Trump Administration Moves to Overhaul Chemical Disaster Prevention Rules

The Trump administration's Environmental Protection Agency has initiated efforts to rewrite safety regulations aimed at preventing chemical disasters, withdrawing protections put in place under the Biden administration.

In a significant policy shift, the Trump administration's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has filed a motion in federal court to dismantle safety rules that were designed to prevent chemical disasters at thousands of hazardous facilities across the United States. These regulations, which came into effect in May 2024 under President Biden, require chemical sites to implement new safety measures aimed at mitigating risks associated with climate-related events, such as storms and floods.

The Biden-era rules also mandated that facilities reassess their use of particularly hazardous chemicals, explore safer alternatives, and enhance communication with local communities and emergency responders. Additionally, sites with a history of accidents were required to undergo independent safety audits to better prevent future incidents.

The EPA's recent filing suggests that the agency is seeking to overhaul these regulations, essentially nullifying a previous legal challenge launched by Republican Attorneys-General and the chemical industry, who argued that the rules imposed excessive burdens with minimal safety benefits. The American Chemistry Council, a key industry group involved in that challenge, has not yet responded to the EPA’s recent actions.

Environmental organizations have criticized this move. Adam Kron, an attorney with Earthjustice, expressed concern over the potential consequences of rolling back these regulations, highlighting the serious dangers posed by chemical incidents, including worker injuries and community evacuations. “Chemical explosions force entire neighborhoods to evacuate. First responders have died rushing into disasters they weren’t warned about,” Kron stated poignantly. The reinstatement of weakened safety protocols raises alarming questions about public safety and environmental protections in the face of industrial risks.