Learn the Issues
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Do facilities that submit lists have to file revised MSDSs?
If a facility submits a list to comply with Section 311, does the facility have to supply a revised MSDS with significant new information or a new MSDS for substances that become present on-site after the initial reporting deadline and exceed the threshold within three months as required by Section…
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Can retail gas stations use new thresholds if USTs are not in compliance?
How does temporary non-compliance with UST requirements affect applicability of the higher gasoline and diesel fuel thresholds for EPCRA? Retail gas stations that were not in compliance with all applicable UST requirements at any time during a calendar year may not apply the higher gasoline and diesel fuel thresholds for…
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Reporting for an EHS mixture based on a concentration range
A facility has a mixture which contains extremely hazardous substances (EHSs). The Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the mixture only indicates a range of concentration for its components. For the purposes, of reporting under EPCRA Sections 302, 304, and 311/312 of EPCRA, should the facility owner/operator report be based…
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Public access for MSDSs
Where should citizens go to request MSDSs on chemicals in a facility within their community? Each submitted MSDS or list along with the community emergency response plan, and inventory form are to be made available to the public at a designated location during normal working hours. Each local emergency planning…
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Reporting to an on-site fire department
Sections 311 and 312 apply to owners or operators of any facility that is required to prepare or have available a material safety data sheet (MSDS) for an OSHA-defined hazardous chemical present at the facility at any one time in amounts equal to or greater than established thresholds. If a…
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Purchases but never receives or stores a hazardous chemical over threshold amount
If a facility purchases more than 10,000 pounds of a hazardous chemical for which OSHA requires an MSDS in a calendar year but never actually receives or stores more than the 10,000 pound threshold at one time, must the facility report under EPCRA Sections 311 and 312? The MSDS and…
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Oxygen used at a hospital by technically qualified individuals
A hospital stores oxygen in a large outside bulk storage tank and delivers the material, as needed, throughout the hospital using a piping system (the oxygen is used only in the treatment of patients). The bulk storage tank is routinely maintained by hospital maintenance people but the oxygen itself is…
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Is there a time period that constitutes "present at the facility?"
A facility owner/operator makes a specialty chemical by first producing one chemical- the reaction intermediate and then injecting chlorine into the reaction vessel to start the final reaction for the final product. The facility runs these batches 3-4 times a year. The reaction intermediate is present over 10,000 pounds on…
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Federal recordkeeping requirements under EPCRA §§311 and 312
Facilities subject to EPCRA §§311 and 312 must submit a material safety data sheet (MSDS) and an inventory form annually to the state emergency response commission (SERC), local emergency planning committee (LEPC), and local fire department. Are there federal recordkeeping requirements for facilities subject to EPCRA §§311 and 312? There…
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Do Sections 311 and 312 pre-empt exisiting state and local programs?
What effect will Sections 311 and 312 requirements have on existing State and local "Right-to-Know" programs? Title III does not pre-empt existing state or local laws. Sections 311 and 312 requirements establish "ground rules" for submitting information about the presence of hazardous chemicals in the community. Where existing "Right-to-Know" laws…
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Threshold planning quantity (TPQ) for a non-reactive extremely hazardous substance (EHS) solid handled both as a solution and as a powder
How does a facility apply the threshold planning quantity (TPQ) for a non-reactive extremely hazardous substance (EHS) solid that is handled both as a solution and as a powder? Facilities that handle both the powdered and solution forms of a particular non-reactive solid EHS will have to consider the quantities…
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Pesticide applicator quantity applied to threshold or transportation exemption
A farmer contracts with an applicator to spray pesticides on his fields. The applicator drives a tank truck onto the farmers' field and sprays the pesticide from the truck onto the fields. For purposes of Section 302 emergency planning requirements, are the EHSs in the truck considered present at the…
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Chemicals in facility pipelines and the EPCRA transportation exemption
Section 327 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) exempts from any Title III reporting requirement (other than the §304 notification obligation) substances or chemicals in transportation and/or being stored incident to transportation. In a final rule promulgated April 22, 1987 ( 52 FR 13378), the Agency interpreted…
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Recommended approach for reporting lead acid batteries when complying with Tier II reporting
Does EPA have a standard or recommended reporting approach for lead acid batteries when complying with EPCRA Section 312 Chemical Inventory Reporting (i.e., Tier II reporting)? EPA suggests that facilities report for lead acid batteries in the same manner they used when complying with EPCRA Section 311 MSDS reporting requirements…
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TXT2, Regulated Identity, and Customer Numbers for Tier II reporting
Where can a facility find their TXT2 Number, Regulated Entity Number, and Customer Number that may be needed to complete the EPCRA Section 312 Chemical Inventory Report (i.e., Tier II report)? TXT2 Numbers, Regulated Entity Numbers, and Customer Numbers are not federally designated or tracked. These number are designed by…
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What information is required on lists submitted for Section 311?
What is required if a list is submitted instead of the actual material safety data sheets (MSDS) under Section 311? Instead of submitting an MSDS for each hazardous chemical, the owner or operator may submit a list of the hazardous chemicals for which the MSDS is required. This list must…
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Updates for 311 MSDS reporting
How would a facility report a hazardous chemical that they acquired above the reporting threshold after the October 17, 1987 deadline, for Section 311? An update must be submitted within three months anytime there is discovery of significant new information, or if an unreported hazardous chemical is present in a…
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Threshold determinations when there is no weight indicated on MSDS
If the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) and label for a particular liquid hazardous chemical does not indicate the weight of the substance, how should the facility owner or operator make threshold and applicability determinations for EPCRA §312 (Tier II) Reporting? If a liquid is not labeled in pounds, its…
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Threshold calculations for acid mixtures
Do you apply the whole weight of an acid mixture towards the threshold under EPCRA Sections 311 and 312 or just the percentage of acid stated on the material safety data sheet (MSDS)? Aqueous acids are considered mixtures under EPCRA Sections 311 and 312. The acid itself is the hazardous…
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Reporting responsibility for hazardous chemicals brought on-site by contractors
A construction company is contracted by a manufacturing company to perform work at the manufacturer's site. The construction company brings hazardous chemicals onto the site to perform its construction activities. During normal conditions of use as well as in foreseeable emergencies, only employees of the construction company will be exposed…