EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt signed the Risk Management Program (RMP) Reconsideration proposed rule to address potential security risks, improve emergency planning and public information regarding accidents.
EPA has requested public comment on the proposed changes to the final Risk Management Program Amendments rule (Amendments rule) issued on January 13, 2017. EPA has proposed to rescind amendments relating to safer technology and alternatives analyses, third-party audits, incident investigations, information availability, and several other minor regulatory changes. EPA has also proposing to modify amendments relating to local emergency coordination and emergency exercises, and to change the compliance dates for these provisions.
EPA has a responsibility to protect first responders and communities adjacent to facilities with chemical substances and has done so, in part, through the Risk Management Program (RMP). RMP regulations, first issued in 1996, require facilities to take steps to prevent and mitigate the consequences of accidental release of regulated substances. The proposed rule would rescind or modify certain provisions of the RMP Amendments rule published in January 2017. It proposes to reduce what EPA describes as unnecessary regulatory burdens while maintaining consistency with the OSHA’s Process Safety Management standard. In addition, the rule proposes revised compliance dates for the modified RMP requirements to provide necessary time for agency programmatic changes and for regulated facilities to implement the new requirements.
Initial discussion of the proposed changes prompted a coalition of 11 Attorneys General to file a lawsuit challenging Administrator Pruitt’s rule delaying the effective date of a rule that EPA developed over the course of several years to update its original 1996 Risk Management Program regulations. That case was argued before the D.C. Circuit on March 16, 2018, and is pending with the Court for decision.
“EPA administrators are supposed to push for safeguards to protect workers and residents from deadly catastrophes, like the one we saw in 2013 when the West, Texas, fertilizer plant explosion killed 15 people,” said Environmental Working Group (EWG) President Ken Cook. “But this is Scott Pruitt. There apparently is no favor he won’t do for the chemical industry. Repealing safety measures at industry’s behest is just all in a day’s work.”
According to reports by The Hill and Politico Pro, the safeguards EPA is seeking to rescind include:
* The requirement that chemical companies must determine the root causes of spills or explosions.
* The requirement that an independent third party investigate spills, explosions and other disasters.
* Requirements that accident investigation teams include experts on the chemical processes involved and those who have experience investigating such incidents.
* Training requirements for supervisors of plant operations.
* The requirement for the plant owner or operators to keep safety information up to date.
* The requirement that plant owners release chemical hazard information to the public upon request.
The proposed rule will be available for public comment for 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register. A public hearing on the rule is scheduled for June 14, 2018.
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New EPA Office of Continuous Improvement
EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt recently met with more than 75 employees and stakeholders to provide an update on the implementation of the new EPA Lean Management System (ELMS) and announced EPA’s new Office of Continuous Improvement (OCI) and its director, Serena McIlwain.
EPA established OCI to coordinate agency-wide implementation of ELMS. ELMS is a system that will enable the Agency to track important Agency actions to ensure they respond and resolve challenges quickly and thoroughly using Lean principles and tools. ELMS asks that all parts of the EPA set ambitious and achievable targets for their work, measure their results, and attempt to improve their processes to bridge gaps between targets and results. ELMS uses visual management with regularly updated performance and work flow data to monitor progress toward EPA’s Strategic Plan targets. EPA’s programs and regional offices hold monthly reviews of the performance data and report their progress to the agency’s Chief of Operations. Administrator Pruitt will hold quarterly reviews to monitor overall progress on the Agency’s Strategic Plan and priority areas.
“I am very grateful to have been selected as the first director of EPA’s new Office of Continuous Improvement. My team is eager to provide the Agency with the training, tools, and support needed to bring ELMS to life. I look forward to supporting EPA’s transformation to a much more efficient and effective organization,” said EPA Director of the Office of Continuous Improvement Serena McIlwain.
Serena McIlwain has served in the federal government for nearly 30 years, working in both the legislative and executive branches of government. Most recently, Serena was selected as EPA’s Performance Improvement Officer (PIO) and Director of the newly created Office of Continuous Improvement. In this role, Serena will implement the new EPA Lean Management System (ELMS) to drive accountability and performance improvement. Prior to assuming her new role, Serena was the Assistant Regional Administrator and Director of the Environmental Management Division at EPA Region 9 in San Francisco, CA. Before joining EPA in 2014, she served as the Chief Operating Officer at the Department of Energy’s Fossil Energy department, providing management and operational support for scientists, engineers, technicians and administrative professionals.
Read more on EPA to Relax Risk Management Rules.
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