Question

What laws exist to protect the public against exposures resulting from hazardous-chemical accidents? What are the main features of the legislation?

Short answer

Several laws and regulations exist to protect the public from exposures from hazardous-chemical accidents. These include the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA), the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), and the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA). The fundamental aspects of these laws involve provisions for liability, compensation, cleaning up and emergency response, ensuring public access to information about hazardous chemicals, setting safety standards and providing educational resources, and regulating the production and use of certain chemicals.

Step-by-step solution

Identify laws related to hazardous chemical accidents

There are several laws and regulations that provide protection from hazardous chemical exposures. These include:1. The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA)2. The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA)3. The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)4. The Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA).

Explain main features of CERCLA

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) or Superfund, gives the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the authority to respond to releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances that may endanger public health or the environment. It establishes provisions for liability, compensation, clean-up, and emergency response for hazardous substances released into the environment.

Discuss main characteristics of EPCRA

The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) helps to ensure that the public has access to information about the presence of hazardous chemicals in their communities and what to do in an emergency. This act requires industries to report on the storage, use and releases of hazardous substances to federal, state, and local governments.

Outline primary purposes of OSHA

The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) ensures that employers provide a safe and healthful workplace by setting and enforcing standards and providing training, education, and assistance. OSHA standards cover a wide variety of workplace hazards, including those related to hazardous chemicals.

Highlight main features of TSCA

The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) permits the EPA to regulate the manufacture, distribution, import and processing of certain chemicals. When a chemical poses an unreasonable risk to health or the environment, the EPA can ban or limit its production or use.