The EPA's process safety management program for preventing accidental chemical releases (40 CFR 68)

Section 304, Chemical Process Safety Management,'' of the Clean Air Act (CAA) Amendments of 1990 required the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to develop a complete integrated process safety management program regulation. In February 1992, OSHA published rule 29 CFR 1910.119, Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals''. The 1990 CAA Amendment section 112(r), Prevention of Accidental Releases'', required the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish measures for owners and operators of facilities processing or handling hazardous materials to prevent accidental releases of regulated substances and other extremely hazardous substances to the air. Additionally, it required the consequence of releases to be minimized by focusing preventative measures on those chemicals that pose the greatest risk. Section 112(r) begins with a general duty clause requiring owners and operators to: identify hazards that may result from releases; design and maintain a safe facility; and minimize the consequences of releases when they occur. The major difference between the two regulations concerns the areas affected by the potential release of a regulated substance. The OSHA 29 CFR 1910.119 regulation limits the concern to incidents that could result in an exposure to employees within the boundaries of the facility. The proposed EPA 40 CFRmore » regulation will address significant accidental releases that have a potential for off-site effects on humans and the environment. The provisions of the new EPA regulation would require additional resources and increase the formal documentation and record keeping requirements beyond those of the older OSHA regulation.« less