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AT A GLANCE: Clauses in federal laws give agencies enforcement tools
Published: 22 June 2013 11:03 PM
Updated: 22 June 2013 11:09 PM
Federal agencies have a potentially powerful weapon in environmental or workplace safety cases, one that might be used in the West Fertilizer Co. case: “general duty” clauses in the agencies’ authorizing laws. Because no set of specific rules can anticipate every circumstance, the clauses make companies responsible for keeping their facilities safe. The clauses include the:
Clean Air Act: Owners handling extremely hazardous substances have a general duty to identify chemical-release hazards, design and maintain facilities to prevent releases and minimize effects of releases.
Occupational Safety and Health Act: Employers have a general duty to provide jobs and workplaces free of deadly or serious safety hazards.
Here are some cases of explosions and/or toxic leaks in which the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration pursued enforcement based on general duty clauses. (Statements are from either EPA or OSHA summaries.)
more
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/west-explosion/headlines/20130622-at-a-glance-clauses-in-federal-laws-give-agencies-enforcement-tools.ece
