Hazardous Materials Problems in Earthquakes

	Hazardous Materials Problems in Earthquakes Local Government Actions

Local governments have different roles related to hazardous materials problems in earthquakes. First, they own and operate facilities that use and store hazardous materials. Next, they can encourage private businesses to take a more active role in mitigating potential releases in an earthquake. Finally, they respond to hazardous materials emergencies during earthquakes.

Their Own Facilities

Risk Assessment

Roles

Standards and Requirements

THEIR OWN FACILITIES

The specific types of strategies available to local governments for their own facilities are similar to those available to private businesses. Thus, local governments should review the strategies listed on the previous page for businesses. They should also take a hard look at the facilities which are essential to their emergency response, including their Emergency Operations Center, police department and fire stations. A small natural gas line leak has forced the evacuation of an EOC. A sprinkler line break could disrupt emergency communications.

RISK ASSESSMENT
Local governments should encourage businesses to be active in anticipating and mitigating these types of problems. Such advice should not be limited to the larger companies; our research has indicated that the smaller companies, including general retail stores, gas stations, and pharmacies, also can have problems yet lack in-house expertise to clean up a spill.

ROLES

Essential to such a program is knowledge of both aspects of the problem. First, a local government should have an accurate inventory of the location of hazardous materials within the businesses in their community. Second, it should conduct an earthquake vulnerability analysis to identify:

the general extent of ground shaking expected on the different geologic materials found in its jurisdiction;

structures containing hazardous materials that are a collapse hazard, or structures where one can expect greater-than average damage to contents;

the adequacy of nonstructural precautions currently used by businesses in their community; and

the adequacy and training of in-house emergency response capabilities of the businesses.

Compare your hazmat and earthquake databases!

STANDARDS AND REQUIREMENTS

Fire and hazmat inspectors should use standard checklists for identifying common nonstructural deficiencies, such as inadequate cylinder restraints and shelf lips, when conducting periodic inspections of facilities. Local designated agencies reviewing California's Risk Management and Prevention Programs (RMPPs) should ensure that the reports include an assessment of seismic considerations.
They also may adopt standards that are more stringent than those mandated by the state or federal governments for facilities handling hazardous materials. For example, storage or handling of hazardous materials (above a threshold quantity) could be prohibited in seismically suspicious buildings (such as unreinforced masonry buildings), or in areas subject to the strongest shaking (such as Bay mud in the San Francisco Bay Area).

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ABAG, the Association of Bay Area Governments, is the regional planning and services agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area. This information is based on a two-year research effort that resulted in the 1990 ABAG report, "Hazardous Materials Problems in Earthquakes," including an Executive Summary, a Guidebook, and a Background volume.

The research effort that forms the basis for this information was funded by the National Science Foundation's Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors of these reports and do not necessarily reflect the views of the funding agencies.This page was last updated 11/6/03 by jbp.

ROLES
Essential to such a program is knowledge of both aspects of the problem. First, a local government should have an accurate inventory of the location of hazardous materials within the businesses in their community. Second, it should conduct an earthquake vulnerability analysis to identify: the general extent of ground shaking expected on the different geologic materials found in its jurisdiction; structures containing hazardous materials that are a collapse hazard, or structures where one can expect greater-than average damage to contents; the adequacy of nonstructural precautions currently used by businesses in their community; and the adequacy and training of in-house emergency response capabilities of the businesses. Compare your hazmat and earthquake databases!
STANDARDS AND REQUIREMENTS
Fire and hazmat inspectors should use standard checklists for identifying common nonstructural deficiencies, such as inadequate cylinder restraints and shelf lips, when conducting periodic inspections of facilities. Local designated agencies reviewing California's Risk Management and Prevention Programs (RMPPs) should ensure that the reports include an assessment of seismic considerations. They also may adopt standards that are more stringent than those mandated by the state or federal governments for facilities handling hazardous materials. For example, storage or handling of hazardous materials (above a threshold quantity) could be prohibited in seismically suspicious buildings (such as unreinforced masonry buildings), or in areas subject to the strongest shaking (such as Bay mud in the San Francisco Bay Area).