A Tier II Report is a chemical inventory report due to local and state emergency planning agencies and emergency responders by March 1 of each year. The Tier II reports are required by the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) under Title III of the Superfund Amendments & Reauthorization Act (SARA Title III). Specifically, the regulations are codified in 40 CFR Part 355: Emergency Planning and Notification and in 40 CFR Part 370: Emergency Release Notification and Hazardous Chemical Reporting.

Many are already familiar with the gruesome history that led to government action on chemical releases in the 1980’s. EPCRA was passed in 1986 in response to serious industrial chemical accidents, including the accidental release of methyl isocyanate in Bopal, India in 1984 that killed more than 2,000 people and the chemical release in Institute, West Virginia in 1985 that resulted in the hospitalization of hundreds of people.

Any hazardous material for which a facility must maintain a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) under the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards is subject to this regulation. Because “hazardous material” is such a broad term, nearly any chemical or material stored at an industrial or manufacturing facility must be evaluated to determine if the 10,000 pound or chemical-specific reporting thresholds are triggered. As a result, the Tier II Report is one of the broadest environmental regulations on the books today. In addition to hazardous substances, the Tier II Report must also include information on Extremely Hazardous Substances (EHS) as listed in 40 CFR Part 355, Appendix A. If a facility utilizes an EHS and maintains quantities on site that exceed the Threshold Planning Quantities as listed in Appendix A, then these materials must also be reported in the Tier II Report.

In October of 2008, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized amendments to EPCRA resulting in relatively minor changes to the reporting requirements, but did clarify the appropriate methods for reporting chemicals in mixtures. For hazardous chemicals that are mixtures and do not contain any EHS, a facility may use one of two methods for evaluating the on-site quantities for applicability. A facility may add together the quantities of pure chemical on-site and the quantity of the chemical as a component of a mixture (even if the mixture also is being reported as a hazardous chemical). Alternatively, as long as a mixture does not contain an EHS the total quantity of each mixture may be considered separately. When determining whether the threshold quantity of an EHS has been met, a facility must consider the total quantity of the EHS present in its pure form as well as the amount of EHS present in any mixture even if the mixture itself is also being reported separately. As required by the 2008 amendments, facilities must now report their North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code on the reporting forms; in addition, the chemical or common name of the reported chemical as provided on the manufacturers’ MSDS must be provided on the Tier II forms.

For accurate completion of a Tier II report there are some items that your facility should have in place. A comprehensive and up-to-date chemical inventory list, organized and updated MSDSs are important, particularly when determining EHS stored or used on-site. Accurate and readily available inventory information also facilitates making threshold determinations. Ideally, your facility’s MSDSs are electronically stored and searchable by chemical constituents or Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) numbers, which ensures that no EHS or chemical components of mixtures are inadvertently omitted from the reports.

Prior to submitting your Tier II report for the 2009 reporting year, it is recommended that you verify the preferred method of submittal for your state. Many state or local emergency planning commissions require electronic submittal and may have their own software program for report preparation or may require the use of the EPAs Tier II Submit program. Indiana currently accepts paper or electronic reporting via the Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s (IDEMs) Regulatory Services Portal (RSP); however, beginning in 2011 for the 2010 reporting year, reporting through the RSP will be mandatory. In order to use the RSP to submit reports, in 2010 or in the future, each facility must submit a signed Indiana Electronic Subscriber Agreement (IESA). The IESA is a hardcopy form that must have an original signature and be mailed to the IDEM prior to using the RSP. It is essential that preparation of Tier II reports and completion of the IESA, if submitting electronically, be initiated as early as possible to avoid unexpected delays and processing of the IESA.