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  • Health information language requirements for Section 304 notifications

    The follow-up emergency notice requires the owner or operator of a facility that has released a reportable quantity of a substance requiring Section 304 notification to relate, in a follow-up notice, "any known or anticipated acute or chronic health risks associated with the release." Since general health information is already…

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  • Are pipelines, barges, and vessels subject to release notification?

    Do the Section 304 release notification requirements apply to pipelines, barges, and other vessels as well as to other transportation facilities? Title III (Section 327) does not apply to the transportation of any substance or chemical including transportation by pipeline, except as provided in Section 304. Section 304 requires notification…

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  • Under EPCRA, who is responsible for reporting releases and when must the report be made?

    Under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA), who is responsible for reporting releases and when must the report be made? Under section 304 of EPCRA, the owner or operator of a facility is required to report immediately to the appropriate State Emergency Response Commissions (SERCs) and Local Emergency…

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  • Does the "federally permitted release" exemption apply fully to state permitted releases?

    No. State permitted releases are exempted only to the extent that the releases are considered "federally permitted" under Section 101(10) of CERCLA.

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  • Exceeding "continuous release" amounts

    Are releases above the amount qualifying as a "continuous releases" exempt from Section 304 notification requirements? Because "statistically significant increases" from a "continuous release" must be reported as an episodic release under CERCLA Section 103(a), such releases must also be reported under Section 304 of Title III. Any clarifications or…

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  • Who must report in cases of transportation-related releases?

    In the case of transportation-related releases, should the emergency release notification requirements apply to the owner or the operator of the facility? Either the owner or operator may give notice after a release. Owners and operators may make private arrangements concerning which party is to provide release notification. However, under…

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  • Waste streams and the mixture rule

    Where there are several waste streams with the same identification number, is it sufficient to know the average quantities, or the maximum observed quantity, of hazardous constituents of the waste streams in order to apply the mixture rule to all of them? No. The mixture rule provision applies only to…

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  • Responsibility of transportation owners or operators in the event of a release

    What is the responsibility of transportation owners or operators in the event of a spill or release of extremely hazardous substances or CERCLA hazardous substances? Although owners or operators of facilities in transportation or those that store substances under active shipping papers are not required to notify state and local…

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  • Release notification requirements for an EHS generated as by-product

    Pursuant to Section 304(a)(2), the owner or operator of a facility must report to the State Emergency Response Commission (SERC) and the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) any releases of extremely hazardous substances (EHSs) or CERCLA hazardous substances which equal or exceed established reportable quantities (RQs). This requirement only applies…

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  • Spills onto concrete floors inside a building

    A facility has a spill of an extremely hazardous substance in an amount greater than its reportable quantity. The spill occurs on a concrete floor that is inside a facility building. Before the spill can be cleaned up, a portion (less than RQ) of the EHS enters the outside atmosphere…

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  • Reportable quantity calculations for chemicals in abandoned containers

    Must any amount of a listed chemical contained within abandoned or discarded barrels, containers, or other receptacles be considered to determine if a specific reportable quantity has been exceeded under EPCRA Section 304 notification requirements? 40 CFR §355.61 (April 22, 1987, 52 FR 13395 ) defines a release as "any…

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  • Releases from animal waste to non-air environmental media

    On June 13, 2019, EPA published a Final Rule adding an exemption to the release reporting requirements of EPCRA Section 304 ( 40 CFR Part 355 ) for substances from animal waste being emitted into the air ( 84 FR 27533 ). Does this exemption also apply to substances from…

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  • What facilities are exempt from Section 304 notification requirements?

    A facility itself can only be exempted if there are no hazardous chemicals present at the facility. The term "hazardous chemical," as defined under Section 311 of Title III, includes any substance which constitutes a physical or health hazard. This broad definition is borrowed from the Occupational Safety Health Act…

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  • Releases of wastes not individually listed as CERCLA hazardous substances

    Can releases of wastes that are not individually listed as CERCLA hazardous substances still be subject to CERCLA reporting requirements? Yes. CERCLA reporting requirements apply not only to all of the substances individually listed in 40 CFR 302.4 , but also to wastes or waste streams exhibiting the characteristics of…

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  • Saccharin Removed from CERCLA Hazardous Substance List

    Is saccharin and its salts a CERCLA hazardous substance? On December 17, 2010 ( 75 FR 78918 ), EPA published a final rule to remove saccharin and its salts from the CERCLA list of hazardous substances and the RCRA list of hazardous wastes. EPA originally added saccharin to the CERCLA…

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