IMPROVING CHEMICAL

FACILITY SAFETY AND SECURITY

OSHA’S DIRECTIVE TO MODERNIZE

PSM

Spring PDC
May 1, 2014

Presented by LT Environmental, Inc.

Process Safety Management
 Process Safety Management of Highly
Hazardous Chemicals (29 CFR 1910.119)
 Adopted May 26, 1992
 Process Safety Management (PSM) is the
application of management principles and
systems to the identification, understanding,
and control of process hazards to protect
employees, facility assets, and the environment.
Process Safety Management
 Employee  Pre-Startup Safety
Participation Review
 Process Safety  Mechanical Integrity
Information  Hot Work (Non-routine
Work Authorizations)
 Process Hazard  Management of Change
Analysis
 Incident Investigation
 Operating Procedures  Emergency Planning and
 Employee Training Response
 Contractors  Compliance Audits
Application of Rule
 Appendix A of 29 CFR 1910.119 contains a listing
of toxic and reactive highly hazardous chemicals
which present a potential for a catastrophic event at
or above the threshold quantities listed.
Application of Rule
 The PSM regulation applies to facilities that have
processes meeting one or both of the following
criteria. The facility contains or stores:
 A quantity in excess of 10,000-lb of a flammable liquid or
gas.
 Highly hazardous toxic or reactive chemicals that exceed the
established threshold quantities as listed in the regulation.
 Anhydrous ammonia Threshold quantity = 10,000-lb
 Chlorine Threshold quantity = 1,500-lb
 Hydrogen sulfide threshold quantity = 1,500-lb
Application of Rule

 Currently Exempts
 Retail facilities
Application of Rule

 Currently Exempts
 Oil and gas well drilling or servicing
Application of Rule

 Currently Exempts
 Hydrocarbon fuels used solely for workplace
consumption as a fuel, if such fuels are not part of a
process containing another highly hazardous chemical
covered by this standard
Application of Rule

 Currently Exempts
 Flammable liquid stored in atmospheric tanks or
transferred, which are kept below their normal boiling
point without benefit of chilling or refrigerating and
are not connected to a process
Application of Rule
 Currently Exempts
 Normally unoccupied remote facilities
 “Normally unoccupied remote facility” means a facility
which is operated, maintained, or serviced by employees
who visit the facility only periodically to check its operation
and to perform necessary operating or maintenance tasks.
No employees are permanently stationed at the facility.
Facilities meeting this definition are not contiguous with,
and must be geographically remote from all other buildings,
processes, or persons.
 OSHA Interpretation letter = average 14 hours per week
Executive Order 13650
 On August 1, 2013, President Obama signed
Executive Order 13650, entitled “Improving
Chemical Facility Safety and Security”
 Went to:
 DOJ
 DOT
 EPA
 OSHA
 HSA
Executive Order 13650
 9/1/2013 - OSHA
 Authorizes enhanced information collection with the
purpose of suggesting changes to the PSM Standard
 Asked 17 Questions on Topics of Potential
Rulemaking or Policy Change
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Clarifying the PSM exemption for atmospheric

storage tanks
 Original intent to include but excluded by a judge’s
ruling in 1997.
 OSHA wants to include atmospheric storage tanks
within or connected to a process.
 Not terminals or tank batteries, but….
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Removing the oil & gas well drilling and servicing

exemption
 Original pre-amble stated that these would be exempt
from this rule because a separate one would be
established.
 What would be covered under the thresholds?
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Removing the oil & gas production facility

exemption
 Originally included, however an objection by API
about OSHA not completing an economic analysis on
this portion stayed enforcement.
 What about multiple well site pads?
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Expanding PSM Coverage and Requirements for

Reactivity Hazards
 A number of the listed chemicals are highly reactive
but the list does not cover all highly reactive
chemicals.
 Recommended approach takes into account not only
certain specific chemicals but also their overall
reactivity in determining the level of coverage.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Updating the List of Highly Hazardous Chemicals

 The list has remained unchanged since OSHA promulgated the PSM
standard in 1992.
 Current list provides specific concentrations for 11 of 137 listed
chemicals.
 OSHA has issued interpretation considering PSM coverage to apply if
threshold quantities of such chemicals are present at commercial grade
which OSHA has interpreted as "a typical maximum concentration of
the chemical that is commercially available and shipped." In a court
case resulting from an explosion involving hydroxylamine, a U.S.
District Court dismissed a criminal indictment based on inconsistencies
in OSHA's statements regarding coverage of hydroxylamine.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Revising the PSM Standard to Require Additional

Management-System Elements
 Adopt management system elements from safety
standards that other federal agencies or professional
societies have promulgated since 1992
 Centerfor Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) has defined a
Risk-Based Process Safety (RBPS)
 Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement's Safety
and Environmental Management System (SEMS)
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Require Evaluation of Updates to Applicable

recognized and generally accepted good
engineering practices (RAGAGEP)
 Definition - Center for Chemical Process Safety:
RAGAGEP are the basis for engineering, operation, or
maintenance activities and are themselves based on
established codes, standards, published technical reports or
recommended practices (RP) or similar documents.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Expanding PSM Standard to Cover the Mechanical

Integrity of Any Safety-Critical Equipment
 Currently applies to pressure vessels, storage tanks,
piping systems (including piping components such as
valves), relief and vent devices, emergency shutdown
systems, controls (including monitoring devices, sensors,
alarms, and interlocks), and pumps.
 if an employer deems additional equipment to be critical
to a particular process, the employer should consider that
equipment to be covered by MI requirements.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Clarifying PSM Standard with explicit requirement

to manage organizational changes
 The Management of Change (MOC) element in the
PSM Standard did not include or contemplate
organizational changes.
 OSHA’s current interpretation of the PSM Standard
MOC provisions is that if changes to personnel,
budgets, etc., can affect process safety then they should
be covered by MOC.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Require Coordination of Emergency Planning with

Local Emergency-Response Authorities beyond
LEPCs
 The PSM standard requires employers to establish and
implement an emergency action plan in accordance
with other OSHA standards. However, the standard
does not require employers to coordinate emergency
planning with local emergency response authorities.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Requiring third-party compliance audits

 Current Standard requires a facility audit every three
years, but no requirements for make up of audit team.
 Safety and Environmental Management System
(SEMS) standard from Bureau of Safety and
Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) requires the audit
lead be an independent third party, may be expanded to
certified third party.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Cover Dismantling and Disposal of Explosives,

Blasting Agents, and Pyrotechnics
 The standard applies to the manufacture, keeping,
having, storage, sale, and transportation of explosives,
blasting agents, and pyrotechnics but it does not apply
to the sale and use of fireworks or the use of
explosives.
 Dismantling and disposing of explosives are not
covered by the standard.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Address the Storage, Handling, and Management

of Ammonium Nitrate
 Not currently covered. OSHA is seeking comments on
safe work practices for storing, handling, and
managing ammonium nitrate.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Changing Enforcement Policy of the PSM

Exemption for Retail Facilities
 The term retail facility is not defined in the standard.
The preamble to the standard noted that chemicals in
retail facilities are generally in small packages,
containers, and allotments, and gives the example of
gasoline stations as a type of facility that typically
would qualify for the exemption.
Potential Rulemaking or Policy Change

 Changing Enforcement Policy for Highly

Hazardous Chemicals
Contact:
LT Environmental, Inc.
4600 West 60th Avenue
Arvada, Colorado 80003
303-433-9788

Jeff Citrone, CIH, CSP, REA

jcitrone@ltenv.com
303-962-5494

Compliance, Remediation, Engineering