New EPCRA Tier I and Tier II Reporting Requirements

In the July 13, 2012 final rule, US EPA has added new reporting requirements to Tier I and Tier II reporting forms it believes will be helpful for state and local agencies to develop or modify their community emergency response plans EPA is adding new data elements and revising existing data elements on the Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Forms under Section 312 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). In addition, EPA is revising the chemical reporting section of the Tier II inventory form to make reporting easier for facilities and make the form more user-friendly for state and local officials.

The rule will take effect on January 1, 2014.

Under EPCRA Section 312, if a facility has hazardous chemicals at or above the reporting threshold specified at 40 CFR Part 370, the facility owner or operator is required to submit an emergency and hazardous chemical inventory form (either Tier I or Tier II) to the State Emergency Response Commission (SERC), the local emergency planning committee (LEPC), and the local fire department by March 1 each year. The Tier I reporting form requires facilities to report on the general types and locations of hazardous chemicals present at the facility. Tier II inventory forms require facilities to report specific information on the amounts and locations of hazardous chemicals present at the facility. Currently, all states require facilities to submit the federal Tier II inventory form or a state equivalent form.

What is the difference between Tier 1 EPCRA Report Forms and Tier 2 EPCRA Report Forms?

Read about State EPCRA Tier II Reporting support services

EPA will now require facilities to report their latitude and longitude as well as the identification numbers assigned under the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) program and the risk management program. Also, they will be required to indicate whether chemicals are stored at a manned or unmanned location. Another change involves reporting on the number of occupants that are expected to be in the facility at any one time rather than the maximum number of employees. EPA decided to allow facilities the option of including the facility phone number on the revised forms, as well as contact information for the facility parent company. However, facilities will be required to provide emergency contact information.

Facilities must now indicate if they are subject to EPCRA Section 302 and Clean Air Act Section 112(r), also known as the Risk Management Program.

The final rule adds separate data fields for reporting pure chemical and mixtures in the chemical reporting section of the Tier II inventory form along with a new requirement to provide a description for the storage types and conditions. The rule revises the Tier II inventory form for facilities to report any additional state or local reporting requirements or to voluntarily report hazardous chemicals below the reporting thresholds.

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