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The Emergency Planning and
Community Right-to-Know Act (commonly known as SARA
Title III) was passed in 1986. This far reaching
legislation impacted both the private and public sectors
by requiring the reporting of certain chemicals and the
preparation of detailed emergency response plans to give
first responders information on the amount and location
of those chemicals. It created a working partnership
between federal, state and local governments; the
public; and industry to identify potential chemical
hazards in the community and to do emergency planning
for chemical accidents.
Hazardous materials are
common in communities both in the workplace and in the
home. They are used by many industries, small
businesses, government agencies and private citizens.
If any material, either alone or in combination with
other substances, has the potential to threaten human
health or the environment, it is considered to be a
hazardous material. Hazardous materials are most
commonly stored at businesses or industrial sites in
above-ground or below-ground containers of various
types. They are transported by truck, rail, air, water
and pipeline. Your community plans and prepares for
accidental hazardous materials releases.
Ten
years after this law was enacted, there are many
facilities that still have not complied with the
reporting requirements of SARA Title III. Ignorance of
the law will not prevent compliance enforcement and
failure to comply can result in penalties of up to
$25,000/day. In Wisconsin, several facilities have
already paid forfeitures for non-compliance. There are
many reasons for non-compliance and, hopefully, I can
dispel some of the misconceptions about reporting.
The most
common excuse is, "I didn't know I had to comply."
Although there are some exemptions, mainly for
retailers, any facility that uses, stores or produces
hazardous chemicals may have to report. A facility can
be a factory, school, gas station, community center or
hospital. Farm Co-ops are exempt from reporting
fertilizers and retailers are exempt from reporting
goods packaged for resale.
A common
misconception is that a facility does not use ‘hazardous
chemicals'. The law is somewhat vague in its definition
of hazardous chemicals, but a good rule of thumb is that
if the product comes with a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS),
then it should be reported. Common hazardous chemicals
include propane, kerosene, fuel oil, motor oil and
gasoline. If you have 10,000 lbs. or more of these
products at your facility, you will have to file a
report.
Another
misconception is that the reporting requirements are too
difficult. In fact, SARA reporting is relatively easy if
a facility monitors the hazardous chemicals used on site
throughout the year. Under the law, there are two
categories of regulated chemicals: hazardous substances
and extremely hazardous substances (EHS). EHS chemicals
are found on an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
list of approximately 366 substances. Common EHS
chemicals include chlorine, sulfuric acid, anhydrous
ammonia and nitric acid. Unlike the more common
hazardous substances, the minimum reporting quantities
will vary depending on the chemical.
In
Wisconsin, facilities that use, store or produce
chemicals at or above the threshold quantities are
required to submit a Tier II Reporting Form to the State
Emergency Response Board (SERB), Local Emergency
Planning Committee (LEPC) and the local fire department.
This form is usually a one or two page document,
depending on the number of chemicals being reported.
Basic information asked for includes the facility name
and address, emergency contact person and phone number,
chemical names and quantities. The SERB sends the forms
out by mid-January and they are due back by March 1st.
Failure to receive a form does not absolve a facility
from their reporting obligations. |
