[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Springfield
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 4-2-1998 (Title
7, Ch. 7.04, § 7.04.080, of the 1986 Code)]
Each person or facility in the City of Springfield engaged in the business of manufacturing, storage, disposal, selling, or the use of chemical, biological, or radioactive materials which are a physical or health hazard as determined by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or the federal government shall additionally provide notification to the City of Springfield of a hazardous materials release or threat of a release when a reporting requirement under state or federal requirement is triggered. Each person or facility shall notify the City of Springfield Fire Department operator, by telephone via 9-1-1, within 15 minutes, except for those reports required under § 208-4 below, of its discovery of a reportable release, real or threatened, of known or unknown chemical, biological, or radioactive materials spilled, released or discharged within the premises or from the premises into the air, ground or water. This report shall also satisfy the notification requirements to the Springfield Local Emergency Planning Committee.
In the event of immediate threat or risk-to-life releases or
spills that may pose an immediate threat or risk to life, the property
of the surrounding area or the environment, the person or facility
shall also give to the Fire Department operator the following information
to the extent known at the time of the telephone call:
A.
The caller shall indicate that a release or threatened release has
occurred;
B.
Location/address of the spill or release;
C.
Caller's name and job title, telephone number, company name;
D.
Chemical name or identification (UN number, if known) of any substance(s)
involved in the spill or release;
E.
Description of known injuries;
F.
Any specified instructions (e.g., wind direction, entry approach,
personal protection gear requirements, etc.);
G.
If available, estimate of the quantity of the substance spilled or
released into the environment;
H.
Medium or media into which the spill or release occurred (e.g., air,
ground, water, etc.);
I.
Time when release was discovered;
J.
Any known or anticipated acute or chronic health risks associated
with the spilled or released substance, to the extent known;
K.
Any actions taken to stop the spill or release and contain any spilled
or released materials; and
L.
Names and telephone numbers of the person(s) to be contacted for
future information.
In the event of a release of a hazardous material that does
not pose an immediate risk to life, property, or the environment but
which is still reportable to either a federal or state agency, the
person or facility shall provide the following information to the
Fire Department operator via 9-1-1 to the extent known at the time
of the telephone call:
A.
Location/address of release;
B.
Caller's name and title, telephone number, facility name;
C.
Name of hazardous material(s) released or spilled;
D.
Quantity of material(s) released or spilled;
E.
Time of the release or discovery;
F.
State and federal law/regulation(s) requiring the report;
G.
Actions taken to mitigate release or spill;
H.
Any known or anticipated health risk associated with the spill or
release, to the extent known; and
I.
Names and telephone numbers of persons to call for further information.
A.
For releases that do not require emergency response on the part of
the City agencies and when there are no injuries, or there is no threat
to off-site properties, notice will be given to the Fire Alarm Dispatch
Center (787-6400) and the Office of Emergency Preparedness (787-6720)
within two hours of the occurrence.
B.
Release reporting for underground storage tanks when a representative
of the Springfield Fire Department is present shall not be subject
to the reporting requirements of this article.
C.
Release reporting for facilities operating with state or federal
permits which have provisions to notify the granting agency when specified
release situations occur shall not be subject to the provisions of
this article.
If the person or facility engaged in the business of manufacturing,
storage, selling, or the use of chemical, biological, or radioactive
materials determines, after submitting an initial report, the spill
did not require a state or federal notification, the person or facility
shall be allowed to withdraw its reports by requesting such in writing.
The request shall include the reasons and justifications for the withdrawal.
Said request shall be submitted to the Springfield Office of Emergency
Preparedness within 60 days of the initial report. The Office of Emergency
Preparedness shall have 60 days to approve or deny the request.
The Office of Emergency Preparedness shall be the oversight
department for the purpose of this article.
A.
Criminal disposition. Any person or facility who or which violates
a provision of this article is guilty of a separate offense for each
day during which the violation is committed, continued, or permitted.
Each offense, upon conviction, is punishable by a fine of $300.
B.
Noncriminal disposition. A noncriminal disposition may penalize any person or facility who or which violates any provision of this article as provided for under § 1-25. The Office of Emergency Preparedness, Fire Department and the Police Department shall all enforce this article. The penalty for each violation shall be $300 for each day or part of a day during which the violation is committed, continued, or permitted.
