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  • Reporting by mixture or components for a mixture with unknown chemicals

    A facility is storing a product mixture on-site. Under OSHA regulations, the facility is required to retain a material safety data sheet (MSDS) for the mixture. According to the MSDS, the mixture contains a zinc compound, but no specific chemical identity or concentration information is provided. OSHA regulations allow chemical…

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  • Spills onto concrete floors inside a building

    A facility has a spill of an extremely hazardous substance in an amount greater than its reportable quantity. The spill occurs on a concrete floor that is inside a facility building. Before the spill can be cleaned up, a portion (less than RQ) of the EHS enters the outside atmosphere…

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  • Reportable quantity calculations for chemicals in abandoned containers

    Must any amount of a listed chemical contained within abandoned or discarded barrels, containers, or other receptacles be considered to determine if a specific reportable quantity has been exceeded under EPCRA Section 304 notification requirements? 40 CFR §355.61 (April 22, 1987, 52 FR 13395 ) defines a release as "any…

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  • To what extent are agricultural chemical retailers exempt?

    EPCRA Sections 311 and 312 require facilities to report inventories of certain hazardous chemicals. Section 311(e)(5) exempts from the definition of hazardous chemical "any substance to the extent it is used in routine agricultural operations or is a fertilizer held for sale by a retailer to the ultimate customer" (…

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  • Releases from animal waste to non-air environmental media

    On June 13, 2019, EPA published a Final Rule adding an exemption to the release reporting requirements of EPCRA Section 304 ( 40 CFR Part 355 ) for substances from animal waste being emitted into the air ( 84 FR 27533 ). Does this exemption also apply to substances from…

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  • What facilities are exempt from Section 304 notification requirements?

    A facility itself can only be exempted if there are no hazardous chemicals present at the facility. The term "hazardous chemical," as defined under Section 311 of Title III, includes any substance which constitutes a physical or health hazard. This broad definition is borrowed from the Occupational Safety Health Act…

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  • Releases of wastes not individually listed as CERCLA hazardous substances

    Can releases of wastes that are not individually listed as CERCLA hazardous substances still be subject to CERCLA reporting requirements? Yes. CERCLA reporting requirements apply not only to all of the substances individually listed in 40 CFR 302.4 , but also to wastes or waste streams exhibiting the characteristics of…

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  • Plastic Resins and EPCRA Section 311 / 312 Reporting

    Are plastic resins such as polypropylene and polyethylene subject to Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) [also known as Safety Data Sheet (SDS)] Reporting under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) Section 311 and Chemical Inventory (i.e., Tier II) Reporting under EPCRA Section 312? The reporting requirements of Sections…

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  • Revised Hazard Categories for EPCRA 311 / 312 Reporting

    On March 26 2012, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) revised its Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) by adopting the United Nations Globally Harmonization System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). Based on the new classification criteria that OSHA adopted, EPA revised the existing hazard categories for hazardous chemical…

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  • Saccharin Removed from CERCLA Hazardous Substance List

    Is saccharin and its salts a CERCLA hazardous substance? On December 17, 2010 ( 75 FR 78918 ), EPA published a final rule to remove saccharin and its salts from the CERCLA list of hazardous substances and the RCRA list of hazardous wastes. EPA originally added saccharin to the CERCLA…

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  • Tier II Trade Secret Package Must Include All Chemicals Subject to Reporting

    The regulations at 40 CFR part 350 allows facilities to withhold certain chemical information when reporting under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) if the facility claims those chemicals to be a trade secret. When submitting the required trade secret claim package for EPCRA section 312 (i.e., Tier…

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  • Responsibility for MSDS Accuracy

    When submitting a material safety data sheet (MSDS) in order to meet the reporting requirements of EPCRA section 311, to what extent are “downstream” recipients of an MSDS, such as manufacturers and chemical users, responsible for the accuracy of the information on the MSDS, such as chemical hazard assessments? Producers…

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  • Facilities covered under EPCRA 304

    What facilities are covered under EPCRA release reporting requirements? EPCRA section 329(4) defines facility to include stationary structures on a single site, or on contiguous or adjacent sites owned or operated by the same person. For purposes of release reporting under EPCRA section 304 , motor vehicles, rolling stock, and…

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  • Are marinas and airports included under the definition of "retail gas station?"

    Gas stations in marinas and airports that sell fuel for boats and airplanes are not included within the definition of "retail gas station" for purposes of higher reporting thresholds EPCRA §§311/312. In the February 11, 1999, Federal Register, EPA added the phrase "for motor vehicle use on land" to the…

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  • CERCLA petroleum exclusion

    What is the CERCLA petroleum exclusion? The term "hazardous substance" is defined in CERCLA section 101(14) to include substances listed under four other environmental statutes (as well as those designated under CERCLA section 102(a)). The definition excludes "petroleum, including crude oil or any fraction thereof," unless specifically listed or designated…

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