On May 30, 2018, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published proposed revisions to the Risk Management Program (RMP) rules that would largely undo changes to the (stayed) final rule published on January 13, 2017. See 83 Fed. Reg. 24850 (May 30, 2018). Although not a complete one hundred eighty degree U-turn, the revised proposed
PHA
Impact of Delek Refining Decision on EPA’s RMP Penalty Policy
By Kean Miller on
At the very end of 2016, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated two Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) citations for alleged violations of Process Safety Management (“PSM”) regulations. In that case, the Court held that OSHA was barred from issuing a citation for the failure to act on Process Hazard Analysis (“PHA”) findings/recommendations…
EPA RMP Requirements: Safer Technology and Alternatives Analysis
By Kean Miller on
Posted in OSHA, Process Safety Management
On March 14, 2016, Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) proposed changes to the Risk Management Plan Program (“RMP”) Rule. On January 13, 2017, the EPA published a new final rule. This is fourth in a planned series that will address five major changes: root cause analysis for near misses, third-party audits, inherently safer technology,…
How Do These Common Elements Work Together to Promote Safety?
By Kean Miller on
Posted in Process Safety Management
Process safety information (“PSI”) is the foundation on which the rest of the PSM and RMP elements are built. Process safety information is that information that is needed to make sound safety decisions and it includes descriptions of the hazardous chemicals, the technology of the process, and the equipment in the process. Both…
What is the Significance of the PHA Team?
By Kean Miller on
Posted in Process Safety Management
A PHA team must have the following expertise:
- engineering and process operations;
- experience and knowledge specific to the process being evaluated; and
- a facilitator (knowledgeable in the specific PHA methodology being used)
Employers must have a written plan to include employees and their representatives on the conduct and development of PHAs. 29 CFR 1910.119(c) and…