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  • CFAT Impacts on EPCRA and RMP

    The Department of Homeland Security’s Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) impose comprehensive federal security regulations for high-risk chemical facilities. Do the CFATS alter the requirements that apply to a facility covered under both CFATS and either the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) or the Clean Air Act section…

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  • EPCRA Reporting Mechanisms for Protecting Sensitive Business Information

    Does EPCRA provide any mechanisms for facilities that must submit Tier II inventory information to protect sensitive business information? Trade secret and confidential location information (CLI) are two separate confidentiality provisions under EPCRA. Trade secret claims made under EPCRA Sections 303, 311, 312, or 313 allow facilities to claim the…

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  • Hot Work Definition and Requirements

    Facilities subject to the Program 3 Prevention Program requirements in 40 CFR Part 68 must include in their Risk Management Plan the date of the most recent review or revision of hot work permit procedures in Section 7.13. What is considered hot work and what are the requirements related to…

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  • Do I have to conduct incident investigations of releases resulting from theft?

    The incident investigation provisions of 40 CFR Part 68 (§§68.60 and 68.81) require facilities to investigate incidents that resulted in or could reasonably have resulted in a catastrophic release. Are covered facilities required to perform incident investigations of releases resulting from theft of covered substances, such as anhydrous ammonia? If…

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  • Do Program 1 processes have to complete a process hazard analysis?

    Do owners or operators of Program 1 processes have to complete a process hazard analysis? No. The Program 1 requirements do not include a process hazard analysis (40 CFR §68.12(b)). Program 3 processes require completion of a process hazard analysis (40 CFR §68.12(d)(3)) while Program 2 processes must complete a…

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  • Is a hazard review synonymous with a process hazard analysis (PHA)?

    The prevention program requirements under 40 CFR Part 68, Subparts C and D, include hazard reviews and process hazard analyses. Is a hazard review synonymous with a process hazard analysis (PHA)? No. A hazard review is different from a PHA. A hazard review is part of the Program 2 prevention…

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  • How often must compliance audits be performed?

    How often must owners or operators of stationary sources subject to the risk management program regulations perform compliance audits? The regulations at 40 CFR §§68.58(a) and 68.79(a) state that owners or operators must certify that they have evaluated compliance with the applicable prevention program provisions at least once every three…

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  • Do settlement communications, such as past “agreements in principle,” impact the implementation of the final Consent Decrees?

    The parties are bound by the terms of the various final, publicly available consent decrees. These consent decrees were made available for public comment before they were finalized and entered by the Court. Past settlement communications and documents created in the course of settlement discussions have been incorporated (or not)…

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  • What is the Confidentiality Order?

    The Confidentiality Order (Order) is a court order entered by the Federal District Court for the District of Montana (Court) on August 8, 2002, and amended by the Court on December 31, 2003, that applies to Superfund settlement negotiations in the Clark Fork River Basin, including the following sites: Silver…

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  • How does EPA ensure that the potentially responsible parties complete their work?

    All cleanup activities performed by the PRPs are subject to enforcement instruments (i.e., consent decrees or administrative orders) that provide for EPA approval of all deliverables and oversight of all work performed by the PRPs.

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  • Are landfills covered under Title III of SARA since they are covered by RCRA?

    Yes, landfills are subject to certain Title III requirements. Subtitle A of Title III is intended to identify facilities which present a potential hazard for a chemical emergency and to provide a process for local emergency planning committees to engage with such facilities in determining the significance of the release…

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  • Are mobile boosters eligible for the transportation exemption?

    An oil company owns many wells on an oil field. Each well is on its own plot of land. These plots are not adjacent or contiguous and, therefore, each well is its own facility. When operating these wells, it is sometimes necessary to inject air or gas into the well…

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  • Does compliance under OSHA's PSM demonstrate compliance with the risk management program?

    The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (CAAA) mandated the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to develop a regulatory program to protect workers from the risk of accidents that involve hazardous chemicals. OSHA promulgated its Process Safety Management Standard (PSM) on February 24, 1992 (57 FR 6356), codified at…

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  • Applicability of compliance audit provisions to non-prevention program elements

    I have a Program 2 covered process and a Program 3 covered process at my stationary source. I am required (by 40 CFR Section 68.58 and 40 CFR Section 68.79) to certify compliance with prevention program requirements every three years. These compliance audits specifically address the prevention program portions of…

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  • Does a five-year update satisfy the requirement to conduct a compliance audit?

    The owner or operator of a stationary source with a Program 2 or Program 3 process must conduct a compliance audit at least every three years to ensure compliance with the prevention program requirements and must revise and update the risk management plan (RMP) at least every five years (§§68.58…

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