Electronic GHG Reporting Tool (e-GGRT) Released

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is launching a new tool to allow 28 industrial sectors to submit their 2010 greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution data electronically. Prior to the electronic system being finalized, it was tested by more than 1,000 stakeholders, including industry associations, states and NGOs tested the electronic GHG Reporting Tool (e-GGRT) to ensure clarity and user-friendliness.

EPA expects to receive 2010 GHG data from approximately 7,000 large industrial GHG emitters and suppliers, including power plants, petroleum refineries and landfills. EPA’s GHG Reporting Program, launched in October 2009, requires the reporting of GHG data from large emission sources across a range of industry sectors. Suppliers of products that would emit GHGs if released, combusted, or oxidized are also required to report GHG data. Under this program, covered entities are required to submit GHG data to EPA annually and the first round of data will be submitted electronically by September 30, 2011. EPA plans to publish non-confidential GHG data collected through the GHGRP by the end of 2011.

Caltha LLP provides specialized expertise to clients nationwide in the evaluation environmental rules, developing EH&S compliance procedures, and preparing cost-effective EH&S management programs.

For further information contact Caltha LLP at

info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website

New EPCRA Tier I & Tier II Reporting Forms Proposed

US EPA has proposed a significant revision to the forms and types of information required to be submitted under EPCRA Tier I and Tier II. Title III of SARA (EPCRA) established authorities for emergency planning and preparedness, emergency release notification reporting, community right to-know reporting, and toxic chemical release reporting. It is intended to encourage State and local planning and preparedness for releases of extremely hazardous substances (EHSs) and to provide the public, local governments, fire departments and other emergency officials with information concerning chemical releases and the potential chemical risks in their communities.

As background, under the emergency planning provisions of EPCRA (40 CFR part 355), a facility is required to provide a one-time notification to the State Emergency Response Commission (SERC) and the local emergency planning committee (LEPC) if the facility has any EHS present at the site in excess of its threshold planning quantity (TPQ). Reporting requirements under the community right-to-know provisions, sections 311 and 312 of EPCRA are ongoing obligations. Sections 311 and 312 of EPCRA apply to owners and operators of facilities that are required to prepare or have available a material safety data sheet (MSDS) for a hazardous chemical defined under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard (HCS). If the hazardous chemical is present at or above the reporting thresholds, the facility owner or operator is required to submit a MSDS to the SERC and LEPC. Under section 312 of EPCRA, if a hazardous chemical is present at or above the reporting threshold, the facility owner or operator is required to submit an emergency and hazardous chemical inventory form (Tier I or Tier II) to the SERC, LEPC and the local fire department annually by March 1.

Request information on EPCRA reporting support services provided by Caltha

The Tier I and Tier II forms were first published in 1987 and were amended in
1990. Recently, State and local agencies requested that EPA modify these forms to include new data elements and revise existing data elements to make it more useful for emergency planning and response.

What is the difference between Tier I and Tier II reporting requirements under EPCRA?

One of the important changes proposed for the EPCRA Tier I and Tier II reporting forms helps clarify how quantities of EHS chemicals were determined. In a final rule published in 2008, EPA clarified how to report a hazardous chemical mixture. The facility has to aggregate all amounts of that EHS present throughout the facility in mixtures and in pure form to determine if the reporting threshold for EHS has been met or exceeded. If the reporting threshold for that EHS is exceeded, then the facility would have an option to report the mixture or the EHS component.

The current Tier I and Tier II reporting form requires facilities to report the name of the mixture, indicate whether the mixture contains an EHS, indicate the physical and health hazards of the mixture, and report the amount present on-site, as well as the type of storage and storage locations. The regulated community and the state and local agencies, however, are unsure if the amount present on-site refers to the mixture or the non-EHS hazardous chemical or the EHS in the mixture. In order to clarify the reporting of pure chemicals vs. mixtures, the proposed Tier II form has separate entries for mixtures and pure chemicals.

Caltha LLP provides specialized expertise to clients nationwide in the evaluation environmental rules, developing EH&S compliance procedures, and preparing cost-effective EH&S management programs.


For further information contact Caltha LLP at
info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website

Final IUR - Chemical Data Reporting Rule - IUR Reporting Restarted

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has finalized the revised rule for reporting the manufacture and import of chemical substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), as required under 40 CFR 710 and Section 8(a) of TSCA. This rule has commonly refereed to as the Inventory Update Reporting rule, or IUR. The revised rule, known as the Chemical Data Reporting Rule (CDR), also requires that companies submit the information electronically to EPA, rather than on paper, and limits confidentiality claims by companies. Reporting for 2010 under the IUR was originally required to be submitted between June – September 2011; however, because the revised rule had not been completed, EPA temporarily suspended reporting requirement.

The CDR Rule, which falls under the Toxic Substances Control Act Inventory Update Rule (IUR), requires more frequent reporting of critical information on chemicals and requires the submission of new and updated information relating to potential chemical exposures, current production volume, manufacturing site-related data, and processing and use-related data for a larger number of chemicals. EPA is requiring companies to submit the information through the Internet, using EPA’s electronic reporting tool.

Companies will be required to start following the new reporting requirements in the next data submission period, which will occur February 1, 2012 to June 30, 2012.

[Read a Regulatory Briefing on the new TSCA Chemical Data Reporting Rule]

Notice: For many companies that manufacture chemicals, or that import chemicals for their own use or for further distribution, the IUR (now CDR) reporting requirements are the most significant compliance requirement under TSCA affecting their operations. Because the IUR reporting requirements cycle every five years, many companies need to “relearn” the reporting requirements in advance of a reporting year.

Caltha LLP will be conducting a TSCA Compliance Training Session, with an emphasis on the new Chemical Data Reporting Rule, in October 2011. This TSCA training is intended for corporate and facility environmental compliance staff, product responsibility/product stewardship coordinators, and staff involved in purchasing or arranging imports of chemicals from foreign suppliers, and other staff involved in TSCA compliance.

If you would like to receive further information on the TSCA Compliance Training Session, once scheduled, email Caltha at Info@calthacompany.com

For further information contact Caltha LLP at

info@calthacompany.com or Caltha LLP Website