Transcript Refinery Work Group Report

Interagency Refinery Task Force
Gina M. Solomon, M.D., M.P.H.
Deputy Secretary for Science and Health
California Environmental Protection Agency
[email protected]
Background
• Governor’s Working Group on Refinery Safety formed in
September 2012 after Chevron Richmond refinery fire;
• Participants from 13 agencies and departments;
• Met with industry, labor, community, environmental,
academic, local emergency response and other
stakeholders;
• Reviewed reports and documents from CSB, CalOSHA,
LOHP, WSPA, Chevron, and others;
• Issued draft report “Improving Public and Worker Safety
at Oil Refineries” in July 2013;
• Expect to release a final report later this Fall.
Goals of Governor’s Working Group
1. Examine ways to improve
public and worker safety
through enhanced
oversight of refineries; and
2. Strengthen emergency
preparedness in
anticipation of any future
incident.
Findings: Oversight and Coordination
• Regulatory agencies with
responsibility for refinery oversight
have overlapping jurisdictions;
• No single state or local regulatory
entity has a complete picture of
compliance status;
• Some good models out there (eg.
Contra Costa ISO and Safety
Summits);
• Overall, agencies engage in relatively
little information-sharing and
coordination of efforts.
Findings: Emergency Response and
Preparedness
• No clear definition of when refinery
must notify local officials of a release;
• Hazardous Materials Area Plans do
not address some key issues;
• Difficulties in communication
between emergency responders;
• Air monitoring network does not
provide real-time data;
• Challenges communicating with
surrounding communities regarding
health risk and appropriate actions.
Findings:
Safety and Prevention of Hazardous Events
• Gaps in the Process Safety Management (PSM)
and California Accidental Release Program
(CalARP) regulations;
• Regulatory agency challenges, including limited
staffing, resources, and penalties;
• Limited data availability
and information sharing.
Findings: Shortcomings In
Community Education and Alerts
• Nearby residents had little sense of the severity of the
situation or what individual actions they should take;
• Difficulty disseminating information to the public and
other media sources;
• LEPCs are not aligned geographically or functionally
with the CUPAs and have become disconnected from
community right-to-know efforts;
• Public involvement has not been
well-integrated into air monitoring
decisions.
Recommendations Categories
1.
2.
3.
4.
Emergency management and response;
Safety and prevention;
Education and outreach to the public;
Improved agency coordination through the
establishment of an Interagency Refinery
Task Force.
Recommendations:
Emergency Management and Response
• Work with CUPAs to create refinery-specific
elements in Hazardous Material Area Plans:
1.
2.
3.
4.
alignment of radio communications between response officials;
clear criteria for the establishment of a Unified Incident
Command and Joint Operation Center;
plans and protocols for transit agencies and other major entities
outside refineries; and
requirements for joint drills and exercises.
• Clarify reporting thresholds during hazardous
materials release or threatened release;
• Improve real-time monitoring of toxic air
contaminants.
Recommendations:
Safety and Prevention
• Strengthen PSM and Cal ARP Programs:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
implement inherently safer systems to the extent feasible;
perform periodic safety culture assessments;
adequately incorporate damage mechanism hazard reviews into Process
Hazard Analyses;
complete root cause analysis after significant accidents or releases; and
explicitly account for human factors.
• Strengthen enforcement capacity:
1.
2.
3.
increase the maximum penalty amounts
provide agencies with sufficient resources
require refineries to provide regulatory agencies with timely information.
• Ensure that data and information is shared among agencies;
• Areas for Study: leading and lagging indicators, increasing worker
involvement, and exploring the safety case approach.
Recommendations:
Education and Outreach to the Public
• Improve existing alert systems and create a
more comprehensive system to notify local
residents;
• Increase public involvement in emergency
planning processes;
• Increase public involvement in air monitoring;
• Create Refinery Safety Forums.
Recommendation:
Interagency Refinery Task Force
“An Interagency Refinery Task Force will be
created within the California Environmental
Protection Agency (Cal/EPA) by September 1,
2013, to coordinate agencies’ activities and
carry out the recommendations in this report.”
Interagency Refinery Task Force
• First meeting on August 28, 2013;
• Members: Cal OES, Cal/EPA, ARB, DTSC, SWRCB, DIR,
Cal/OSHA, DPH, and OSFM. U.S. EPA, CUPAs, and
APCDs in locations where refineries operate.
• Goals:
1.
2.
3.
Implement the recommendations in the Governor’s Interagency
Working Group on Refinery Safety’s report “Improving Public
and Worker Safety at Oil Refineries”
Enhance coordination of oversight, enforcement, outreach and
response activities by regulatory agencies.
Establish refinery safety forums in northern, central and
southern California for ongoing dialogue among industry, labor,
community, environmental groups and regulators to enhance
public and worker knowledge and safety.
Interagency Refinery Task Force
• Two working groups formed:
– Emergency preparedness and response
• Conveners: Cal OES & Cal/EPA
– Safety and prevention
• Conveners: DIR & Cal/EPA
• Next steps:
– Create work plans and timelines by mid-October;
– Work with Governor’s office to finalize report;
– Plan for public meetings in Bay Area, So Cal, and
Central Valley.
QUESTIONS?
Contact Info:
Gina M. Solomon, M.D., M.P.H.
Deputy Secretary for Science and Health
California Environmental Protection Agency
Phone: 916-324-8735
[email protected]