SARA Sections 311-312 Compliance: is It Worth the Cost?

Abstract

SPE Member Abstract SARA Title III Sections 311 and 312 require notification and inventorying of Hazardous Chemicals at or above the 10,000 pound threshold (except in Louisiana, where the 312 threshold is 500 pounds). The original concept of Sections 311 and 312 limited applicability to Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Codes 20–39. The courts extended the applicability to all SIC Codes. This includes the Petroleum Extraction Industry (SIC 13). SARA requires Hazardous Chemicals, such as cement, sand, xylenes and acids, even though they remain onsite at drilling and producing locations in closed trucks for 1–4 hours. The SARA program provides no funding for local agencies and local fire departments. Thus, these organizations have little incentive to process the information. Near oil and gas fields, fire departments are typically manned by volunteers. Also, many of the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) chairpersons are without staff or assistance. This paper discusses the results of surveys of fire departments and LEPC in rural petroleum producing areas regarding:What they do with the SARA 311 and 312 information,Depth of requests for information, andAvailability of SARA 311 and 312 data during emergencies. Finally, the paper assesses economic impact of the SARA 311 and 312 programs on Voluntary Fire Departments, LEPC and the Petroleum Extraction Industry in remote areas. Introduction The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act [SARA] includes Title III specifically aimed at providing States, Counties [Parish] and Fire Departments with information on Extremely Hazardous Substances [40 CFR Part 355] and Hazardous Chemicals [40 CFR Part 370 and 29 CFR Section 1910.1200] at job sites. The United States Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] promulgated regulations implementing SARA Title III for Standard Industry Classification [SIC] Codes 20-39, i.e., manufacturing, chemical, and refining sectors [52 Fed. Reg. 38364]. This promulgation relied on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA] Hazard Communication Standard [HAZCOMM] [29 CFR Section 1910.1200]. The International Steel Workers Union challenged the OSHA Hazard Communications Standard SIC Codes limitations. The resulting court decision extended the applicability of SARA Title III to all SIC codes. The court action has imposed "unnecessary and burdensome" regulations on the Petroleum Extraction Industry, State and Local Agencies and virtually every Fire Departments in the United States in petroleum producing provinces. P. 771^