Over thirty years after the requirement was first included in the Clean Water Act and after a suit was filed to force EPA to act, EPA has published a proposed rule relating to planning for worst-case discharges of hazardous substances. The comment period is open to May 27, 2022.

The Clean Water Act was amended by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990. As part of that amendment, a provision was added requiring the issuance of regulations mandating that certain facilities prepare and submit a plan “for responding, to the maximum extent practicable, to a worst case discharge, and to a substantial threat of such a discharge, of oil or a hazardous substance.” CWA Section 311(j)(5); 33 USCA 1321(j)(5). Of course, both the EPA and the U.S. Coast Guard have promulgated various regulatory requirements relating to discharges of oil, such as those in 40 CFR Part 112, as well as some requirements relating to hazardous substances. However, according to EPA, no single program covered all the requirements of CWA Section 311(j)(5).

Continue reading “Hazardous Substance Response Plans Are Coming” →