ABSTRACT

Chemical engineers are faced with a variety of safety concerns, from both federal and state authorities as well as management at the corporate and local levels. At the federal level, the “Process Safety Management” standard of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) [1] and the “Risk Management Program” rule of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) [2] present comprehensive requirements for the control of processes to prevent releases of hazardous materials. Similarly, several states (notably, New Jersey, Delaware, and California) require chemical plants and other facilities that handle chemicals to protect the public and employees. Further, many companies and insurers have even stricter requirements for process control and for preventing and reporting of process incidents, including those that do not cause injury or property loss.