EPA Reconsiders Rule On Risk Management Plans

EPA is mulling over whether or how it should change its Risk Management Plan (RMP) rule designed to prevent accidental releases of harmful chemicals and to mitigate the severity of releases that do occur. EPA is seeking public input on whether it should add reactive and explosive substances, including ammonium nitrate, to the list of chemicals covered by the RMP rule. Ammonium nitrate used in fertilizer was involved in the 2013 explosion and fire at a fertilizer depot in West, Texas, that killed 15 people. The agency is also asking for comments about the advantages and disadvantages of the “safety case” approach to replace its RMP and OSHA’s process safety regulations. The safety case approach, used in several industrialized countries, requires companies and unions to work with regulators to develop regulatory requirements.