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SUBCHAPTER A—ACCIDENTAL RELEASE PREVENTION REQUIREMENTS; RISK MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS UNDER 

THE CLEAN AIR ACT SECTION 112(r)(7); DISTRIBUTION OF 

OFF-SITE CONSEQUENCE ANALYSIS INFORMATION 

PART 1400—DISTRIBUTION OF OFFSITE CONSEQUENCE ANALYSIS 

INFORMATION 

Subpart A—General 

Sec. 

1400.1 Purpose. 

1400.2 Definitions. 

Subpart B—Public Access 

1400.3 Public access to paper copies of offsite consequence analysis information. 

1400.4 Vulnerable zone indicator system. 

1400.5 Internet access to certain off-site 

consequence analysis data elements. 

1400.6 Enhanced local access. 

Subpart C—Access to Off-Site Consequence Analysis Information by 

Government Officials 

1400.7 In general. 

1400.8 Access to off-site consequence analysis information by Federal Government 

officials. 

1400.9 Access to off-site consequence analysis information by State and local government officials. 

Subpart D—Other Provisions 

1400.10 Limitation on public dissemination. 

1400.11 Limitation on dissemination to 

State and local government officials. 

1400.12 Qualified researchers. 

1400.13 Read-only database. 

AUTHORITY: 42 U.S.C. 7412(r)(7)(H)(ii). 

SOURCE: 65 FR 48131, Aug. 4, 2000, unless 

otherwise noted. 

Subpart A—General 

§ 1400.1 Purpose. 

Stationary sources subject to the 

Chemical Accident Prevention Provisions of 40 CFR part 68 are required to 

analyze the potential harm to public 

health and welfare of hypothetical 

chemical accidents and submit the results of their analyses to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as part 

of risk management plans. This part 

governs access by the public and by 

government officials to the portions of 

risk management plans containing the 

results of those analyses and certain 

related materials. This part also restricts dissemination of that information by government officials. 

§ 1400.2 Definitions. 

For the purposes of this part: 

(a) Accidental release means an unanticipated emission of a regulated substance or other extremely hazardous 

substance into the ambient air from a 

stationary source. 

(b) Administrator means the Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or his or her designated 

representative. 

(c) Attorney General means the Attorney General of the United States or his 

or her designated representative. 

(d) Federal government official means— 

(1) An officer or employee of the 

United States; and 

(2) An officer or employee of an agent 

or contractor of the Federal government. 

(e) State or local government official 

means— 

(1) An officer or employee of a State 

or local government; 

(2) An officer or employee of an agent 

or contractor of a State or local government; 

(3) An individual affiliated with an 

entity that has been given, by a state 

or local government, responsibility for 

preventing, planning for, or responding 

to accidental releases, such as a member of a Local Emergency Planning 

Committee (LEPC) or a State Emergency Response Commission (SERC), or 

a paid or volunteer member of a fire or 

police department; or 

(4) An officer or employee or an agent 

or contractor of an entity described in 

paragraph (e)(3) of this section. 

(f) LEPC means a Local Emergency 

Planning Committee created under the 

Emergency Planning and Community 

Right-to-Know Act, 42 U.S.C. 11001 et 

seq. 


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§ 1400.3 40 CFR Ch. IV (7–1–15 Edition) 

(g) Member of the public or person 

means an individual. 

(h) Official use means an action of a 

Federal, State, or local government 

agency or an entity described in paragraph (e)(3) of this section intended to 

carry out a function relevant to preventing, planning for, or responding to 

accidental releases. 

(i) Off-site consequence analysis (OCA) 

information means sections 2 through 5 

of a risk management plan (consisting 

of an evaluation of one or more worstcase release scenarios or alternative 

release scenarios) for an identified facility and any electronic database created by the Administrator from those 

sections. 

(j) Off-site consequence analysis (OCA) 

data elements means the results of the 

off-site consequence analysis conducted by a stationary source pursuant 

to 40 CFR part 68, subpart B, when presented in a format different than sections 2 through 5 of a risk management 

plan or any Administrator-created 

electronic database. 

(k) Off-site consequence analysis (OCA) 

rankings means any statewide or national rankings of identified stationary 

sources derived from OCA information. 

(l) Qualified researcher means a researcher who receives OCA information 

pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 7412(r)(7)(H)(vii). 

(m) Related local government agencies 

means local government agencies, such 

as police, fire, emergency management, 

and planning departments, that are involved in chemical emergency planning, prevention, or response. 

(n) Related state government agencies 

means State government agencies, 

such as emergency management, environmental protection, health, and natural resources departments, that are 

involved in chemical emergency planning, prevention, or response. 

(o) Risk management plan (RMP) 

means a risk management plan submitted to the Administrator by an 

owner or operator of a stationary 

source pursuant to 40 CFR part 68, subpart G. 

(p) SERC means a State Emergency 

Response Commission created under 

the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act, 42 U.S.C. 11001 

et seq. 

(q) State has the same meaning as 

provided in 42 U.S.C. 7602(d) (a state, 

the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands). 

(r) Stationary source has the same 

meaning as provided in 40 CFR part 68 

subpart A, §68.3. 

(s) Vulnerable zone means the geographical area that could be affected 

by a worst-case or alternative scenario 

release from a stationary source, as indicated by the off-site consequence 

analysis reported by the stationary 

source in its risk management plan 

pursuant to the applicable requirements of 40 CFR Part 68. It is defined 

as a circle, the center of which is the 

stationary source and the radius of 

which is the ‘‘distance-to-endpoint,’’ or 

the distance a toxic or flammable 

cloud, overpressure, or radiant heat 

would travel after being released and 

before dissipating to the point that it 

no longer threatens serious short-term 

harm to people or the environment. 

Subpart B—Public Access 

§ 1400.3 Public access to paper copies 

of off-site consequence analysis information. 

(a) General. The Administrator and 

the Attorney General shall ensure that 

any member of the public has access to 

a paper copy of OCA information in the 

manner prescribed by this section. 

(b) Reading-room access. Paper copies 

of OCA information shall be available 

in at least 50 reading rooms geographically distributed across the United 

States and its territories. The reading 

rooms shall allow any person to read, 

but not remove or mechanically reproduce, a paper copy of OCA information, 

in accordance with paragraphs (c) 

through (g) of this section and procedures established by the Administrator 

and Attorney General. 

(c) Limited number. Any person shall 

be provided with access to a paper copy 

of the OCA information for up to 10 

stationary sources located anywhere in 

the country, without geographical restriction, in a calendar month. 

(d) Additional access. Any person also 

shall be provided with access to a paper 


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EPA and Department of Justice § 1400.6 

copy of the OCA information for stationary sources located in the jurisdiction of the LEPC where the person 

lives or works and for any other stationary source that has a vulnerable 

zone that extends into that LEPC’s jurisdiction. 

(e) Personal identification for access to 

OCA information without geographical restriction. Reading rooms established 

under this section shall provide a person with access to a paper copy of OCA 

information under paragraph (c) of this 

section only after a reading room representative has 

(1) Ascertained the person’s identity 

by viewing photo identification issued 

by a Federal, State, or local government agency to the person; and 

(2) Obtained the person’s signature 

on a sign-in sheet and a certification 

that the person has not received access 

to OCA information for more than 10 

stationary sources for that calendar 

month. 

(f) Personal identification for access to 

local OCA information. Reading rooms 

established under this section shall 

provide a person with access to a paper 

copy of OCA information under paragraph (d) of this section only after a 

reading room representative has 

(1) Ascertained where the person 

lives or works by viewing appropriate 

documentation; and 

(2) Obtained the person’s signature 

on a sign-in sheet. 

(g) Record keeping. Reading room personnel shall keep records of reading 

room use and certifications in accordance with procedures established by 

the Administrator and the Attorney 

General. These records shall be retained for no more than three years. 

Federal reading rooms will not index or 

otherwise manipulate the sign-in 

sheets according to individuals’ names, 

except in accordance with the Privacy 

Act. 

§ 1400.4 Vulnerable zone indicator system. 

(a) In general. The Administrator 

shall provide access to a computerbased indicator that shall inform any 

person located in any state whether an 

address specified by that person might 

be within the vulnerable zone of one or 

more stationary sources, according to 

the data reported in RMPs. The indicator also shall provide information 

about how to obtain further information. 

(b) Methods of access. The indicator 

shall be available on the Internet or by 

request made by telephone or by mail 

to the Administrator to operate the indicator for an address specified by the 

requestor. SERCs, LEPCs, and other 

related state or local government agencies are authorized and encouraged to 

operate the indicator as well. 

§ 1400.5 Internet access to certain offsite consequence analysis data elements. 

The Administrator shall include only 

the following OCA data elements in the 

risk management plan database available on the Internet: 

(a) The concentration of the chemical (RMP Sections 2.1.b; 3.1.b); 

(b) The physical state of the chemical (RMP Sections 2.2; 3.2); 

(c) The statistical model used (RMP 

Sections 2.3; 3.3; 4.2; 5.2); 

(d) The endpoint used for flammables 

in the worst-case scenario (RMP Section 4.5); 

(e) The duration of the chemical release for the worst-case scenario (RMP 

Section 2.7); 

(f) The wind speed during the chemical release (RMP Sections 2.8; 3.8); 

(g) The atmospheric stability (RMP 

Sections 2.9; 3.9); 

(h) The topography of the surrounding area (RMP Sections 2.10; 3.10); 

(i) The passive mitigation systems 

considered (RMP Sections 2.15; 3.15; 

4.10; 5.10); and 

(j) The active mitigation systems 

considered (RMP Sections 3.16; 5.11). 

§ 1400.6 Enhanced local access. 

(a) OCA data elements. Consistent 

with 42 U.S.C. 7412(r)(7)(H)(xii)(II), 

members of LEPCs and SERCs, and any 

other State or local government official, may convey to the public OCA 

data elements orally or in writing, as 

long as the data elements are not conveyed in the format of sections 2 

through 5 of an RMP or any electronic 

database developed by the Administrator from those sections. Disseminating OCA data elements to the public 


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§ 1400.7 40 CFR Ch. IV (7–1–15 Edition) 

in a manner consistent with this provision does not violate 42 U.S.C. 

7412(r)(7)(H)(v) and is not punishable 

under federal law. 

(b) OCA information. (1) LEPCs and 

related local government agencies are 

authorized and encouraged to allow 

any member of the public to read, but 

not remove or mechanically copy, a 

paper copy of the OCA sections of 

RMPs (i.e., sections 2 through 5) for 

stationary sources located within the 

jurisdiction of the LEPC and for any 

other stationary source that has a vulnerable zone that extends into that jurisdiction. 

(2) LEPCs and related local government agencies that provide read-only 

access to the OCA sections of RMPs 

under this paragraph (b) are not required to limit the number of stationary sources for which a person can 

gain access, ascertain a person’s identity or place of residence or work, or 

keep records of public access provided. 

(3) SERCs and related state government agencies are authorized and encouraged to allow any person to read, 

but not remove or mechanically copy, 

a paper copy of the OCA sections of 

RMPs for the same stationary sources 

that the LEPC in whose jurisdiction 

the person lives or works would be authorized to make available to that person under paragraph (b)(1) of this section. 

(4) Any LEPC, SERC, or related local 

or State government agency that allows a person to read the OCA sections 

of RMPs in a manner consistent with 

this paragraph (b) shall not be in violation of 42 U.S.C. 7412(r)(7)(H)(v) or any 

other provision of federal law. 

Subpart C—Access to Off-Site 

Consequence Analysis Information by Government Officials. 

§ 1400.7 In general. 

The Administrator shall provide OCA 

information to government officials as 

provided in this subpart. Any OCA information provided to government officials shall be accompanied by a copy of 

the notice prescribed by 42 U.S.C. 

7412(r)(7)(H)(vi). 

§ 1400.8 Access to off-site consequence 

analysis information by Federal 

government officials. 

The Administrator shall provide any 

Federal government official with the 

OCA information requested by the official for official use. The Administrator 

shall provide the OCA information to 

the official in electronic form, unless 

the official specifically requests the information in paper form. The Administrator may charge a fee to cover the 

cost of copying OCA information in 

paper form. 

§ 1400.9 Access to off-site consequence 

analysis information by State and 

local government officials. 

(a) The Administrator shall make 

available to any State or local government official for official use the OCA 

information for stationary sources located in the official’s state. 

(b) The Administrator also shall 

make available to any State or local 

government official for official use the 

OCA information for stationary 

sources not located in the official’s 

state, at the request of the official. 

(c) The Administrator shall provide 

OCA information to a State or local 

government official in electronic form, 

unless the official specifically requests 

the information in paper form. The Administrator may charge a fee to cover 

the cost of copying OCA information in 

paper form. 

(d) Any State or local government official is authorized to provide, for official use, OCA information relating to 

stationary sources located in the official’s state to other State or local government officials in that state and to 

State or local government officials in a 

contiguous state. 

Subpart D—Other Provisions 

§ 1400.10 Limitation on public dissemination. 

Except as authorized by this part and 

by 42 U.S.C. 7412(r)(7)(H)(v)(III), Federal, State, and local government officials, and qualified researchers are prohibited from disseminating OCA information and OCA rankings to the public. Violation of this provision subjects 

the violator to criminal liability as 

provided in 42 U.S.C. 7412(r)(7)(H)(v) 


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EPA and Department of Justice § 1400.13 

and civil liability as provided in 42 

U.S.C. 7413. 

§ 1400.11 Limitation on dissemination 

to State and local government officials. 

Except as authorized by this part and 

by 42 U.S.C. 7412(r)(7)(H)(v)(III), Federal, State, and local government officials, and qualified researchers are prohibited from disseminating OCA information to State and local government 

officials. Violation of this provision 

subjects the violator to civil liability 

as provided in 42 U.S.C. 7413. 

§ 1400.12 Qualified researchers. 

The Administrator is authorized to 

provide OCA information, including facility identification, to qualified researchers pursuant to a system developed and implemented under 42 U.S.C. 

7412(r)(7)(H)(vii), in consultation with 

the Attorney General. 

§ 1400.13 Read-only database. 

The Administrator is authorized to 

establish, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 

7412(r)(7)(H)(viii), an information technology system that makes available to 

the public off-site consequence analysis 

information by means of a central 

database under the control of the Federal government that contains information that users may read, but that 

provides no means by which an electronic or mechanical copy of the information may be made. 

PARTS 1401–1499 [RESERVED] 


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