Biden proposes restoring chemical safety standards weakened by Trump

The Biden administration is proposing to restore chemical safety regulations that were loosened under the Trump administration. 

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to reimpose certain safety requirements that apply to facilities including agricultural supply distributors, chemical manufacturers and distributors, food and beverage manufacturers and oil refineries. 

In 2019, the Trump administration got rid of requirements to assess potentially safer technologies and processes that may limit hazards. It also eliminated requirements to conduct “root cause” analyses after accidents, hire third parties to audit the facilities after accidents and provide the public with information about chemical hazards upon request.

These requirements were imposed under the Obama administration after a 2013 explosion at a fertilizer plant in Texas killed 15 people. 

In restoring these requirements, EPA Administrator Michael Regan argued that they will protect the health and safety of people who live near such industrial facilities. 

“This rule will better protect communities from chemical accidents, and advance environmental justice for communities that have been disproportionately impacted by these facilities,” he said in a written statement. 

Former EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, who worked under former President Trump, had argued that doing away with the requirements eliminated burdens on companies and addressed homeland security concerns. The EPA specifically claimed at the time that providing public information could give terrorists and criminals access to information about hazardous substances.

“Accident prevention is a top priority of the EPA and this rule promotes improved coordination between chemical facilities and emergency responders, reduces unnecessary regulatory burdens, and addresses security risks associated with previous amendments to the RMP rule,” Wheeler said at the time.  

In its new rule, the Biden administration sought to address this security concern by limiting information availability to people who live within 6 miles of a facility. 

The Biden administration is also proposing new requirements for facilities including that they must have a community notification system set up to warn people when chemical releases threaten the community. 

This story was updated at 2:59 p.m.