Improving environmental compliance and the role of a compliance assistance center for the chemical industry
The chemical industry is one of the largest business sectors in the US and has the highest quantity of toxic releases and hazardous wastes. The industry is highly regulated under six major environmental laws, presenting major challenges for government and industry in monitoring facility performance and achieving compliance. Moreover, the majority of chemical facilities in the US are small-sized and may not be fully aware of all their responsibilities under these statutes. In this paper the authors explore the legal, demographic, and resource factors that influence the chemical industry's environmental compliance status and efforts. Government records indicate that the chance of a given facility receiving an inspection and an enforcement action (if justified) is very low, even under the law with the greatest enforcement activity, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. For companies that receive an inspection, however, the violation rate is very high. Even more troubling, environmental agencies have inadequate knowledge of the root causes of non-compliance. A recent study by the US Environmental Protection Agency identifies three primary causes: difficulties in understanding and applying regulations and permits, human error, and procedural breakdowns. The authors discuss two promising solutions to compliance problems, which are especially applicable to small chemical facilities: voluntary environmental audit programs, and use of a new compliance assistance center called ChemAlliance. Since fall 1998, ChemAlliance (www.chemalliance.org) has offered clients free use of a web-site with extensive regulatory and compliance information, and has targeted small facilities for assistance. These services have grown in popularity, and are seen as excellent tools to help companies understand their compliance requirements.
- Research Organization:
- Michigan Technological Univ., Houghton, MI (US)
- OSTI ID:
- 20003266
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-990608-; TRN: IM200003%%101
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Air and Waste 92nd Annual Meeting and Exhibition, St. Louis, MO (US), 06/20/1999--06/24/1999; Other Information: 1 CD-ROM. Operating Systems: Windows 3.1, '95, '98 and NT; Macintosh; and UNIX; PBD: 1999; Related Information: In: Air and Waste 92nd annual meeting and exhibition proceedings, [9500] pages.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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