Presidential Documents

66265 

Federal Register 

Vol. 88, No. 185 

Tuesday, September 26, 2023 

Title 3— 

The President 

Executive Order 14108 of September 20, 2023 

Ensuring the People of East Palestine Are Protected Now and 

in the Future 

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the 

laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows: 

Section 1. Purpose. On the evening of February 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern 

Railway Company (Norfolk Southern) train carrying hazardous materials 

derailed in the Village of East Palestine, located in Columbiana County 

in the State of Ohio. At least 11 rail cars contained hazardous materials, 

including vinyl chloride, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, ethyl-hexyl acrylate, butyl acrylates, benzene residue, and isobutylene. Some cars caught 

fire, and some spilled their loads onto the ground. These substances traveled 

into local waterways, including Sulphur Run and Leslie Run, and flowed 

miles downstream. The Village’s fire department and several other fire departments responded. On the evening of February 5, 2023, responders observed 

a dramatic temperature increase in a derailed tanker rail car. Norfolk Southern 

expressed serious concern that the temperature change could lead to a 

catastrophic tanker rail car failure, which could cause an explosion with 

the potential of deadly shrapnel traveling up to 1 mile. The incident commander on the scene determined that the safest course of action was to 

conduct a controlled release of the chemicals. 

It is critical that Norfolk Southern continue to be held fully accountable 

under the law for this disaster, and continue to provide resources to address 

the effects in East Palestine and surrounding communities. 

My Administration has mobilized a robust, multi-agency effort to support 

the people of East Palestine, Ohio, and surrounding communities. Within 

hours of the Norfolk Southern train derailment, the Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) deployed a team to East Palestine to support State and local 

emergency and environmental response efforts. On February 21, 2023, EPA 

issued a Unilateral Administrative Order (UAO) for Removal Actions pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), as amended, 42 U.S.C. 9606(a). Pursuant to the UAO, 

EPA is directing and supervising the cleanup to protect the health, safety, 

and future of the East Palestine community and other affected communities. 

Norfolk Southern and its contractors are performing the cleanup under the 

UAO. Since February 21, 2023, working closely with Federal, State, and 

local partners, EPA has led and continues to lead cleanup efforts, air quality 

monitoring, soil sampling, and water sampling to ensure the protection 

of human health and the environment, keep residents of East Palestine 

and nearby areas of Ohio and Pennsylvania updated on these and other 

ongoing efforts, and, importantly, hold Norfolk Southern fully accountable 

under CERCLA for the cleanup operation. More than 115,000 tons of contaminated soil and more than 33 million gallons of contaminated liquid have 

been shipped offsite for disposal. The EPA has built and manages an extensive 

air monitoring and sampling network that uses several different technologies 

and approaches to provide separate and redundant sources of data on air 

quality at the derailment site and throughout the area. In addition to monitoring, EPA’s network continues to conduct analytical air sampling at many 

locations in the affected areas. Together, these efforts are designed to ensure 

that contamination from the site does not enter nearby communities. To 

date, EPA has collected more than 18,000 air samples and more than 3,000 


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soil samples. The EPA’s State and local partners have collected more than 

425 monitoring-well samples and more than 3,200 surface water samples, 

and have conducted 31 rounds of drinking water sampling. Available data 

show that no contaminants of concern have been detected at levels of 

concern in the air in the affected communities at sustained levels since 

the evacuation order was lifted. Almost no contaminants of concern have 

been detected at levels of concern in water in surface streams since early 

May of 2023. Treated municipal drinking water shows no detection of contaminants associated with the derailment. To date, sampling indicates that 

residential groundwater wells have not been affected by chemicals associated 

with the derailment. 

The Department of Transportation (DOT) has been coordinating with and 

supporting the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to investigate 

the derailment. Officials from two DOT agencies, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), also arrived on the scene within hours of the incident to 

investigate the causes of the derailment. The FRA is also assessing Norfolk 

Southern’s compliance with rail safety regulations and scrutinizing Norfolk 

Southern’s overall safety culture. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provided incident management and outreach support on the 

ground in East Palestine and has been closely coordinating with the Ohio 

Emergency Management Agency in furtherance of the multi-agency response 

and recovery effort. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), 

including through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 

and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, have also responded, including by deploying a team to conduct public health testing 

and assessments in the affected areas. The team has supported Federal, 

State, and local officials already on the ground to evaluate individuals 

who were exposed or potentially exposed to chemicals and help ensure 

timely communications to the public. 

My Administration is committed to supporting the people of East Palestine 

and all those affected in surrounding areas of Ohio and Pennsylvania every 

step of the way, and continuing to hold Norfolk Southern fully accountable 

under the law. 

Sec. 2. Policy. It is a continuing priority of my Administration to hold 

Norfolk Southern fully accountable under the law for this disaster and 

any of its long-term effects and to provide additional Federal assistance 

that the affected States, the people of East Palestine, and all those affected 

in surrounding communities may need. 

Sec. 3. Federal Implementation. (a) The Department of Homeland Security, 

EPA, DOT, FEMA, FRA, PHMSA, and HHS are directed to use their authorities and available resources as appropriate to advance the policy established 

in section 2 of this order. 

(b) Within 5 days of the date of this order, pursuant to section 503(b) 

of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as amended (6 U.S.C. 313(b)), the 

Secretary of Homeland Security, through the Administrator of FEMA, shall 

designate a Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator (Coordinator) to oversee 

long-term recovery efforts in the affected communities and conduct a comprehensive assessment of unmet needs of the affected communities in recovering from the derailment beyond the cleanup work directed by EPA. The 

Coordinator shall identify, in partnership with the State and East Palestine 

community, any unmet needs that are not addressed by Norfolk Southern 

and would qualify for Federal assistance, and shall immediately notify the 

relevant executive department or agency. The Coordinator shall repeat this 

assessment should Norfolk Southern stop meeting needs that it is currently 

addressing. 

(c) The State of Ohio’s request for a major disaster declaration pursuant 

to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 

as amended, 42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq. (Stafford Act), shall be held in abeyance 

to allow the State time to submit information on needs that may arise 


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in the future and cannot be addressed by Norfolk Southern, State, and 

local governments and therefore require Federal assistance under the Stafford 

Act. If the Administrator of FEMA receives such information from the State, 

including with respect to a change in the nature of assistance provided 

by Norfolk Southern, the Administrator shall immediately assess and submit 

a recommendation on whether a major disaster declaration is warranted. 

(d) The EPA shall continue to direct removal of contaminated soils and 

wastewater from the site. The EPA shall also ensure that any remaining 

contamination in surface stream sediments is addressed and that air and 

water monitoring continue. Within 30 days of the date of this order, EPA 

shall submit a report to the President on the cleanup efforts and whether 

Norfolk Southern continues to comply with EPA’s UAO to address the 

imminent and substantial endangerment its derailment caused. The report 

shall also explain the status of air, soil, surface water, groundwater, and 

drinking water sampling and monitoring. The EPA shall submit an updated 

report to the President every 60 days thereafter until all cleanup, assessment, 

and monitoring work required by EPA’s UAO has been completed. 

(e) Within 60 days of the date of this order, HHS shall submit a report 

to the President that summarizes key conclusions from the public health 

testing and assessments that have been conducted to date and the resources 

HHS and the CDC have provided to address any health conditions related 

to the derailment. 

(f) In coordination with the affected States, HHS shall continue to monitor 

the public health consequences of the derailment, including any long-term 

health issues in the affected communities. Based on that monitoring, and 

based on the development of any acute medical conditions related to the 

derailment, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall consider 

whether the circumstances warrant a declaration of a public health emergency 

under 42 U.S.C. 247d and, if the Secretary makes such a declaration, the 

Secretary shall exercise all appropriate authorities made available by such 

a declaration. The Administrator of EPA shall also consider, in consultation 

with HHS, whether the circumstances constitute a public health emergency 

under 42 U.S.C. 9604(a). 

(g) The HHS shall provide technical assistance to the States of Ohio 

and Pennsylvania in the event that either State considers submitting a proposal for services through the Medicaid program for individuals affected 

by the derailment, such as an experimental, pilot, or demonstration project 

under 42 U.S.C. 1315. 

(h) Within 60 days of the date of this order, DOT shall submit a report 

to the President on the actions that DOT is taking in light of the East 

Palestine train derailment. This report shall be updated within 120 days 

of the final NTSB investigation; the updated report shall include DOT’s 

preliminary set of follow-on actions, which could include rulemakings, inspection activities, or other actions to ensure accountability. Should the 

Congress provide DOT with broader authorities than now exist, such new 

authorities shall be identified and timelines established for action. 

Sec. 4. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed 

to impair or otherwise affect: 

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, 

or the head thereof; or 

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget 

relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals. 

(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and 

subject to the availability of appropriations. 


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(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, 

substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party 

against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, 

employees, or agents, or any other person. 

THE WHITE HOUSE, 

September 20, 2023. 

[FR Doc. 2023–21174 

Filed 9–25–23; 11:15 am] 

Billing code 3395–F3–P 


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