Former EPA Head Argues Chemical Safety Plan Is Weak
May 31, 2016
Christine Todd Whitman, EPA head under George W. Bush, urges move to IST.
Former New Jersey governor Christine Todd Whitman, EPA head under George W. Bush, urges the Agency’s current head Gina McCarthy to strengthen a proposed regulation regarding the safety of chemical plants, according to an article from The Huffington Post. The regulation to reduce the risks of explosions at U.S. chemical plants is too weak, argues Whitman, who encourages making high-risk chemical facilities move to inherently safer technologies (IST).
Whitman sent notice to the EPA on the same day that investigators with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives stated that an April 2013 explosion at the West Fertilizer Company plant in Texas was intentionally set, according to the article. The proposed rule does not go far enough to prevent future tragedies, Whitman reportedly writes, saying it would be regrettable if the Obama administration did not expand the use of IST when feasible to increase public safety.
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