United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Solid Waste
and Emergency Response
(.51.01)
November 1993
Accidental Release Information
Program (ARIP) Fact Sheet
BACKGROUND
"The Chemical Emergency Preparedness and-
Prevention Office (CEPPO) within the. Office of Solid
Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER) leads the
Environmental Protection Agency's ,(EPA) effort to
prepare for and prevent chemical accidents. The
Agency began its chemical accident prevention
program in 1986. To identify the steps, that could be
taken by industrial facilities to prevent .releases, the
Agency needed information on the causes of accidents
and industry prevention practices. At that time, the
only data available focused on the quantities
released rather than causes.
To develop new information on accident causes,.EPA
initiated the Accidental Release Information
Program (ARIP). The program involves collecting
questionnaire information from facilities that have
had significant releases of hazardous substances,
developing a national accidental release database,
analyzing the collected information,, and
disseminating the results of the analysis to those
involved in chemical accident prevention activities,
ARIP also helps to focus industry's attention on the
causes of accidental releases and the means to prevent
them.
ELEMENTS OF ARIP ' ,
Authority
EPA is authorized to collect information on
accidental releases under: section 3007(a) of the
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act'(RCRA);
section 101(b)(l) and (e) of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response Compensation and Locality
Act (CERCLA); section 308(a) of the Clean Water .
-Act; and section 114 of the amended Clean Air Act.
These statutes require that the information be
furnished either to develop regulations, conduct
^enforcement, or determine the need to respond to or
prevent accidental chemical releases.
Selection of Facilities to Survey
U.S. facilities are required by law to report non-
routine releases of certain substances when those
releases exceed a reportable 'quantity (RQ). These
reports are called into the National Response Center,
the U.S. Coast Guard, and EPA regional offices. EPA
compiles the reports into the Emergency Response
Notification System (ERNS) database. EPA then
uses ERNS data to select releases for the ARIP '
.questionnaire.
The ERNS database includes a wide range of releases
from both fixed facilities and transportation. Since
the Department of Transportation is responsible for
transportation accidents and OSHA is responsible for
accidents affecting workers, ARIP targets those
accidental releases at fixed facilities that resulted
in off-site consequence or environmental damage. Off-
site consequence includes any casualty, evacuation,
shelter-in-place, or any other necessary precaution
taken by individuals off-site as a i "iuh'of the
release. Environmental damage includes wildlife
kills, significant vegetation damage, soil
contamination, and ground and surface water
contaminatio'n. Not all non-routine releases reported
in ERNS result from accidents. To focus on significant
accidents, an ARIP questionnaire is sent to all releases
that resulted in death or injury. If the release also
resulted in off-site consequence or environmental
damage, then -the facility is required to complete ,the
questionnaire.
ARIP Questionnaires
The ARIP questionnaire consists of'23 questions about
the facility, the circumstances and causes of the
incident, and the accidental release prevention
practices and technologies in place prior to, and
• added or changed as a result of, the event. The.
questionnaire fqcu-es on several areas of accident
prevention including hazard assessments, training,
emergency response, public notification procedures,
mitigation techniques, and prevention equipment and
controls.
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The EPA regions send each selected facility a
package that contains a cover letter explaining the
ARIP program, the criteria for completing the
questionnaire, and directions for completing the ARIP
questionnaire. Part A of the questionnaire contains
the available EPA information about the event from
the ERNS database. Part B of the questionnaire
contains questions concerning, the facility, substance
released, and prevention practices. The facility is
asked to verify and correct the ERNS information in
Part A, to complete Part B of the questionnaire, and to
return both parts to the regional office. The regional
office then forwards a copy of the completed
questionnaire to EPA headquarters. Verified ERNS
information is used to validate the ERNS database
for these events.
ARIP Database
When EPA headquarters receives the questionnaire,
the responses are entered into a database. EPA also
files copies of the questionnaire for future reference.
USES OF ARIP DATA
The ARIP information has been collected into a
national database that provides data on the causes of
accidental releases and the ways to prevent them
from recurring. EPA has used the database to define
areas where further information is needed, to
disseminate information about accident causes, and to
help develop program and regulatory initiatives.
ARIP data help to focus attention on accidents and.
prevention methods and technologies.
Analysis of ARIP information and the resulting
insights into the nature of chemical accidents are
published in EPA reports that are shared with
interested individuals and organizations. In June
1989, EPA published a chemical accident prevention
bulletin entitled, "Why Accidents Occur: Insights
from the Accidental Release Information Program,"
which summarized the results and lessons learned
from initial analyses of the ARIP data. This
publication was targeted to State Emergency Response
Commissions (SERCs) and Local Emergency Planning
Committees (LEPCs) and was designed to enhance
their understanding of accident causes and steps used
to prevent accidents.
ARIP also builds understanding of accident prevention
issues in EPA regions and verifies the information in
the ERNS database for use in other EPA efforts. For
example, EPA regions use ARIP data as background
material to assist in Chemical Safety Audits and
investigations.
In addition, ARIP provides a means of focusing the
attention of industry management on chemical
accident prevention. Through trade groups and
associations, facility managers can be informed about
ARIP findings on common types of releases and ways
to prevent them. Further, when provided with ARIP
information, SERCs and LEPCs become more
knowledgeable about chemical accident prevention
and can more effectively communicate with facilities.
ARIP data have also been supplied to the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development to support international analysis of
accidents. Currently, ARIP data and findings are
being used by EPA in support of the development of
the regulations for chemical accident prevention as
mandated by section 112(r) of the amended Clean Air
Act. ' •
DEVELOPMENT AND STATUS OF ARIP
EPA conducted a pilot.test of the" ARIP survey in early
1987 and instituted the program nation-wide later
that year. The facility selection was based on •
casualty, quantity of material,-type of chemical, and
frequency of releases. During late fall of 1988, 'EPA
refined and expanded the survey questions to
emphasize prevention concepts, and the selection ,
criteria were modified to target facilities better.
In January 1989, EPA prepared a draft interim report
on the ARIP analysis. The report suggested that
facility management should encourage further use of
technologies and practices to prevent chemical
accidents. For example,,one of the report's findings
indicated tha_t inspection and preventive
maintenance on equipment and instruments should
become more widespread, especially on piping
systems. |
In July 1991, changes in the information collection
effort were instituted to streamline the data- •
gathering process and verify accidental release
information in the ERNS database. In July 1993, the
basis for selecting facilities was changed from a
quantity of material released to off-site impact and
environmental damages to focus the survey more
appropriately on significant, accidents. The ARIP
survey has been approved by the Office of
Management and Budget through September 30,1995.
For more information, contact the Emergency
Planning and Community Right-to-Know
Information Hotline at (800) 535-0202, Monday
through Friday, 8:30 am to 7:30 pm, Eastern Time.
Please note: This is NOT an emergency number.
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