Sen. Boxer Faults Regulators for Lax Chemicals Oversight

"Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer, citing lax oversight, urged regulators and states to do more to curb threats caused by poor storage of ammonium nitrate in the wake of April’s deadly explosion in Texas."



"Boxer said today the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration failed to do enough to prevent further risks to the public. The April 17 blast at the Adair Grain Inc. fertilizer facility in West, Texas, killed 14 people, caused more than $100 million in damage and sparked debate over chemical-safety rules.

'We have to act to ensure more families don’t suffer the loss of a loved one in another chemical disaster,' Boxer, a California Democrat, said at a news conference. The committee will hold a second hearing into the explosion in September or October, she said. "

Laura Litvan reports for Bloomberg July 9, 2013.
 

Source: Bloomberg, 07/10/2013