In the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, Congress enacted Section 112(r)(1), also known as the General Duty Clause (GDC), which makes the owners and operators of facilities that have regulated and extremely hazardous substances responsible for ensuring that their chemicals are managed safely. OSHA has a similar GDC under Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (P.L. 91-596).

Any of the chemicals on the Process Safety Management (29 CFR §1910.119) and Risk Management Program (40 CFR Part 68) lists, even if the chemicals are handled in amounts below the thresholds in these regulations, are subject to this requirement. In fact, there is no 'list' of substances that are subject to the GDC and no threshold quantities to determine if an employer needs to comply. It is the obligation of the employer or owner to meet the intent of the regulations.

Under their respective General Duty Clauses, OSHA and EPA can bring enforcement actions for a failure to address the general issues of hazard recognition and safety management that as stated in the regulations. EPA and OSHA have been enforcing under the General Duty Clause and imposing monetary fines.

Facilities subject to the General Duty Clause must set up a safety and health program to manage workplace safety and health to reduce injuries, illnesses and fatalities. The program must be appropriate to conditions in the workplace, such as the hazards to which employees are exposed and the number of employees there. Facilities are responsible for, among other things:

• Knowing the hazards posed by the chemicals and assessing the impacts of possible releases;
• Following codes, standards, and other business practices to ensure the facility is properly constructed and maintained and the chemical is safely managed; and
• Having a contingency planning process, which would involve community responders, if necessary, to aid in an adequate response in the event of an accident.

AcuTech's strategy for complying with the General Duty Clause is to develop a "GDC" Safety Management Program. The GDC Safety Management Program is analogous to the Program 2 requirements in the EPA's Risk Management Program regulation; in effect, a PSM/RMP-"lite". It is a program that is designed to capture the intent of the OSHA and EPA requirements (i.e. operate in a safe manner) while eliminating some of the burdensome paperwork required to implement a complete PSM/Risk Management Program.

The GDC Program would have the following core elements:

1. Management system;
2. Change procedures;
3. Employee participation;
4. Safety information;
5. Safety inspections;
6. Standard operating procedures;
7. Training program;
8. Maintenance program;
9. Incident investigation procedures; and,
10. Audit procedures.

AcuTech has worked with numerous companies to successfully implement GDC Safety Management Programs at a wide range of facilities that handle, for example, such common substances as ammonia, chlorine, acids, caustics, flammable liquids, and compressed gases. If your facility is struggling to comply with the General Duty Clause, feel free to contact AcuTech at inquire@acutech-consulting.com, or Peter Jordan at (609) 750-0788 to see if the GDC Safety Management Program is right for you.