An EPA final rule relaxing safety requirements for chemical plants takes effect Dec. 19.
More than 12,500 sites are covered by the rule, EPA estimates. In addition to chemical plants, employers involved with the wholesaling, distribution, and use of large amounts of chemicals could have to comply with the rule.
The new “risk management program” rule sets revised mandates for what information is available to the public and emergency agencies and changes compliance deadlines.
The rule also rescinds a host of provisions in the original 2017 mandate, including requirements for third-party compliance audits and root cause analysis for chemical release ...