This Month in Responsible Care History
To commemorate the 20th of Responsible Care, NewsLink will highlight key events that have occurred during the month over the past twenty years. This series of updates will continue through next June.
September
1987 - ACC (then the CMA) creates the ad hoc Board Public Perception Committee which will eventually recommend adoption of Responsible Care.
1988- ACC Board approves adoption of Responsible Care and allocates resources to support the program for the remainder of 1988. Because a change in the Council’s by-laws is required to make Responsible Care a condition of membership, a vote by the entire membership is necessary before Responsible Care can be considered to be Final.
1990 - The Process Safety Code, originally drafted as the Safe Plant Operations (SPO) Code is adopted.
1992 - Ingram Barge and Preston Trucking approved as the first Responsible Care Partners
1993 - Board revises Responsible Care governance process; Definition of Code Management Practice in Place announced; Timetables for completing Code implementation are announced; Initial criteria for Management Systems Verification (MSV) are identified
2001 - Attacks on World Trade Center and Pentagon highlight the need for increased emphasis on security which eventually leads to the adoption of the Responsible Care Security Code.
2008 Impact Chemistry Advocacy Seminar
Do not miss out on the opportunity to attend the 2008 Impact Chemistry Advocacy Seminar on September 11 -12, 2008 in Washington, D.C. This is a great opportunity to meet ACC's new President and CEO, Cal Dooley and hear his vision ACC advocacy. This political involvement training event will prepare industry employees to effectively interact with policy makers and improve their company’s ability to impact chemistry on public policy issues. Direct advocacy, grassroots advocacy, and Get out the Vote techniques and resources will be shared. Sign-up at http://www.americanchemistry.com/AdvocacySeminar2008 or contact Trupti Patel at 703.741.5690 or email her at trupti_patel@americanchemistry.com if you have any questions! Also, share this opportunity with colleagues as this is an event not be missed!
New Responsible Care Member Coordinators
We would like t welcome the following member coordinators to the Responsible Care Program: William Henry/Taminco; Ralph Werling/Daikin America, Inc. and Penny Taylor/Sasol North America Inc.
September Monthly Member Coordinator Call
The monthly Member Responsible Care Coordinators’ call for ACC members will be held Friday, September 19th, at 10 a.m. ET. If you have any comments or questions that you would like to address in this call, please advise Tarsha Snead by close of business Wednesday, September 17th. Please refer to the Responsible Care Coordinator Call email for dial-in instructions.
September Monthly Partner Coordinator Call
The monthly Partner Responsible Care Coordinators’ call will be held on Thursday, September 25th at 10:00 am ET. If you have any comments or questions that you would like to address in this call, please advise Dave Gleason by close of business Wednesday, September 24th. Please refer to the Partner Coordinator Call email for dial-in instructions.
LogiChem Conference 2008 – September 22-24 – Register Now!
For LogiChem 2008, Dave Gleason of the RC Staff will be presenting at the Transportation Management Summit on Monday, September 22. His presentation topic is: Business Value from Supply Chain Partnering: The Case for Systematic Management of Environmental, Health, Safety and Security (EHS&S) Activities Along The Supply Chain. Along with Mr. Gleason, Kevin Swift, the Chief Economic Advisor here with the ACC, will be interviewed on his 2009 economic outlook for the industry. This interview session will cover such topics as the possible recession and general economic conditions. Don’t forget, member companies receive a 15% discount! When registering, use 10410.003X82BA as the promotion code.
For more information, visit www.logichem2008.com
ACC Targets Workgroups Update
As you know, a Targets Workgroup has been deliberating since early this year to make recommendations to the Board Committee on Responsible Care (BCRC) regarding setting targets for Responsible Care Performance Measures. This work was commissioned by the BCRC as a result of a recommendation from our external Strategic Review Board (SRB) in late 2006. The Workgroup recommended to the BCRC that as a first step, ACC set targets for four performance measures. The Workgroup emphasizes that all targets are to be ACC-wide, and that individual member companies should not be held accountable to the Responsible Care Governance Process for failure to meet the targets proposed. The Workgroup issued a survey in August to assess member companies’ internal targets for the relevant metrics and to identify plans companies already have in place to achieve those targets. The survey is due Septembers 15. The feedback will be used to conduct a full assessment of the supporting activities that would be required to achieve the targets. These activities will be weighed by the BCRC, in making its final determination with respect to moving forward with performance targets, as part of a benefit/risk analysis process. Concurrent with the assessment of necessary supporting activities described above, ACC is undertaking a legal review of the proposed targets by outside and inside counsel as well as the ACC General Counsel’s network. This feedback will also be presented to the BCRC, to inform the benefit/risk analysis process. For questions and comments, contact Debra Phillips.
Greenhouse Gas and Energy Efficiency Performance Measures
At this time, all companies that were required to report their Greenhouse Gas and Energy Efficiency information have successfully the measure! Thank you all for working so diligently on getting this information in to the ACC. We have now begun the review process and should have all revisions entered into the system soon, and aim to have the website updated with the information received during this 2008 reporting year.
Responsible Care Public Performance Reporting Website – Completed
The Responsible Care public website, www.responsiblecare-us.com , has been successfully updated with the information received during the 2008 reporting year. This year there were many changes to the website, including the replacement of the TRI metric with the Hazardous Air Pollutants metric. When visiting the site, take a moment to view the new community outreach and emergency preparedness page that highlights our member company’s efforts to reach out to the surround community.
Partner’s Performance – Public Update Underway
With the completion of the member company performance public update, we have started with the Partner’s performance update to our public facing website. The partner program has grown so much over the past year, with more and more companies becoming involved with the Responsible Care initiative. Last year, the ACC published Partner performance on our public facing website, www.responsiblecare-us.com , for the first time; continuing our effort to maintain transparency. This year, the update will contain 3 years of aggregated data along with other 2008 reporting year information that is available company by company. Look for the notice on of the completion soon!
OSHA VPP/Responsible Care Alliance Sunset
The OSHA Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) Alliance with the Responsible Care program was established in November of 2005 for the purpose of formally recognizing the efficiencies between the VPP and Responsible Care programs and to offer credit for the respective programs. A joint effort between OSHA and Responsible Care produced a gap analysis that identifies the efficiencies between the two programs.
The Alliance is scheduled to sunset November 2008 and OSHA has opted to pursue its interest with ACC via the Process Safety Alliance. Though the Process Safety Alliance does not specifically recognize Responsible Care, the Responsible Care program will be intimately involved with the work done to implement the activities of the Process Safety Alliance.
Though OSHA’s current Alliance with Responsible Care is scheduled to sunset in November, the gap analysis referring to the efficiencies between the Responsible Care and the VPP program will continue to be recognized by the ACC. For more information about the sunset of the VPP/Responsible Care Alliance, please contact Tomaysa Sterling.
School Chemical Cleanout Campaign (SC3)
The School Chemical Cleanout Campaign (SC3) is an EPA program that helps schools with chemical management including but not limited to: educating schools on chemical use, cataloging and identification of chemicals, and advice or assistance on chemical disposal. Several ACC member companies have participated in the program and have indicated that the experience has been rewarding. EPA has recently published a new tool that will assist companies and organizations that would like to participate in the SC3 program. Building Successful Programs to Address Chemical Risks in Schools (PDF) is a workbook that contains templates, tips and techniques to help develop or improve participation in the SC3 program for responsible chemical waste management in schools.
For more information on SC3, please view the SC3 Partner Fact Sheet and visit EPA’s SC3 highlighted area on their website. If you are interested in expediting your active participation in SC3, please contact EPA’s Kristina Meson, 703-308-8488; with additional questions and to submit your individual company/facility Partnership Agreement. For more information please contact Tomaysa Sterling.
Alternative Security Plans - DHS reiterated that they are now softening their view on the use of alternative security programs such as the Responsible Care Security Code. In practical terms, it appears that they will revisit the RCSC as an approved alternative for at least some subset of the tier 4 facilities, but this will still hinge on the completion of the site security plan (SSP) template development. We will not be able to resubmit the ASP for approval until these templates are completed and we make any adjustments based upon how the final SSP would need to be incorporated. ACC is currently investigating how much a revised ASP submittal could help for tier 4 sites. For tier 1, 2 and 3 sites, following the DHS CFATS program appears as the only route.
Site Security Plans – The DHS/industry Site Security Plan (SSP) working group is meeting again this week on the development of the SSP template. DHS has a goal of completing a first draft by October/November and will be seeking some companies to volunteer to “pilot” the program. The feedback they receive will influence the final changes necessary for the SSP templates. DHS has a goal of having the templates ready for Tier 1 facilities to use by January, 2009. The remaining tiers will be phased in following Tier 1.
MSTA/CFATS – DHS is also working on efforts to harmonize the requirements of MTSA and CFATS. While this is a preliminary discussion, it is clear that DHS is considering ways to encourage companies subject to the MTSA to voluntarily consider completing top-screens and the CSAT vulnerability assessment so that security efforts at both CFATS and MTSA sites are consistent. DHS is also interested in having joint inspections between the two programs. Similarly, they are looking at 13 – 14 areas (including DOT, TSA, cyber initiatives etc.) where harmonization would be beneficial.
For more information please contact Tomaysa Sterling.
Responsible Care Management System Workshop 2008 – Register Now!
An RCMS/RC14001Workshop is set for October 14 and 15 in Indianapolis, Indiana hosted by partner Celadon Trucking Services, Inc. The original workshop series was held in 2006 at various locations in 3 separate sessions. In 2007/2008, the Workshop was condensed to 2 full days and has been presented on three occasions – open session hosted by partner Trimac Transportation in Houston in April 2007; and special sessions sponsored by ACC member Honeywell Specialty Materials for their supply chain members in Morristown, NJ in November, 2007 and again in April, 2008. The condensed workshop was well received as a time and cost efficient approach to in-depth understanding of the RCMS.
Celadon RC Coordinator Tom Burck and Executive Contact Chairman Steve Russell have arranged an interesting and inexpensive experience for all attendees. If you interested in attending a management system workshop to either “jump start” or refresh your efforts towards certification or expand understanding further in your organization – please contact Tom Burck, Dave Gleason or Dan Roczniak. To take advantage of group hotel rates, registration is suggested prior to September 12, 2008. There is no charge for attending this workshop.
RCLG Prepares for Meeting in Morocco, October 2008
The RCLG is working to prepare for its full annual meeting to be held this year, October 8-10 in Marrakech, Morocco. Items that will be prominent on the agenda are: global product stewardship efforts, global certification concepts, global performance reporting, and peer reviews to include Korea, Portugal and the United States. Planning for the UN International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM-2) will also be discussed. For more information, contact Debra Phillips.
Let us Know When You Get Certified!
There are a number of partner companies at various stages of certification at this time. When you cross a milestone (e.g. receive your formal certificate from your audit service provider; complete an audit stage at HQ or field facility, etc.), we would like to promptly update your status in the partner metrics website and would also like to have a faxed copy of your certificate(s) for our files when you are finished with this cycle’s effort. This is an easy way to insure all of your customers within the ACC membership as well as the public are aware when you achieve this milestone. Please contact Dave Gleason with any questions or specific details for your company.
Status Reports due For Certification Extensions
The ACC Responsible Care governance process requires that any company with an approved extension plan to complete certification submit a regular update of progress/status towards completion. These updates for Class of 2007 partners should be submitted to Dave Gleason no later than October 1, 2008 for review by appropriate ACC Board representatives. If you have any questions or concerns, please let Dave know promptly. 60% of those partners who had approved extensions granted in June 2008 have formally completed certification in the past quarter.
Potential Business Value from Certification – Insurance
In an on-going effort to identify and then capture bottom line business value from achieving management system certification, a survey is in progress to determine both needs and interests among partners regarding certain EHS&S insurance coverage. An insurance broker has been identified who has interest in working with Responsible Care companies in defining a “preferred risk” status based on the in-depth hazard/risk analyses that are the foundation of the RCMS and the RC14001. If you would like to become involved or have interest in further discussion, please contact Dave Gleason.
