Changes to Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Reporting Forms

On July 13, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) modified the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) Section 312 Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Forms (Tier I and Tier II) to add new data elements under the facility identification and contact information sections.  EPA also revised some existing data elements. 

In October 2011 ACA submitted comments to EPA generally supporting revisions in the August 2011 proposed rule; however, ACA expressed concern that some of the changes and revisions in the proposal, however slight, were not warranted by the administrative record and would add additional recordkeeping burden. ACA asked EPA to abandon certain new data elements, or at least streamline the data elements to address documented problems and concerns with the current Tier I and Tier II forms.     

In general, EPA heeded ACA comments on the proposed rule, and the changes aren’t very substantial.  Most significantly, facilities need to keep track of a few additional things during the 2013 reporting period. The final rule is effective on January 1, 2014, and facilities must comply with the new requirements for the 2013 reporting year.  

These modifications in the final rule change existing data elements and add new data elements to make the forms more useful for these emergency planning agencies and provide information to the public concerning potential chemical hazards present in their communities.

The changes and additions to the forms include the following:

• Facility’s latitude and longitude;
• Identification numbers assigned under the Toxic Release Inventory and risk management program;
• Whether the facility is manned or unmanned;
• Estimate for the maximum number of occupants at the facility at any given time;
• Whether the facility is subject to EPCRA section 302 and the Clean Air Act section 112(r) risk management program;
• Contact info for the person responsible for completing the forms;
• Emergency contact information for facilities subject to EPCRA section 302;
• Email addresses for the operator and emergency contact;
• Revised range codes for the maximum and daily average amount of hazardous chemicals; and
• Facilities must provide a description for storage types and conditions (rather than reporting codes).

Additional information, including the final rule, is available athttp://www.epa.gov/emergencies/content/epcra/.