Many Illinois companies have not taken adequate steps to protect the public from chemical accidents, nor have they examined the environmental impact of such mishaps, said a state task force Friday.
”For most facilities, there`s no requirement that they think through what happens if there`s a spill on the site,” said Richard Carlson, director of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, who helped head the Governor`s Chemical Safety Task Force. ”Some facilities did not show as strong an effort as we feel is necessary to adequately protect the public.”
The panel, comprising industry and labor representatives, state officials and members of civic groups, audited 50 chemical industry facilities, including 32 in the Chicago area.
The task force found that while 96 percent of the companies have developed plans to deal with accidents at their facilities, 36 percent failed to examine the potential impact of a chemical release on local residents, nearby industries or the environment.
