On August 18, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) proposed the Safer Communities by Chemical Accident Prevention (SCCAP) rule, as a revision to the Risk Management Program (RMP), codified in 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 68. USEPA held three public hearings in September 2022 and received numerous comments during the comment period, which ended on October 31, 2022. The comments are currently being reviewed and the final rule is expected by August 2023 (at the latest). Once finalized, all affected facilities will have three (3) years to fully comply with all the requirements of the SCCAP rule.
USEPA’s stated objectives for this revision are to strengthen the RMP and further protect vulnerable communities near the affected facilities from chemical accidents. This revision is part of a broader effort by USEPA in addressing Environmental Justice issues within regulatory frameworks.
Approximately 1,200 facilities nationwide are expected be affected by the SCCAP proposed rule, but what do the expected provisions of the final rule mean to the operations and planning for these affected facilities?
Proposed Revisions:
The SCCAP proposed rule will revise several elements of RMP. Some of these revisions were proposed in 2017 and revised in the 2019 RMP Reconsideration Rule. The SCCAP proposed revisions are:
Strengthening Prevention Program
The SCCAP attempts to strengthen the prevention program for Program Level 2 and Program Level 3 facilities as follows:
- Hazard Reviews (HR) and Process Hazard Analyses (PHA) must now consider natural hazards, including those associated with climate change and loss of power. Natural hazards include meteorological hazards from weather and climate cycles and geological hazards. Program Level 2/3 facilities will be required to make arrangements for backup power for all air pollution control and monitoring systems used for prevention and detection of accidental releases for the affected processes.
- Siting analysis in HR and PHA must consider risks posed by processes in other nearby facilities to the affected facility’s processes and also the accidental release consequences posed by proximity to the public and public receptors. This revision will expand drastically the scope of HR and PHA for facilities located in predominantly residential and industrialized areas.
- Safer Technologies and Alternatives Analysis (STAA) will need to be conducted for the following Program Level 3 facilities as part of PHA. These STAAs will need to include an assessment of practicability of implementation of inherent safety measures (ISM).
- Petroleum and coal products (NAICS codes beginning with 324) and chemical manufacturing processes (NAICS codes beginning with 325) that are located within one mile of another RMP-regulated facility with these same NAICS codes; and
- Any petroleum and coal products manufacturing process (NAICS codes beginning with 324) that uses hydrofluoric acid (HF) in an alkylation unit.
- Facilities with Program Level 2 and Program Level 3 processes will have to complete a root cause analysis (RCA) within 12 months of an RMP reportable incident.
- Third party compliance audits will be required when: (a) a facility has two RMP reportable releases in a five-year period, or (b) a facility with a Program Level 3 process under NAICS codes beginning with 324 or 325 that is located within one mile of another regulated NAICS 324 or 325 facility has an RMP reportable release. There are specific provisions for these third-party audits that will have to be strictly followed.
- Most recently promulgated Recognized and Generally Accepted Good Engineering Practices (RAGAGEP) will be required to be included in the PHAs.
Expanding Employee Participation
The SCCAP proposed rule expands the employee participation in affected facilities by:
- Requiring active employee participation in RMP-related activities, including hazard evaluations, RCAs, and third-party audits at facilities with Program Level 2 and Program Level 3 processes;
- Authorizing the employees to stop work in certain circumstances for safety reasons; and
- Providing a platform for employees to report non-compliance issues related to RMP.
Expanding Emergency Response
The SCCAP proposed rule expands the emergency response in an affected facility by:
- Requiring affected facilities to develop a notification system for the community affected by an accidental release;
- Requiring that all components of a community emergency response be explicitly identified in the affected facility’s Emergency Response Program requirements; and
- Requiring field exercise on emergency response be conducted every 10 years for all Program Level 2 and Program Level 3 facilities.
Additional RMP Information Availability
Currently, affected facilities are required to submit the RMP Plans to USEPA and to the Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs). In addition, the SCCAP proposed rule requires the additional RMP information availability for the public:
- Any resident within six miles of the affected facility will be able to request information on the chemical hazards at the facility including a copy of the RMP Plan; and
- Any future updates to the RMP Plan submitted to EPA must include:
- A list of recommendations of HR/PHA that were declined by the facility and justifications; and
- Monitoring technologies in process area and perimeter monitoring that will be used to detect accidental releases of RMP-listed substances.
Planning:
Affected facilities will have three (3) years from the issuance of the rule to comply with the new requirements such as STAA, RCA, third-party compliance audit, process and perimeter monitoring, employee training, RAGAGEP incorporation, employee participation, emergency response public notification, and exercise evaluation reports. The updated RMP Plan must be submitted with all of these new provisions within four (4) years of issuance of the rule.
If these RMP revisions are finalized as proposed in the SCCAP proposed rule, it could be a daunting task to implement all of the requirements at affected facilities, especially for facilities with multiple RMP-listed substances and located near residential areas or in industrial areas. Advance planning is essential to implement the required items within this three-year window from issuance of the rule in a phase-wise manner that avoids or minimizes business interruptions.
How EDGE Can Assist:
EDGE has extensive experience in auditing, developing, and implementing prevention programs and emergency response programs for facilities affected by RMP and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Process Safety Management (PSM). EDGE can help you with an initial comprehensive review of your RMP-affected processes in light of the new requirements and develop a phase-wise implementation plan for your facility that will avoid any significant business interruptions and negative public perception. EDGE can also develop a robust management system for the facility to continue compliance with the new requirements.