Search
Regulatory Alert - RA 03-09 - PROPOSED RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN SUBMISSION SCHEDULE CHANGES

Member Pipeline - Regulatory - Alert (RA 03-09)

To: Members & Affiliates, Air Quality Committee
From: National Office
Date: September 2, 2003
Subject: PROPOSED RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN SUBMISSION SCHEDULE CHANGES
Reference: RA 03-09

print Printer friendly version

Action Please By:
September 11, 2003

On July 31, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) published proposed changes to its risk management planning regulations: Accidental Release Prevention Requirements: Risk Management Program Requirements Under Clean Air Act Section 112(r)(7); Amendments to the Submission Schedule and Data Requirements (68 Fed. Reg. 45123). The Agency first promulgated risk management planning regulations as part of the accidental release prevention provisions of the Clean Air Act on June 20, 1996 (61 Fed. Reg. 31668). The 1996 regulations require owners and operators of stationary sources to submit risk management plans (RMPs) to federal, state, and local emergency planning and response agencies and to be made available to the public through a central location.

The Agency’s July 31 proposal would require, among other things, that facilities that have reportable accidents to update and re-submit their entire RMP within six months of the date of the accident, report changes in emergency contact information within one month and to remove the regulatory requirement to discuss the off-site consequence analysis in the executive summary of the RMP, among other changes. EPA also is considering requiring utilities covered by Clean Air Act Section 112 (r)(7) to submit key employee injury and illness data along with the RMP. The proposed rule is available on EPA’s website at: http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-AIR/2003/July/Day-31/a19281.pdf. The Agency is seeking comments through September 15, 2003. In order to meet this deadline, AMSA would like members to provide their input on EPA’s proposal to AMSA’s Regulatory Analyst, Will Pettit, at wpettit@amsa-cleanwater.org or at 202/833-3280 by Thursday, September 11, 2003 so that AMSA can compile member input and draft comments on this important issue.

Summary of Proposed Changes
EPA is requesting comments on the following items:

  1. Changes to RMP Submission Requirements
  2. Changes to Executive Summary Content
  3. New Data Elements
  4. Revisions to RMP Submit Format
  5. Collection of OSHA Occupational Injury and Illness Data

1. Changes to RMP Submission Requirements
The Agency is proposing to require facilities that have a reportable accident to update and re-submit their RMP within six months of the date of the accident. Accidents resulting in deaths, injuries, or significant property damage on-site, or known off-site deaths, injuries, evacuations, sheltering in place, property damage, or environmental damage are considered reportable. EPA notes that the proposed change would modify a facility’s schedule for updating and re-submitting its RMP, and the facility would not need to re-submit again, provided there are no other accidents or major changes, for another five years. The Agency believes this will not significantly change the current burden associated with filing an RMP, though if other accidents occur, a facility could be required to update and re-submit their RMP multiple times within a five-year period.

EPA also is proposing to require facilities to update their emergency contact information within one month of a change in the information. This would not, however, require a complete updating and re-submission of the RMP.

2. Changes to Executive Summary Content
In light of recent terrorist attacks, and concerns over public access to sensitive information, the Agency is proposing to remove the requirement that facilities describe their off-site consequence analysis (OCA) within the executive summary of the RMP. This change would only remove the OCA from the executive and not from the body of the RMP. AMSA believes this proposed change is logical and reasonable given new security concerns and the sensitive nature of OCA information.

3. New Data Elements
EPA is proposing to add three relatively minor data elements in the RMP. First, a requirement to include an email address (if any) for the emergency contact to allow the Agency to quickly and directly communicate hazard information. Second, to aid in clarification with the RMP submittal process, the Agency is proposing that facilities include a reason for their revised RMP submittal. This additional reporting requirement is intended to assist the Agency in understanding the reason a facility is submitting a revised RMP or asking to remove an existing one. Lastly, EPA proposes that if a facility uses a contractor to help prepare its RMP that information about the contractor be contained in the RMP. This new data would allow the Agency and other implementing agencies to monitor the use of contractors for RMP preparation and provide for appropriate follow-up. EPA is specifically concerned about systemic errors in the way some contractors prepare RMPs and the fact that utilities, whose RMPs are largely prepared by contractors, may not be “sufficiently familiar with the contents of their RMPs.”

4. Revisions to RMP Submit Format
EPA is proposing to expand the list of possible causes of accidental releases to allow sources to indicate whether the accident involved an uncontrolled/runaway reaction. This new element would provide facilities with an additional choice to more accurately report accidents and provide RMP implementing agencies with a better understanding of whether the accident involved a simple release of the chemical or was the result of a process upset.

5. Collection of OSHA Occupational Injury and Illness Data
EPA is considering whether to require future RMP submissions to include data on employee injury and illness that employers are required to maintain by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). EPA is specifically interested in: 1) Total Incidence Rate, 2) Workdays Lost to Injuries, and 3) Illness and Workdays under Restricted Duties. EPA believes that the ability to evaluate injury and illness data could provide extremely valuable information for understanding the factors that underlie chemical process safety.

Upon initial review, AMSA believes some of these proposed changes are relatively inconsequential and potentially beneficial. However, the changes related to updating and re-submitting RMPs following reportable accidents and the requirement to include key illness and injury data could increase the burden associated with RMP filing. AMSA urges members who currently maintain a RMP to provide input to AMSA about the degree to which the proposed changes would place unnecessary burden on their facilities. AMSA would like member comment on any of the proposed changes by September 11, 2003. Again, the full text of the proposed rule may be found on the Agency’s website at http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-AIR/2003/July/Day-31/a19281.pdf. Again, please submit comments or direct questions to AMSA’s Regulatory Analyst, Will Pettit, at wpettit@amsa-cleanwater.org or at 202/833-3280.