OSHA and Chemical Reactivity Hazards Management Alliance
Close-Out Report

On March 30, 2004, OSHA, six chemical trade associations* and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) formed an Alliance to provide their members, customers, contacts and others involved in the manufacture, distribution, use and storage of chemicals with information, guidance, and access to training resources to help them protect communities and employees' health and safety through better identification and management of chemical reactivity hazards. An Alliance addendum was signed on January 5, 2006 adding the American Chemical Society to the agreement.

Because the trade associations and EPA have decided to re-focus their resources to address additional hazard areas OSHA, the EPA and the trade associations agreed to conclude the Alliance as of March 30, 2007. Through working to meet the agreement's goals, a number of successes resulted from the OSHA and Chemical Reactivity Hazards Management Alliance, including:

• Representatives from the Alliance worked with the Agency to develop the OSHA Chemical Reactivity Hazards Safety and Health Topics page and served on the page's editorial board.

• The Alliance's representatives developed the workshop "Managing Chemical Reactivity Hazards: A Workshop for Non-Chemists." The workshop, designed for small chemical manufacturers, warehouse facilities, distributors and batch processors, provides information on chemical reactivity hazards and strategies and tools for identifying and preventing reactivity accidents at manufacturing facilities. The workshop was presented on:

  • January 13, 2006, Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) Technical Steering Committee Meeting, Houston, Texas.

  • September 26, 2005, The Chlorine Institute, Inc. 2005 Fall Meeting, Atlanta, Georgia.

• On March 26, 2007, John Newquist, Assistant Regional Administrator, Cooperative and State Programs, Region V, Chicago, Illinois Regional Office, USDOL-OSHA, gave a presentation "Enhancing Workplace Safety through OSHA's Cooperative Programs" during the American Chemical Society Business Meeting in Chicago, Illinois.

• On December 4-6, 2006, Nicholas DeJesse, Safety and Occupational Health Specialist, Region III, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Regional Office, USDOL-OSHA, staffed the OSHA and Chemical Reactivity Hazards Management Alliance exhibit booth during the EPA Region III 2006 Chemical Accident Prevention/Emergency in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.

• On March 21 – 22, 2005, OSHA, Maryland Occupational Safety and Health and EPA representatives staffed an OSHA/Chemical Reactivity Hazards Management Alliance exhibit booth during The Chlorine Institute, Inc. 2005 Annual Meeting in Baltimore, Maryland.

* The Alliance's trade association's signatories:

• American Chemical Society (ACS)
• American Chemistry Council (ACC)
• Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS)
• Chlorine Institute, Inc. (CI)
• Mary Kay O'Connor Process Safety Center
• National Association of Chemical Distributors (NACD)
• Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association (SOCMA)

Report prepared by: Bill Willson, Alliance Coordinator, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances, April 19, 2007