PROVIDENCE – R.I. Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin, as part of an 11-state coalition, filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency Monday claiming the agency illegally delayed the Chemical Accident Safety Rule, which the suit claims “makes critical improvements to Congressionally mandated protections against explosions.”
The lawsuit was filed by the Attorneys General of Iowa, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
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“The EPA continues to exceed its authority by choosing to delay critical protections, likely at the behest of industry insiders, that could have serious life and death consequences for our first responders and our communities as a whole,” Kilmartin said in a news release. “Rhode Island has long held the EPA to do the right thing, no matter who was leading the agency, and we will continue to keep the pressure on the agency to properly implement sound rules and regulations.”
The coalition argues the “Trump administration’s decision to delay the rule for almost two years directly contradicts the June 2017 EPA fact sheet which outlines the pressing need for, and the dramatic safety benefits of, the rule. The 20-month delay would extend the date at which chemical facilities must comply with the rule’s emergency response requirements to 2020, and with its accident prevention program and public information disclosure requirements to 2023.”
According to a briefing from the Attorneys General, there have been 18 chemical accidents in Rhode Island over the last 10 years.
Chris Bergenheim is the PBN web editor.
