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To decide whether your facility has chemicals subject to Tier II reporting requirements, use the definition of “hazardous chemical” found in 40 CFR 370.66. Basically, hazardous chemicals are any substance for which your facility must maintain an MSDS under OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard.
Specifically, hazardous chemical means any hazardous chemical as defined under 29 CFR 1910.1200(c), except that the term does not include:
- Any food, food additive, color additive, drug, or cosmetic regulated by the Food and Drug Administration;
- Any substance present as a solid in any manufactured item to the extent exposure to the substance does not occur under normal conditions of use;
- Any substance to the extent it is used for personal, family, or household purposes, or is present in the same form and concentration as a product packaged for distribution and use by the general public;
- Any substance to the extent it is used in a research laboratory or a hospital or other medical facility under the direct supervision of a technically qualified individual; or
- Any substance to the extent it is used in routine agricultural operations or is a fertilizer held for sale by a retailer to the ultimate customer.
You must report hazardous chemicals that were present at your facility at any time during the previous calendar year at levels that equal or exceed established thresholds, according to 40 CFR 370.
Mixtures
The Tier II reporting requirements for mixtures are found in 40 CFR 370.14. If a chemical is part of a mixture, use the table at 40 CFR 370.14 to determine if a reporting threshold is equaled or exceeded, and to determine how to report. Here’s the table:
| If your mixture contains a hazardous chemical: | To determine if the threshold level for that hazardous chemical is equaled or exceeded you must: | If the threshold level for that hazardous chemical is exceeded then you must: |
|---|---|---|
| (1) That is an extremely hazardous substance (EHS)…… | Determine the total quantity of the EHS present throughout your facility at any one time, by adding together the quantity present as a component in all mixtures and all other quantities of the EHS (you must include the quantity present in a mixture even if you are also counting the quantity of that particular mixture toward the threshold level for that mixture). | Report the EHS component—submit an MSDS for the EHS (or include the EHS on the list of chemicals submitted in lieu of the MSDSs), as provided under 370.30, and submit Tier I (or Tier II) information for the EHS, as provided under 370.40 or Report the mixture itself—submit an MSDS for the mixture (or include the mixture on the list of chemicals submitted in lieu of the MSDSs), as provided under 370.30, and submit Tier I (or Tier II) information for the mixture, as provided under 370.40. If you report the mixture itself, then provide the total quantity of that mixture. |
| (2) That is not an EHS……. | Determine either: The total quantity of the hazardous chemical present throughout your facility at any one time by adding together the quantity present as a component in all mixtures and all other quantities of the hazardous chemical (you must include the quantity present in a mixture even if you are also applying that particular mixture as a whole toward the threshold level for that mixture) or The total quantity of that mixture present throughout your facility at any one time. | Report the non-EHS hazardous chemical component—submit an MSDS for the non-EHS hazardous chemical (or include the non-EHS on the list of chemicals submitted in lieu of the MSDSs), as provided under 370.30, and submit Tier I (or Tier II) information for the non-EHS hazardous chemical as provided under 370.40 or Report the mixture itself—submit an MSDS for the mixture (or include the mixture on the list of chemicals submitted in lieu of MSDSs), as provided under 370.30, and submit Tier I (or Tier II) information for the mixture, as provided under 370.40. If you report the mixture itself, then provide the total quantity of that mixture. |
For each specific mixture, the reporting option used must be consistent for both MSDS and inventory reporting, unless it is not possible to do so. This means that if a facility reports on a specific mixture as a whole for MSDS reporting, the facility must report on that mixture as a whole for inventory reporting too (unless it is not possible). MSDS reporting and inventory reporting are discussed in detail in Subpart C40 CFR 370.
To determine the quantity of an EHS or a non-EHS hazardous chemical component present in a mixture, multiply the concentration of the hazardous chemical component (in weight percent) by the weight of the mixture (in pounds). You do not have to count a hazardous chemical present in a mixture if the concentration is less than or equal to 1 percent, or less than or equal to 0.1 percent for a carcinogenic chemical.
In the “Chemical Description” section of the Tier II form, enter the Chemical Abstract Service registry number (CAS). For mixtures, enter the CAS number of the mixture as a whole if it has been assigned a number distinct from its constituents. For a mixture that has no CAS number, leave this item blank or report the CAS numbers of as many constituent chemicals as possible. If you are withholding the name of a chemical in accordance with criteria specified in Title III, Section 322, enter the generic class or category that is structurally descriptive of the chemical (e.g., list toulenediisocyanate as organic isocyanate) and check the box marked Trade Secret. Trade secret information should be submitted to EPA and must include a substantiation.
Then enter the chemical name or common name of each hazardous chemical, and check the boxes for ALL applicable descriptors: pure or mixture; and solid, liquid, or gas; and whether the chemical is or contains an EHS. If the chemical is a mixture containing an EHS, enter the chemical name of each EHS in the mixture. For example, you have pure chlorine gas on hand, as well as two mixtures that contain liquid chlorine. You write “chlorine” and enter the CAS number. Then you check “pure” and “mix” as well as “liquid” and “gas.”