Gutting Chemical Safety Board Endangers Millions of Americans, Groups Warn Congress

In a July 17 letter to leaders in the US House and Senate, the coalition said the White House plan to eliminate the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) comes at a time when there have been at least 105 “serious chemical disasters” reported so far this year.

Last month alone saw explosions at an automobile parts manufacturer in Michigan and at an asphalt plant in South Carolina, a chemical leak at a Louisiana petrochemicals facility, and a toxic plume of anhydrous nitric acid from an explosives plant in Ohio that forced evacuations of hundreds of area residents, according to the coalition.

A 2023 report found that chemical accidents occur almost daily, on average, across the United States, exposing people to dangerous toxins through fires, explosions, leaks, spills and other releases.

As stated on its website, the role of the CSB is to “investigate incidents and hazards resulting from the production, processing, and handling of chemical substances that can cause death, serious injury, or substantial environmental or property damage.”