safety of consumer products by addressing “unreasonable risks” of in ...

(CPSC) to voluntarily recall about 154,000 K-GUARD, SENTRY and FLAG FIRE Model Fire Extinguishers because if the fire extinguisher is dropped horizontally from a height of approximately 2 to , the internal pick-up tube could crack and the extinguisher can fail to discharge properly. 2006:

SimplexGrinnell SimplexGrinnell, a subsidiary of Johnson Controls, is an American company specializing in active fire protection systems, communication systems and testing, inspection and maintenance services. The company headquarters is in Boca Raton, Florida; ...

LP,

ADT Security Services ADT Inc., formerly The ADT Corporation, is an American company that provides residential, small and large business electronic security, fire protection, and other related alarm monitoring services throughout the United States. The corporate he ...

Inc., and Ansul Inc. were distributors for Tyco Fire & Security Fire Detection Systems made in China with faulty sensors. Sensors could experience reduced sensitivity to smoke in conditions of high humidity and high temperature. A product safety recall was conducted by the firm in cooperation with the CPSC. 2009: Marine high pressure carbon dioxide systems are inadvertently discharging due to an internal pressure vent on the cylinder valve that may not be adequately venting pressure. This can cause the cylinder to actuate, which then causes all other cylinders on the system to actuate. Marine high pressure carbon dioxide valves with a date code range of 10–07 to 06-08 should be replaced.

Litigation

Ansul was among ten

defendants In court proceedings, a defendant is a person or object who is the party either accused of committing a crime in criminal prosecution or against whom some type of civil relief is being sought in a civil case. Terminology varies from one jurisdi ...

in ''Miller v. Ansul Inc., Western Fire Protection, et al,'' Case #688690,

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the f ...

Superior Court In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction (see small claims court), which is restricted to civ ...

, in 1995. Miller was injured while depressurizing an unrestrained Halon tank. Miller won the case. Former employee Daniel Grace successfully

sued - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

Ansul in 1999 for

age discrimination Ageism, also spelled agism, is discrimination against individuals or groups on the basis of their age. The term was coined in 1969 by Robert Neil Butler to describe discrimination against seniors, and patterned on sexism and racism. Butler d ...

. The case was decided by the

United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (in case citations, N.D. Ill.) is the federal trial-level court with jurisdiction over the northern counties of Illinois. Appeals from the Northern District of Illinois ar ...

, Eastern Division. Ansul ''et al.'' were named as defendants in a 2005 lawsuit alleging that the use of

Agent Orange Agent Orange is a chemical herbicide and defoliant, one of the "tactical use" Rainbow Herbicides. It was used by the United States Armed Forces, U.S. military as part of its herbicidal warfare program, Operation Ranch Hand, during the Vietnam ...

by the

U.S. military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is th ...

led to

birth defects A birth defect, also known as a congenital disorder, is an abnormal condition that is present at birth regardless of its cause. Birth defects may result in disabilities that may be physical, intellectual, or developmental. The disabilities ca ...

for

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...

ese children. The

United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York (in case citations, E.D.N.Y.) is the federal district court whose territorial jurisdiction spans five counties in New York State: the four Long Island counties of Nassau, ...

ruled that the defending companies were operating under the direct order of the President and as such could not be sued for the consequences of the use of their product. The court also ruled the British had previously used Agent Orange during the

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War was a guerrilla war fought in British Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) and the military forces o ...

in the 1950s and that they set the precedent for America's use during the Vietnam War.MEMORANDUM, ORDER and JUDGMENT: MDL No. 381: In re “AGENT ORANGE”
/ref>

Environmental record

Emissions

Environmentally, Ansul ranked in 2002 among the dirtiest/worst facilities in the US for cancer risk (air and water releases) and non-cancer risk score (air and water releases)Scorecard, the Pollution Information Site, Environmental Release Report: TYCO SAFETY PRODS. ANSUL
/ref> due to chromium and copper. Chemicals discharged from Ansul in 2011US EPA Envirofacts Data Warehouse
Accessed 24-Jan-2013 include: Chemicals transferred to other sites: *certain

glycol ethers Glycol ethers are a class of chemical compounds consisting of alkyl ethers that are based on glycols such as ethylene glycol or propylene glycol. They are commonly used as solvents in paints and cleaners. They have good solvent properties whi ...

chromium Chromium is a chemical element with the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in group 6. It is a steely-grey, lustrous, hard, and brittle transition metal. Chromium metal is valued for its high corrosion resistance and h ...

ethylene glycol Ethylene glycol ( IUPAC name: ethane-1,2-diol) is an organic compound (a vicinal diol) with the formula . It is mainly used for two purposes, as a raw material in the manufacture of polyester fibers and for antifreeze formulations. It is an od ...

lead Lead is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metals, heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale of mineral hardness#Intermediate ...

tert-butyl alcohol ''tert''-Butyl alcohol is the simplest tertiary alcohol, with a formula of (CH3)3COH (sometimes represented as ''t''-BuOH). Its isomers are 1-butanol, isobutanol, and butan-2-ol. ''tert''-Butyl alcohol is a colorless solid, which melts near roo ...

Chemicals released to the air: *certain

nitric acid Nitric acid is the inorganic compound with the formula . It is a highly corrosive mineral acid. The compound is colorless, but older samples tend to be yellow cast due to decomposition into oxides of nitrogen. Most commercially available ni ...

zinc compounds Zinc compounds are chemical compounds containing the element zinc which is a member of the group 12 of the periodic table. The oxidation state of zinc in most compounds is the group oxidation state of +2. Zinc may be classified as a post-transiti ...

Chemicals released to surface water: *

Arsenic contamination

Surface water near Ansul is the adjacent

Menominee River The Menominee River is a river in northwestern Michigan and northeastern Wisconsin in the United States. It is approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed Dece ...

. The river bottom and ground water is heavily contaminated with arsenic compounds that were released by Ansul from 1957 to 1977 as a result of herbicide manufacture, with certain spots of river sediment containing levels as high as 11,000 ppm

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, bu ...

.US EPA, "Special Trees Part of Arsenic Cleanup Plan"
/ref> For six of those years (1960–1966),

-laden wastewater was discharged directly into the river. These discharges and contaminations were the result of an accumulation of more than 95,000

ton Ton is the name of any one of several units of measure. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. Mainly it describes units of weight. Confusion can arise because ''ton'' can mean * the long ton, which is 2,240 pounds ...

s of arsenic salt that were at one time stored on site.US EPA Region 5 Office of Regional Counsel (ORC), April 2008 Enforcement Action Summaries, "Region issues final decision identifying $27 million clean-up under RCRA at Ansul Fire Protection Stanton Street Facility, Marinette, Wisconsin."
/ref> The company consequently operated under two consent orders (

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) is a government agency of the U.S. state of Wisconsin charged with conserving and managing Wisconsin's natural resources. The Wisconsin Natural Resources Board has the authority to set policy ...

(WDNR) Consent Order 2A-73-714; and Administrative Order on Consent (AOC) between the

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it be ...

, the WDNR, and Ansul, signed on September 28, 1990). As a result of the US EPA AOC, Ansul agreed in February 2009 to spend an estimated US$28 million to:US EPA Region 5 Office of Regional Counsel (ORC), February 2009 Enforcement Action Summaries, "Ansul Inc., a Division of TYCO, International, agrees to clean up arsenic contaminated soils, groundwater and sediments at its Marinette, Wisconsin facility."
/ref> * remove ≈74,000 cubic yards of arsenic-contaminated sediments from the Menominee River * construct an impermeable barrier wall to

bedrock In geology, bedrock is solid rock that lies under loose material ( regolith) within the crust of Earth or another terrestrial planet. Definition Bedrock is the solid rock that underlies looser surface material. An exposed portion of be ...

around * cap or remove approximately of surface soils contaminated with arsenic above 16-32 ppm * pump and treat contaminated ground water Total remediation efforts and their costs are: * 1976–1984, US$11 million to pump and treat contaminated ground water and install a ground water interceptor trench at the southern edge of the property. * 1998–1999, US$12.4 million to dam and remove arsenic-contaminated sediments from the 8th Street Slip and install an impermeable barrier system to bedrock around the 8th Street Slip and an adjacent Salt Vault * 2012–2013 (est.), $25 million to dredge and cap river sediments. In November 2011, the local newspaper reported that Tyco (Ansul) is still negotiating with the EPA and WDNR to work out a plan, which has been submitted to the EPA for approval. Disclosed at a meeting with the Local Menominee River Area of Concern Citizens Advisory Committee was a plan to partially dredge and partially cap the arsenic. Estimated to cost US$24 million and take two years, of contaminated sediment would be removed from an area of - acres around the Eighth Street Slip, which would be replaced with sand from another (undisclosed) area of the river and topped with stone. However, the EPA has indicated that it wants Ansul to dredge the sediment from all ≈. The Tyco proposal also includes capping ≈, leaving 100,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment in place. If approved, this project would commence in June 2012.Mullens, Penny. "Tyco, EPA working on river sediment issue," ''Marinette Menominee EagleHerald'', pp. A1, A3. (November 19, 2011)
Accessed 19-Nov-2011. The Tyco proposal was rejected by the EPA in 2012, and of sediment was ordered to be removed from the main channel, the turning basin, areas directly east of the turning basin, the Sixth Street Slip, and the south channel. Tyco hired Sevenson Environmental Services of New York as the general contractor for the project, which began in July 2012.Mullens, Penny. "Tyco will dredge Menominee River," ''Marinette Menominee EagleHerald.'' (June 7, 2012)
Accessed 24-Jan-2013. (Sevenson was also the general contractor to clean up the infamous

Love Canal Love Canal is a neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York, United States, infamous as the location of a landfill that became the site of an enormous environmental disaster in the 1970s. Decades of dumping toxic chemicals harmed the health of hun ...

site in New York. Wikipedia. "Love Canal." Accessed 24-Jan-2013.) The project is slated for completion by Nov. 1, 2013, and the current estimate of cost is US$25 million.Lang, Clinton. "River cleanup," ''Marinette Menominee EagleHerald.'' (August 17, 2012)
Accessed 24-Jan-2013. Tyco created a website in 2011 specifically for the cleanup project, featuring reports, news, and FAQs.Tyco. ''MenomineeRiverCleanup.com''
Accessed 24-Jan-2013.

Community impact

The

contamination of the river bed has been problematic for a neighboring corporation,

Marinette Marine Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) is an American shipbuilding firm in Marinette, Wisconsin. Marinette Marine was a subsidiary of Manitowoc Marine Group of Wisconsin from 2000 to 2009, when it was sold to Fincantieri Marine Group. History M ...

(MMC). MMC is a shipbuilder with government contracts. Among their limitations for vessel size is the ship's

draft Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a ves ...

, which must be less than the depth of the

. MMC is located immediately upstream of Ansul, and because of the arsenic contamination of the

river bed A stream bed or streambed is the bottom of a stream or river (bathymetry) or the physical confine of the normal water flow ( channel). The lateral confines or channel margins are known as the stream banks or river banks, during all but flood ...

, MMC's desires to dredge the river have been stymied until Ansul's remediation efforts can be completed.US EPA, STATEMENT OF BASIS For Ansul Fire Protection Stanton Street Facility, EPA ID No. WID 006 125 215
The United States Army Corps of Engineers (

USACE , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

) estimated in 1986 that 40,000

cubic yard Cubic may refer to: Science and mathematics * Cube (algebra), "cubic" measurement * Cube, a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex ** Cubic crystal system, a crystal system ...

s of sediment would need to be dredged.US EPA, "A Summary of Contaminated Sediment Activities Within The United States Great Lakes Areas of Concern"
/ref> The arsenic contamination causes a

beneficial use "Beneficial use" is a legal term describing a person's right to enjoy the benefits of specific property, especially a view or access to light, air, or water, even though title to that property is held by another person. It is also referred to as " ...

impairment (BUI) resulting in local regulations that restrict anchoring of boats adjacent to the Ansul property, as anchors may disturb the arsenic-laden sediments. A “Menominee River No Anchor Zone” is conspicuously posted.

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virg ...

reported that Marinette schools are in the top 5 percentile for the most exposure to air pollution. St. Thomas Aquinas Academy High School (formerly known as Marinette Catholic Central High School until 2004) is adjacent to Ansul's property, and next to it is the Marinette Middle School (formerly Marinette High School until 1973). Marinette High School is adjacent to the Ansul Fire Technology Center, where tons of chemicals are used annually to train fire fighters.Environmental Release Report by ScoreCard: ANSUL FIRE TECH. CENTER
/ref>

References

{{Reflist, 2 Manufacturing companies based in Wisconsin Marinette County, Wisconsin Firefighting in the United States Emergency services equipment makers Chemical companies established in 1915 1915 establishments in Wisconsin