You must comply with the emergency release notification requirements in this subpart if both of these two conditions are met:

(a) You produce, use, or store a hazardous chemical at your facility; and

(b) You release a reportable quantity (RQ) of any EHS or of a hazardous substance as defined by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA Hazardous Substance) at your facility. Certain releases are exempted from these requirements. Exempted releases are listed in § 355.31.

You do not have to provide emergency release notification under this subpart for any of the following six types of releases of EHSs or CERCLA hazardous substances that occur at your facility:

(a) Any release that results in exposure to persons solely within the boundaries of your facility.

(b) Any release that is a federally permitted release as defined in section 101(10) of CERCLA.

(c) Any release of a pesticide product that is exempt from reporting under section 103(e) of CERCLA.

(d) Any release that does not meet the definition of release under section 101(22) of CERCLA and is therefore exempt from CERCLA section 103(a) reporting.

(e) Any radionuclide release that occurs:

(1) Naturally in soil from land holdings such as parks, golf courses, or other large tracts of land.

(2) Naturally from land disturbance activities, including farming, construction, and land disturbance incidental to extraction during mining activities, except that which occurs at uranium, phosphate, tin, zircon, hafnium, vanadium, monazite, and rare earth mines. Land disturbance incidental to extraction includes: Land clearing; overburden removal and stockpiling; excavating, handling, transporting, and storing ores and other raw (not beneficiated or processed) materials; and replacing in mined-out areas coal ash, earthen materials from farming or construction, or overburden or other raw materials generated from the exempted mining activities.

(3) From the dumping and transportation of coal and coal ash (including fly ash, bottom ash, and boiler slags), including the dumping and land spreading operations that occur during coal ash uses.

(4) From piles of coal and coal ash, including fly ash, bottom ash, and boiler slags.

(f) Any release less than 1,000 pounds per 24 hours of nitrogen oxide or nitrogen dioxide to the air which is the result of combustion and combustion related activities.

(g) Air emissions from animal waste (including decomposing animal waste) at a farm.

If the release of an EHS or CERCLA hazardous substance is continuous and stable in quantity and rate at your facility as defined in 40 CFR 302.8(b), then the release qualifies for reduced reporting requirements under this subpart. Under these reduced reporting requirements, you do not need to provide the notifications required under § 355.40. However, in addition to the notifications required under 40 CFR 302.8, you must make all of the following notifications to the community emergency coordinator for the LEPC for any area likely to be affected by the release and to the SERC of any State likely to be affected by the release:

(a) Initial notifications as specified in 40 CFR 302.8 (d) and (e).

(b) Notification of a “statistically significant increase,” defined in 40 CFR 302.8(b) as any increase above the upper bound of the reported normal range.

(c) Notification of a “new release” as specified in 40 CFR 302.8(g)(1).

(d) Notification of a change in the normal range of the release as specified under 40 CFR 302.8(g)(2).

The release of a reportable quantity (RQ) of an EHS or CERCLA hazardous substance within any 24-hour period triggers the emergency release notification requirements. RQs for EHSs are listed in Appendices A and B of this part in the column labeled “reportable quantity.” RQs for CERCLA hazardous substances are listed in Table 302.4 of 40 CFR 302.4 in the column labeled “final RQ.”

You must make two separate notifications to comply with the emergency release notification requirements of this subpart: an immediate notification, and as soon as practicable thereafter a written follow-up emergency notification (or notifications, as more information becomes available).

(a) Immediate notification. The notice required under this section shall include as much of the following information known at the time. However, the retrieval of this information should not cause a delay in the notification on the emergency response.

(1) The chemical name or identity of any substance involved in the release.

(2) Indicate whether the substance is an EHS.

(3) Provide an estimate of the quantity of any such substance that was released into the environment.

(4) State the time and duration of the release.

(5) The medium or media into which the release occurred.

(6) Any known or anticipated acute or chronic health risks associated with the emergency and, where appropriate, advice regarding medical attention necessary for exposed individuals.

(7) Proper precautions to take as a result of the release, including evacuation (unless such information is readily available to the community emergency coordinator pursuant to the emergency plan).

(8) The name and telephone number of the individual (or individuals) to be contacted for further information.

(b) Written follow-up emergency notification. Except for releases that occur during transportation or from storage incident to transportation, you must provide a written follow-up emergency notice (or notices, as more information becomes available), as soon as practicable after the release. In the written follow-up emergency notice, you must provide and update the information required in the immediate notification and include additional information with respect to all of the following:

(1) Actions taken to respond and contain the release.

(2) Any known or anticipated acute or chronic health risks associated with the release.

(3) Where appropriate, advice regarding medical attention necessary for exposed individuals.

(c) You are not required to submit a written follow-up notification for a release that occurred during transportation or from storage incident to transportation. See § 355.42(b) for requirements for reporting such releases.

The immediate notification, described in § 355.40(a), should be oral. The follow-up emergency notification, described in § 355.40(b), shall be in writing. EPA does not specify a particular format for the written follow-up emergency notification.

(a) You must provide the immediate emergency release notification information and the written follow-up notification to:

(1) The community emergency coordinator for the LEPC of any area likely to be affected by the release (if there is no LEPC, notify the relevant local emergency response personnel); and

(2) The SERC of any State likely to be affected by the release.

(b) For a release that occurs during transportation or from storage incident to transportation, you may meet the requirements of this subpart by notifying the 911 operator (or in the absence of a 911 emergency telephone number, the operator) of the immediate notification information listed in § 355.40(a). You are not required under this subpart to submit a written follow-up notification, as described in § 355.40(b), for such a release.

(a) You must provide the required emergency release notification information described under § 355.40(a), immediately.

(b) You must provide the written follow-up emergency notice (or notices, as more information becomes available) described under § 355.40(b), as soon as practicable after the release.