US EPA Proposes Rule to Reduce Emissions from Chemical Plants

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) proposed a rule in April 2023 to significantly reduce toxic emissions from chemical plants. The proposal includes regulating the known carcinogen ethylene oxide (EtO), as well as the likely carcinogenic chemical, chloroprene. Other air toxics included in the rule are benzene, 1,3-butadiene, ethylene dichloride, and vinyl chloride.

Facilities that make, store, use, or emit any of these six chemicals would be required to monitor levels entering the air at the fence line of the facility. The proposed action level varies per compound, with EtO being proposed at 0.2 micrograms per cubic meter of air and chloroprene at 0.3 micrograms per cubic meter of air. The monitoring data would be publicly available through the EPA’s WebFIRE database tool.

The main goal of this proposed rule is to protect human health from the impacts of these air toxics, particularly those in communities surrounding chemical plants. The pollutants have been associated with several cancers, and an EPA risk assessment determined that the proposed reductions could reduce the number of people with elevated cancer risk by 96 percent in nearby communities.¹

1. Biden-Harris Administration proposes to strengthen standards for chemical and polymers plants, dramatically reduce cancer risks from air toxics. Read more.