HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 09131988 - 2.1 THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
Adopted this Order on September 13 , 1988 , by the following vote:
AYES: Supervisors Powers, Fanden, McPeak, Torlakson, Schroder
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ABSTAIN: None
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SUBJECT: Hazardous Material Release Notification Ordinance
The Board received the attached report dated August 29,
1988 from County Counsel transmitting a draft ordinance which
amends the County' s AB 2185 ordinance by requiring that all
releases of hazardous materials reportable under any law to any
regulatory agency be reported immediately .to the County Health.
Services Department.
Lillian Fujii, Deputy County Counsel, commented on the
deliberations of. the Hazardous Materials. Commission concerning the
need for and the scope of an ordinance requiring immediate
notification. of releases of. hazardous. materials. She noted that
although existing laws are considered. to be generally adequate,
there appeared to be some confusion because of numerous and diverse
reporting requirements.. Ms. Fujii advised that the Hazardous
Materials Commission had. agreed. that an amendment to the County' s
AB 2185 ordinance would. provide a more comprehensive AB 2185
regulatory scheme.
Ms. Fujii commented on the AB 2185 requirement for a
business plan for emergency response and noted that the Health
Services Departmenthas undertaken measures to implement this
requirement.
Ms. Fujii) also noted that the Hazardous Materials
Commission has spent a great deal of time on the review of the
ordinance, and recommended that the Board commend Commission
members for their efforts.
Supervisor Sunne McPeak agreed and stated that County
staff as well as the Hazardous. Materials. Commission were to be
commended for their efforts on- the ordinance amendment.
Supervisor Tom Powers inquired as to whether the
ordinance would apply in the cities as well as the unincorporated.
areas of the County.
Ms. Fujii stated that although the Health Services
Department is the administrative agency for the entire. County under
AB 2185 , the ordinance would probably not apply in the incorporated
areas unless each city took specific action to require compliance
with the ordinance.
There being no further discussion, IT IS BY THE BOARD
ORDERED that the following actions are APPROVED:
1. INTRODUCED ordinance requiring immediate Health
Department notification of release of hazardous material
reportable to any agency under any law, WAIVED reading
and FIXED September 20, 1988 for adoption;
2. COMMENDED the Hazardous Materials Commission Management_
Committee and County Counsel and Health Services staff
for their efforts. in. developing the ordinance;
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3. ENDORSED efforts of the Health Services Department to
implement the AB 2185 business reporting plan;
4. AUTHORIZED letter to the cities requesting ratification
of the ordinance; and
5. REQUESTED that. the ordinance be forwarded to the
Hazardous Materials Commission for information.
I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of
an action taken and entered on the minutes of the
Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED:,. �1�yrs � a &-&
PHIL IAT& ELOR, Clerk of the, Board
of Supervisors and County Administrator
By Deputy
cc: Health Services Director
Hazardous Materials Commission
County Counsel.
County Administrator
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COUNTY COUNSEL ' S 'OFFICEU?; ,�
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
MARTINEZ , , CALIF0RNIA
� AU G 02 ,, 1888
Date: August 29, 1988 _
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To: Board of Supervisors
From: Victor J. Westman, County Counsel
By: Lillian T. Fujii, Deputy County Counsel
,Re: Ordinance requiring immediate notification of hazardousf
materials release to County Health !'
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SUMMARY: This Office, together with the Ha''zardous
Materials Commission and the Health Services Department,
recommends that the Board adopt the attached ordinance (Exhibit
A) , which amends the County's AB 2185 ordinance b'y requiring that
all releases of hazardous materials, reportable under any law to
any regulatory agency, be reported immediately to the County
Health Services Department,. 1
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DISCUSSION:
1 . Background.
The subject of, requiring immediate notification to the
Health Department of. an accidental release of a hazardous
material was first raised by Supervisor McPeak in' connection with
the Board's approval of the County' s Multi-Hazard Functional
Plan. This office was directed to prepare' ari ordinance for the
purpose of insuring that such releases come to tli'e. attention of
the Health Department. (Exhibit .B. )
This Office prepareda rough draft of an ordinance, which
was approved by the Board in concept and referredto the . I
Hazardous Materials Commission and the Health Services Department
for review and comment. (Exhibit C. ) + i.
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2 . Hazardous Materials Commission Review.
The referral to the Hazardous Materials Commission proved
to be most productive. - The issues concerning the; need for and
scope of an ordinance requiring immediate notification of
releases of hazardous materials were of interestto public and
private (industrial) interests . These issues were discussed in
great detail several times, both by the Hazardous'' Materials
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Board of Supervisors -2- August 29, 1988
Commission and the Commission's Management Committee. Many
different ideas and problems were discussed, only a fraction of
which is summarized:
a. The need for a separate ordinance was discussedjin
view of the fact that most. releases of hazardous materials are ,,
required to be reported to the Health Department pursuant to "AB
2185 . " (Health & Safety Code SS 25500 et seq. , 25507 . )
Assistant Health . Services Director Dan Bergman noted that even ;
with AB 2185,. he was aware of several release incidents of which
his office was not notified-. Industry representatives were 9
generally of the opinion that existing laws were adequate, butt
acknowledged that confusion existed as 'to when what agencies were
to be notified, because reporting requirements are numerous and
'diverse.
b.. As a corollary to the above, the Commission and
its Committee discussed what threshold amount of release should
be reported.
C. The question of who should report a,,, release was
also addressed. While requiring all persons with knowledge of �a'
release to report would increase the likelihood ofithe Health j
Services Department being notified, there would be!ithe resulting
consequence of the Department receiving unnecessary repeat calls
which may hinder effective emergency response.
To provide the Board with. a better understanding of the
dialogue that transpired before the Commission, attached as
Exhibit D are copies of various minutes of meetings, committee '!
reports, and correspondence, received on the .subject. f
3 . Recommendation.
As a result of the above-summarized deliberations, the
Hazardous Materials Commission recommended that: �.
1 . Rather than adopt . a separate ordinance, the Board
should amend the County' s AB 2185 ordinance (Ordinance Code
Division 450, County Ordinance No. 88-7 ). to cover any necessary
changes to the existing reporting scheme required by AB 2185 .
Under AB 2185, specified releases of hazardous materials are
required to be reported to the Health Department. IThis has the
advantage of- not adding a completely different requirement to the
County' s Ordinance Code, and provides for a more comprehensive �AB
2185 regulatory .scheme.
2 , . The Board .should amend the County' s AB 2.185 ordinance
to require that releases of hazardous materials, reportable to
any agency under any law, be . reported to the County's Health
Department. The Health Services Department concurs with this
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Board of Supervisors -3-- August 29 , 19'88
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recommendation (Exhibit E) , and this office has drafted an
ordinance for that purpose (Exhibit A) .
3 . The existing AB 2185 requirement, that businesses
handling hazardous materials prepare business plans for emergency
response to a release of threatened. release of- a hazardous
materials, be used to improve the reporting of release's•.by
businesses . In other words, the business plan should include
procedures to ensure that releases are properly reported. The !
Health Services Department concurs with this recommendation and
has already undertaken measures to implement .this recommendation.
(Exhibit E. )
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This office concurs with the recommendations;Iof. the
Commission.
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cc: Phil Batchelor, County Administrator
Attn: Sara Hoffman
Attn: Dean Lucas
Mark Finucane, Health Services Dir.
Attn: Dan Bergman
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ORDINANCE NO. 88-
( Immediate notification of Accidental !Release
of Hazardous Materials)
The Board of Supervisors of Contra Costa County ordains as
follows (omitting the parenthetical footnotes from the official
text of the enacted or amended provisions of the County Ordinance
Code) :
SECTION I . SUMMARY. This ordinance amends Division 450 of the
County Ordinance Code, to specifically require that all releases
of hazardous materials, reportable under any law, to any
federal, State or other local agency, be reported immediately to
the County Health Services Department.
SECTION II . Section 450-2 . 002' of the County Ordinance Code is
amended, to provide a more detailed summary of the matters
covered under Health and Safety Code Chapter 6 . 95 (S 25500 et
seq. ) , to read:
450-2 . 002 Purpose. Health and Safety Code Chapter 6 . 95
requires, among other things, that any business which handles a
specified quantity of a hazardous material establish a business
plan for emergency response to a release .or. threatened release of
a hazardous material, which includes an inventory of hazardous
materials handled by the business, and report to the
administering agency and the State Office of Emergency Services,
occurrences of specified releases or threatened releases of
hazardous materials .
The purpose of this Division is to impose regulations in
addition to Health and Safety Code Chapter 6 .95,; for the
protection of the public and emergency rescue personnel in the
County, and to facilitate implementation of said chapter, asi
authorized by Health and Safety Code Section 25500.
(Ords . 88-. . S 2, 87-5 S2 . )
SECTION III . Section 450-2. 016 is added t.o the 'County Ordinance
Code, to read:
450-2 . 016 . Report Rectuired. (1) In addition to the
releases or threatened releases of hazardous materials required
to be reported under Health and Safety Code Section 25507, a ^
handler shall, immediately upon discovery, report to the
administering agency, any release of a hazardous material
reportable under any law, to any federal, State or other local
regulatory agency.
( 2 ) For purposes of this section, the term: "hazardous
material" includes any material, substance or chemical defined as
a hazardous material, hazardous substance or hazardous waste ,
under any law requiring report of a release of such material,
chemical or waste to any federal, state or other local regulatory
agency.
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( 3 ) This section does not apply to' any person engaged in
the transportation of a hazardous material on a highway subject
to and in compliance with, the requirements of Sections 2453 ;and
23112 . 5 of the Vehicle Code.
(Ord. 88- §3 . )
SECTION IV. EFFECTIVE DATE. This ordinance becomes effective 30
days after passage, and within 15 days of passage shall be
published once with the names of the Supervisorslvoting for all nd
against it in the Contra Costa Times, a newspaper published in
this .County.
WELIPI-INCT Q
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PASSED on by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
ATTEST: Phil Batchelor, Clerk
of the Board and County
Administrator
By:
Deputy Board Chair
[SEAL]
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ORDINANCE NO. 88-
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COUNTY COUNSEL'S OFFICE
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
Date: May 2, 1988 MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA
To: Hazardous Materials Commission
From: Victor J. Westman, County Counsel
By: Lillian T. Fujii, Deputy County Counsel ''
Re: Management Subcommittee Comments and recommendations re
Ordinance Requiring Immediate Notification of Accidental
Release of Hazardous Material
SUMMARY: The Management Subcommittee recommends that the
County's current ordinance implementing AB 2185 be amended to
require more persons to report instances of "releases" of "hazardous
materials, " and more instances or releases to bereported. Amending
the County's AB 2185 ordinance is in lieu of adopting the proposed
ordinance requiring immediate notification to the Health Officer, of
all accidental releases.
BACKGROUND: Pursuant to the Board of Supervisors, request,
the County Counsel's Office prepared a draft ordinance requiring
all persons with knowledge. of an .accidental, release of a hazardous
material, to report such release .to the County's Health Officer. On
February 23, 1988, the Board referred the draft ordinance to the
Hazardous Materials Commission and the Health Services Department
for comment. Attached are copies of the draft ordinance,
accompanying cover memo to the Board, and Board Order referring the
matter to the Commission.
The matter was referred to the Management Subcommittee for
report and recommendation to the full Commission. The Management
Subcommittee considered the draft ordinance on 4721-88.
DISCUSSION: The Subcommittee focused its discussion on the
need for the proposed ordinance; specifically, how the ordinance
differs from laws already in existence.
Ordinance compared with AB 2185.
The ordinance's requirements are very similar to the
requirements of "AB 2185, " Health and Safety Code Chapter 6.95,
25500 et seq. , on hazardous materials release response plans and
inventories. AB 2185 generally requires that "handlers" report
"releases" of "hazardous materials" to the "administering agency"
(County Health Department) . However, there are several differences
between the draft ordinance and AB 2185.
First, AB 2185 only requires "handlers" to 'report hazardous
materials releases. . The term "handler is defined as any "business
which handles a "hazardous material. " (Health &; Safety Code S
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Hazardous Materials Commission -2- ! May 2, 1988
25501(i) . ) The -term "business" is defined as "an employer, self-
employed individual, trust, firm, joint stock company, corporation,
partnership, or association. " . (H.& S.C. 5 25501(c) . ) Thus, AB 2185
does not cover employees or business associates ; of handlers ., The
ordinance covers all persons. The consensus oftthe Subcommittee
and staff was that employees and business .associates shouldbe
obligated' to immediately report a release.
AB 2185 also differs from the ordinance im that in certain
•instances AB 2185. allows a person to exercise judgment and
discretion in determining whether a . release of a hazardous material
has occurred. Under AB 2185, a handler must immediately report to
the administering agency (County Health Department) , any release or
threatened release of a hazardous. material. The term "hazardous
material" is defined as "any material that, because of its quantity,
concentration, or 'physical or chemical characteristics, poses a
significant present or potential hazard to human health and safety
or to the environment if released into the workplace or the,
environment, " including any "hazardous substances, hazardous waste,
and any material which a handler or the administering agency has a
reasonable basis for believing would -be injurious to the health and
safety of persons or harmful to the environment if released into the
workplace or the environment. " (H.&S.C. 25501( j ) . )
Thus, under AB 2185, a material may not be "hazardous" unless
it poses a significant present or potential threat to human health
and safety or the environment, or if the handler has a reasonable
basis for believing that the material could beinjurious to human
health and safety -or the environment. Because, a handler can
sometimes exercise judgment in determinging whether a material is
hazardous, some releases probably reportable under AB 2185 .,may not
be reported. Under the draft ordinance, all accidental releases are
, reportable..
The consensus of the Subcommittee and staff was that the
ordinance should close the gap left by 2185 by. leaving less
discretion. on whether a .release should be reported.
The. Subcommittee discussed whether an ordinance was necessary
at all given that the ordinance duplicated much of what is already
required under AB 2185— However, as noted above, the ordinance
would cover areas not adequately covered by 2185. Therefore, it was
the consensus of the Subcommittee that an ordinance in addition to
AB 2185 should be recommended.
RECOMMENDATIONS: .
1 . Amend 2185 ordinance rather than adopt draft ordinance.
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Hazardous Materials Commission -3- May 2, 1988;
Since much of what is intended to be covered under the
ordinance is already covered by AB 2185, and since the Board
currently has an ordinance implementing AB 2185!i, the"Subcommittee
recommends that the. current ordinance implementing AB 2185 be
amended (expanded) to fill in the gaps left by ;2185 . This has the
advantage of accomplishing the purpose desired by the Board` of
Supervisors without adding another chapter to the County's Ordinance
Code.
2. kLdd provision covering employees and contractors of
handlers .
As discussed above, AB 2185 only requires '.handlers to report
releases of hazardous materials. Handlers that are not reputable
will probably not report a release, and there is no requirement that
employees and other parties with business relationships with a
handler report a release. ' It is recommended .that the AB 2185
ordinance be amended to require employees, contractors and ?other
parties with business relations with handlers to report releases.
3. Redefine hazardous material.
The Subcommittee "recommends that the definition of "hazardous
materials" in the AB 2185 ordinance be redefined so that there is
less discretion to determine whether a release- could cause,damage to
public health and safety or the environment. The Sub6ommittee
recommends that hazardous material be redefined to cover materials
which may cause damage to public health and safety or the
environment.
Redefining hazardous material may have the additional
advantage of requiring the reporting of more cases where there is a
threatened or potential release. Environmental Health Director Dan
Bergman testified that -there have been situations ' involving
potential releases where the Health Department was not, but probably
should have been notified. The Subcommittee agreed that this was a
matter of concern and should be addressed.
Comment.
The Subcommittee considered this matter in great detail and
many points discussed at the meeting are not reported herein. Staff
will attempt to address any questions the Commissioners have at the
next Commission meeting.
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AGENDA ITEM NO. 4
EXCERPTS OF
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
COMMISSION MINUTES ;
MAY 11, 1988 i
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9) REPORT ON ORDINANCE ON NOTIFICATION OF .ACCIDENTAL CHEMICAL
RELEASES
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Lillian Fugii summarized the Management Committee' s
discussion of the proposed ordinance on notification : of
accidental chemical releases. The Committee recommended that
the Commission recommend that the Board amend the 2185
Ordinance; add a provision covering employees and contractors;
and redefine hazardous materials.
Pete Williams expressed a concern that theproposed changes
would lead to over-reporting. He felt that the State and.
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Federal guielines on reportable quantities were sufficient' and
that any additional regulations could lead tgconfusion. 'Pete
Williams, however said that he would not object to reporting
releases to the County which are currently only reported to the
State or Federal Government.
Dan Bergman stated that the recent Shell _ spill was not
reported to local government, but rather to the State OES: He
expressed concern about threatened releases, If The
Environmental Health Division was informed then it could be on
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stand-by in case the situation developed into a release.
Don McClanahan of Richmond Fire felt that the Committee's
recommendations were too broad and should not include any
accidental releacic. He felt that only ._agerous chemicals,
should be reported, not just hazardous materials. He believed
the ordinance would be trivialized if it was not made more
specific. He also felt that over-reporting could burden
emergency response telephone lines. In addition, conscientious
companies who reported all releases could establish a public
record which could be used against them. Mr. McClanahan also
discussed the need for improved training of local fire andilaw
enforcement officials.
Dan Bergman felt that the Board' s concern was public
protection. He stated that the current statutory quantities
could be adequate if the ordinance required 1) ; reporting to the
local agency in all cases and 2} reporting any quantity of
acutely hazardous substances.
Katie Murphy expressed concern over possible overloading of
the 911 emergency system. She wondered if industry could
support funding in any needed augmentation to the 911 system.
Jerry Pando explained that the current system includes both"
emergency calls (911) and non-emergency calls (646-1112) .
Letters have been sent to . the .2185 community 'informing them of
the non-emergency number.
Tommie Simms questioned the penalties to; industry who fail
to report releases. Henry Clark expressed a similar concern for
the need to inform the public of potential health threats.
Lillian Fugii replied that public information could be made part
of the business plan.
It was moved by Tom Bailey and second by Rosemary Corbin
and. Jean Siri to refer the ordinance back to the Management
Committee for further discussion. Motion passed by a consensus.
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- DOW CHEMICAL U.S.A.
�. WESTERN DIVISION
May 23, 1988 POST OFFICE Box `1398
PITTSBURG, CALIFORNIA 94565
(' 415 432:5000
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Lillian T. Fujii cc: Mrs. Leslie Stewart
Deputy County Counsel League of Woman Voters
Contra Costa County 3.398 Wren Avenue ;
Office of County Counsel Concord, CA 94519
Administration Building
P.O. Box 69I
Martinez, CA 94553 N',,AY r,, i .1988
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\;artlnez, CA 9,45c,3 i
I am sending this letter to put in writing some concerns I have related
to the recommendations regarding the draft ordinance requring .imme!diate
notification of accidental chemical releases. These are outlinedin
your letter to the Hazardous Materials Commission, ;dated May 2, 1988.
Tam sure the.Management Committee considered the natter in great ,
detail; however the brief write up given to the Hazardous Materials
Commission does not include those details. My first reading leaves me
with the perception that the recommendations would'do nothing to improve
the situation and might even make it worse.
Recommendation 2 (page. 3', letter dated 5/2/88)
Broadening the reporting requirements beyond handlers is not nece{ sary.
Handlers that are not reputable should be dealt with quickly and r
effectively under existing law. Enforcement action should be taken
where appropriate to insure proper reporting. The proposed
recommendation could result in a confusion of over-reporting. For
example, is each employee required to report or only one? Can one be
held accountable for ,not reporting if he/she believed someone else was
reporting? What is meant by "other parties with business relations?"
Are these customers? Vendors? Potential or actual? Visitors on site?
Since some plants are quite large, - can one reasonably expect any,
employee to know everything? What about steam leaks?.�`�Or small
insignificant leaks? If a senior employee makes a judgement notjto
report, .is a junior employee off the hook? j
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Recommendation 3 (page 3, letter dated 5/2/88) .1.
This recommendation could result in the over-reporting of every `drip and
drop which would boggle the mind. In reality there are very few
instances occurring now with improper notification. Much of the current
problems are caused by a confusing, complex matrix of what is required
to report, .to whom, by when, and how. This would be exacerbated by
adding another level of reporting. It is also not feasible to remove
all discretion; instead we need to improve judgement. A reasonable
approach to begin with would be by reporting to county health all
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AN OPERATING UNIT OF THE DOW CHEMICAL COMPANY Warts WreAtDow.
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incidents that are reportable to BAAQMD, RWQCB and a11,CERCLA and SARA
reportable events. Then if -there is an additional class of events ;that
need to be reported, county health should clearly define 'the events` to
avoid confusion.
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Requiring the presence of the county emergency response teAm on the
release of every drip and drop would certainly be counterproductive`. It
would waste time and money and possibly tie up the emergency crew on a
trivial matter when areal need arose in the opposite direction. We
cannot and should not remove judgement from the process; rather we
should seek ways to improve the judgement. i
I would like to attend the next meeting of the management committee to
discuss these issues and how they are affected by daily operation in our
chemical plants.
Tom Lingafelter
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Environmental Manager.
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COUNTY COUNSEL ' S OFFICE � '!
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
r MARTINEZ , CALIFORNIA j
Date: June 20, 1988
To: Hazardous Materials Commissionit
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From: .Victor. J. Westman, County Counsel
By: Lillian T. Fujii, Deputy County Counsel
Re: Management Subcommittee Report and Recommendation 7
concerning proposed ordinance requiring ;immediate
notification of accidental release of hazardous material.
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RECOMMENDATION: The Management Subcommittee recommends
that business plans prepared by businesses pursuant to AB 2185
include a plan which assures , that' releases of ;hazardous materials
required to be reported are reported. The Subcommittee also
recommends that releases required .to be reported to the County
Health Department include releases of quantities of hazardous
materials required to be reported to any agency under any law and
any release which may pose a significant present or potential
hazard to human health and safety or the environment.
BACKGROUND: The Board of Supervisors requested thatthe
County Counsel's Office prepare a draft ordinance requiring all
persons with knowledge of an accidental release of a hazardous
material, to immediately report such release to the County's
Health Officer. A draft ordinance was referred to the Hazardous
Materials Commission and. Health Services Department for comment.-
On referral from the Hazardous Materials Commission, the
Management Subcommittee considered this matter on 4-21-88 and on
June 9, 1988.
DISCUSSION•
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AB 2185 - Business Plan.
The legislation commonly referred to asi"AB 2185" (Health
and Safety Code chapter 6 . 95 (S 25500 et seq. )!) requires releases
and potential releases of hazardous material s (S 25501( j ) ) Ito be
immediately reported to the administering agency (County Health
Department) in accordance with- regulations adopted by the State
Office of Emergency Services. (S 25507 . ) ABi2185 also requires
businesses which handle a hazardous material which has a quantity
at any one time equal to or greater than, a total weight of 500
pounds, a total volume of 55 gallons , or 200 cubic feet at!
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Hazardous Materials Commission June 20 , 1988
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standard temperature and pressure for compressedgas , to j
. establish and implement a business plan for emergency response to
a release or threatened release of the .hazardous `:material .
(§ 25503 . 5 . ) Business plans are required to include procedures
for the immediate notification to the Health Department of a '
release or threatened release of a hazardous material .
(§ 25504 . ) '
Who Should Be Required To Report?
Under AB 2185,"handlers" are required to report releases
and threatened releases of hazardous materials (§ 25507. ) 'The
term "handler" is defined as any business which handles a
hazardous material. The term "business" is defined as an
employer, self-employed individual, trust, firm,, joint stock !
company, corporation, partnership, or association. (§ 25501 (c) . )
The regulations require a "person" to report a release or
threatened release of a hazardous material to the County Health
Department. (19 CCR § 2703 . ) "Person is defined as an
employee, authorized representative, agent or designee of a
handler-. ( 19 CCR § 2650 . ) `Health and Safety Code section 25515
imposes criminal sanctions against persons or businesses who'
violate the release reporting requirement of AB .2185 .
The Committee considered whether the reporting requirements
should be extended so that more people ' (e.g. , independent I
contractors) are required to. report releases or` potential
releases to the Health Services Department. It' was determined
that the duty to report should not be imposed on additional '
persons. Otherwise, County Health may receive multiple phone
calls regarding the same incident. However, since the primary
concern is that releases be reported, and County Health staff
testified before the subcommittee that there have been problems
in the past, it is recommended that the business plan mechanism
be used to improve procedures within a business� so that the :j
business is informed when a release has occurred at its facility,
and the information is promptly relayed to the,-County Health
Department. This could be accomplished by including in the ;
business plan, . procedures or plans -for improving existing
practices followed- by a business upon the occurrence of a release
or threatened release. All business would be responsible for
preparing and implementing a business plan which would better
achieve the goals of AB 2185 . The Health Department staff
concurred that this recommendation is a reasonable response' to
their concerns. j
If this recommendation is approved, the - `Health Services
Department should review the existing AB 2185 program to
determine whether an amendment to the County' s;.AB 2185 ordinance
is required, or .if this requirement for improved notification
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Hazardous Materials Commission .Tune 20, 1988 .
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procedures can be imposed under the existing regulations within a
reasonable time.
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Reportable Ouantity.
Industry representatives present at the Management
subcommittee meeting testified that there is confusion in
the requirements for reporting releases because the various;
governmental agencies require reporting of differing quantities
of materials . Health Services agreed that this was a concern and
that it would be reasonable. to require, for the sake of
uniformity, that releases of quantities of hazardous materials
reportable under any law to any agency be reported immediately
to the Health Services Department. Releases which may pose a
significant hazard to human health and .safety or the environment
continue to be reportable. I.
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Attachments: AB 2185: statute -and regulations .'
cc: Mark Finucane, Director of Health Services
Attn: Dan Bergman
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COUNTY COUNSEL ' S OFFICE !i ` 14
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CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
MARTI.NE.Z , CALIFORNIA �
Qont,ra Co3ta County
R -•art-
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Date: August 12, 1988
SEP 011988
To: Phil Batchelor, County Administrator. office of I
Attn: Dean Lucas, Dep. Co. Admin CC� f 'ty ? ss't
Mark Finucane, Health Services Dir.
Attn: Dan Bergman, Asst. Dir. , Environmental Health
T
From: Victor J• Westman, County Counsel L1 r`�
By: Lillian T. Fujii, Deputy County Counsel
Re: Ordinance amending Ord. Code Div. 450, requiring County
Health notification of release of hazardous material
reportable to any agency under any law.
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Attached are drafts of the above-described ordinance and a
report this office intends to submit to' the ,Board. The referral.
to this office was originally to prepare an ordinance requiring
immediate notification of all releases of hazardous materials to
the Health Department.
Also attached is a proposed -Board order.
{
I ask that Dan .Bergman._;review .the ordinance and report" and
provide =his .°comments `.to`me, with copy to Dean Lucas.
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I ask that Dean Lucas calendar the matterbefore the Board
after Dan approves the report and ordinance. The proposed Board
order may be used if it is acceptable.
LTF:df
Attachment {
cc: Sara Hoffman, w/attch.
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THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY; CALIFORNIA
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Adopted tnis urger on September 2.2 , 197 by the following vote:
AYES: Supervisors Powers, Schroder , Torlakson, !McPeak
NOES: None
ABSENT: Supervisor Fanden
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ABSTAIN: None
---____==-=-7-
SUBJECT: Hazardous Material Spills
Communications/Notification
The Board this date adopted the Contra Costa County
Multi-Hazard Functional Plan (MHFP) and authorized submittal of the
Plan to the State Office of ' Emergency Services .
In conjunction with the adoption of the MHFP, Supervisor
Sunne McPeak recommended that the following actions `be taken:
1 . Endorse the direction by the Disaster Council to the
County Office of Emergency Services and the County
Administrator to prepare a plan for implementing and ;
financing an upgraded communications', system.
2 Direct County Counsel to prepare an ordinance requiring
immediate notification of the accidental release of f
toxics or hazardous substances and the imposition of
fines for failure to comply.
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3 . Request the County Administrator to develop an
appropriate protocol and chain of communications to
immediately inform local city officials of an incident
within or near their jurisdictions.
Board members being in agreement, IT IS ORDERED that the
recommendations of Supervisor McPeak are APPROVED.
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cc : Director, OES
County Administrator
County Counsel
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1 hereby certify that this:ils a true and correct c4c'-;•of
an ;,c!:cr. la;:cn c;r.d entered on the mir.,utes,iol the
B,cwd c! Supervpiscrs on the date shown.
ATTECT J:
CleA of the Eoarfl
o! S�s;:cn;s:rs cr.d County Adminisirelor
8y
Deputy
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'+ :trcol
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2. 10
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THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA :
"::coed this order on February 23 , 1988 by the following vote:
AYES : Supervisors Schroder, Torlakson, and McPeak
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NOES: None
ABSENT: Supervisors Powers and Fanden
ABSTAIN: None
SUBJECT: Ordinance requiring immediate notification of accidental
chemical release
The Board had before it this date for consideration th,e
drat o-f a proposed ordinance which would require immediate notifi-
cation to the County Health Officer of accidental releases of toxic
c:^emicals .
IT IS BY THE BOARD ,ORDERED that it approves the above
crdinance in concept, and REFERS it to the Hazardous Materials
- -mission and the Health Services Director for report as soon as
ncssible .
i 0ereby certify t°:ct this Is s true zndcorrectcop
i:n action taken and enterad on the minutes of th•^
Board of Supcniiso on the date shown,
,ATTESTED: cr � S-
y
PH!L GAT Ft%t_UR, Cie r/of the Board
:)f Supervisors and County Adminlstrstor
Hazardous Materials Commission
Health Services Director ---•- --- �- , 1�;,�� tt,
County Administrator v
County Counsel
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