Environmental Accidents and

Emergencies – How to

Prepare, React, and Respond

Max Bridges

Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP

250 West Main Street, Suite 1600

Lexington, Kentucky 40507

859-288-7457

mbridges@wyattfirm.com

What is an environmental emergency?

The EPA’s definition: An environmental emergency is a

sudden threat to the public health or the well-being of the

environment, arising from the release or potential

release of oil, radioactive materials, or hazardous

chemicals into the air, land, or water

Examples:

Oil and chemical spills,

Radiological and biological discharges, and

Accidents causing releases of pollutants

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Recent Examples – Freedom Industries

January 9, 2014

Released 10,000 gallons

of MCHM and PPH into

the Elk River in WV.

Some of it was drawn into

the public water system

Affected the water supply

of 300,000

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TVA Kingston Fossil Plant coal

fly ash slurry spill

December 22, 2008

Dike failure led to a

release of 5.4 million

cubic yards of coal ash

into the Emory and Clinch

rivers

TVA hit with a $11.5

million fine

$1.2 billion cleanup

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Martin County Coal Slurry Spill

On Oct. 11, 2000, Martin

County Coal Corp’s 68-

acre holding pond burst

sending 300 million

gallons of slurry through

an underground mine and

into two creeks

$46 million, along with

about $3.5 million in state

fines

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“Legislation by Disaster”

Lawmaking in the field of the environment has been

characterized as “legislation by disaster.”

Do we really wait for accidents before enacting

legislation?

More unlikely the accident, the more expensive the

preventative measures, the more powerful the forces

resisting preventative measures.

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Exxon Valdez Spill – Double Hulls on

Oil Tankers

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CERCLA – Love Canal

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Clean Air Act – Donora Smog Inversion

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How to Prepare

Know risks and potential impacts

Develop, practice, and update a contingency plan

Promote awareness

Know who to contact

Communication is key

Especially between scientists, the civil authorities and the

general public

Ensure that required plans and records are updated,

onsite, and available for inspection at all times

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React and Respond

State Law mandates that you call the Emergency

Response Team

KRS 224 01-400(6): “[S]hall immediately notify the cabinet's

environmental response line, as soon as that person has

knowledge of any release or threatened release.”

24/7 Hotline: 1-800-928-2380 or 502-564-2380

Calling 911 alone will not fulfill reporting requirement.

Unreported release could result in payment of fines up to $25K

per day per violation.

Call 911, Kentucky Emergency Management, and

maybe the National Response Center

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Underground Storage Tanks

Cleanup costs are usually

reimbursable through the

Petroleum Storage Tank

Environmental Assurance

Fund

State law and regs require

immediate reporting of

suspected, threatened, or

confirmed releases from UST

systems to the ERT hotline.

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USTs Continued…

Type of notifications due:

Tier I - confirmed or suspected releases that require immediate

response

Tier II - suspected releases that may require response by ERT if

a release is confirmed

Tier III - suspected releases that are managed by the Field

Operations Branch

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Household Mercury Spills

Don’t touch it

Get people and pets out

Ventilation

If spill is greater than a fever

thermometer, get professional

help

If the spill is one pound or

more (about 2 tablespoons),

you must call ERT and the

National Response Center

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EPA Rules

“EPA provides support when requested or when state

and local first responder capabilities have been

exceeded.”

Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure

(SPCC) Rule - to prevent, prepare for, and respond to oil

spills that occur in and around inland waters of the

United States

Facility Response Plan (FRP) Rule - demonstrates a

facility's preparedness to respond to a worst case oil

discharge

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EPA Rules continued…

The Risk Management Plan (RMP) Rule implements

Section 112(r) of the 1990 Clean Air Act amendments.

RMP requires facilities that use extremely hazardous

substances to develop a Risk Management Plan.

Plans must be revised and resubmitted to EPA every five

years.

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Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-

Know Act (EPCRA) of 1986

Created after the Bhopal, India

disaster to help communities plan

for emergencies involving

hazardous substances

Requires hazardous chemical

emergency planning by federal,

state and local governments,

Indian tribes, and industry

Requires industry to report on the

storage, use and releases of

hazardous chemicals to federal,

state, and local governments.

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EPCRA continued…

Emergency Planning - Local governments are required to prepare

chemical emergency response plans, and to review plans at least

annually.

State governments oversee local planning

Emergency Notification – facilities must immediately report

accidental releases of EHSs and haz. substances in quantities

greater than CERCLA reportable quantities.

Community Right to Know - Facilities manufacturing, processing,

or storing designated hazardous chemicals must make Material

Safety Data Sheets available to state and local officials and local fire

departments

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EPCRA continued…

Toxics Release Inventory - Facilities must complete

and submit a toxic chemical release inventory form

(Form R) annually.

Trade Secrets - Facilities are allowed to withhold the

specific chemical identity from the reports

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And most importantly…

Clear and Ongoing Communication!

Don’t be the next Seveso, Italy or Jilin Chemical Plant

Explosion

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Max Bridges

Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, LLP

250 W. Main Street, Suite 1600

Lexington, KY 40507

859-288-7457

mbridges@wyattfirm.com

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