Terrorism Prevention at Chemical Plants Balked

Oct. 6, 2000
The U.S. Senate reportedly doesn't plan on funding a Department of\r\nJustice study of anti-terrorism preparedness at chemical plants.

The U.S. Senate reportedly doesn''t plan on funding a Department of Justice study of anti-terrorism preparedness at chemical plants.

Congress authorized the study last year in the Chemical Safety Information, Site Security and Fuels Regulatory Relief Act.

This Act also restricted public information on chemical companies'' spill and explosion hazards after the Department of Justice (DOJ) asserted that chemical plants are attractive targets for terrorists.

Keeping the public in the dark about what kinds of chemical hazards exist right outside their doors is wrong, according to those looking out for the public''s interest.

"The Senate''s inaction confirms that Congress is more interested in protecting the chemical industry thatn in protecting public safety," said Paul Orum of the Working Group on Community Right-to-Know, a public interest watchdog organization.

"After blindfolding the public about chemical hazards at the behest of the chemical manufacturers, the Senate is now failing to even fund studies of those same hazards," said Jeremiah Baumann with the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.

The groups are questioning why Congress last year restricted the public''s right-to-know but this year won''t fund a study to improve safety at chemical plants.

Environmental, labor and public health organizations have long advocated fo safer technologies that reduce chemical company dangers to workers and communities.

This advocacy, in part, led to the Clean Air Act of 1990, which required chemical companies to prepare for the "worst case" chemical accident scenarios.

Those scenarios point out the neighborhoods, schools, hospitals and other public sites that could fall in the path of an explosion or toxic gas release.

On Aug. 4, DOJ published rules restricting the information available on these sites.

Groups like Orum''s are unnerved by this action because he says the DOJ had not even started an interim site security report to Congress when it restricted the information.

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee received the department''s request to fund the site security stody on March 31.

"On chemical safety, this looks like a know-nothing, do-nothing Congress. No right-to-know and no action to reduce hazards," said Orum.

by Virginia Sutcliffe

About the Author

EHS Today Staff

EHS Today's editorial staff includes:

Dave Blanchard, Editor-in-Chief: During his career Dave has led the editorial management of many of Endeavor Business Media's best-known brands, including IndustryWeekEHS Today, Material Handling & LogisticsLogistics Today, Supply Chain Technology News, and Business Finance. In addition, he serves as senior content director of the annual Safety Leadership Conference. With over 30 years of B2B media experience, Dave literally wrote the book on supply chain management, Supply Chain Management Best Practices (John Wiley & Sons, 2021), which has been translated into several languages and is currently in its third edition. He is a frequent speaker and moderator at major trade shows and conferences, and has won numerous awards for writing and editing. He is a voting member of the jury of the Logistics Hall of Fame, and is a graduate of Northern Illinois University.

Adrienne Selko, Senior Editor: In addition to her roles with EHS Today and the Safety Leadership Conference, Adrienne is also a senior editor at IndustryWeek and has written about many topics, with her current focus on workforce development strategies. She is also a senior editor at Material Handling & Logistics. Previously she was in corporate communications at a medical manufacturing company as well as a large regional bank. She is the author of Do I Have to Wear Garlic Around My Neck?, which made the Cleveland Plain Dealer's best sellers list.

Nicole Stempak, Managing Editor:  Nicole Stempak is managing editor of EHS Today and conference content manager of the Safety Leadership Conference.

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