Regulations on the Safety Management of Hazardous Chemicals (2013 Revision)

Regulations on the Safety Management of Hazardous Chemicals (2013 Revision) Regulations on the Safety Management of Hazardous Chemicals (Promulgated as the Order No. 344 of the State Council of the People's Republic of China on January 26, 2002; revised and adopted at the 144th executive meeting of the State Council on February 16, 2011; and revised in accordance with the Decision of the State Council on Amending Some Administrative Regulations on December 7, 2013) Chapter I General Provisions Article 1 This Regulation is formulated to strengthen the safety management of hazardous chemicals, prevent and reduce hazardous chemical accidents, guarantee the life and property safety of the general public, and protect the environment. Article 2 This Regulation shall apply to the safety management of the production, storage, use, dealing and transport of hazardous chemicals. The disposal of waste hazardous chemicals shall be governed by the relevant laws, administrative regulations and other provisions of the state on environmental protection. Article 3 For the purpose of this Regulation, the term “hazardous chemicals” refers to the highly toxic chemicals and other chemicals which are toxic, corrosive, explosive, flammable or combustion-supporting and can harm people, facilities or the environment. The catalogue of hazardous chemicals shall be determined, pronounced and properly adjusted by the work safety department together with the industry and information technology department, the public security department, the environmental protection department, the health department, the quality supervision, inspection and quarantine department, the transport department, the railway department, the civil aviation department and the agricultural department under the State Council in light of the standards for the property identification and classification of hazardous chemicals. Article 4 The safety management of hazardous chemicals shall stick to the guidelines of safety first, giving priority to prevention and realizing comprehensive control, and tighten and effectuate the status of enterprises as the main body to assume responsibilities. The chief person-in-charge of an entity producing, storing, using, dealing or transporting hazardous chemicals (hereinafter referred to as “hazardous chemical entity”) shall assume the overall responsibility for the safety management of hazardous chemicals of the entity. A hazardous chemical entity shall satisfy the safety conditions prescribed by laws and administrative regulations and those required by the national and industrial standards, establish and improve the safety management rules and the position-based safety responsibility system, and provide safety education, legal education and on-the-job technical training to employees. Employees shall accept education and training, and may not hold office until they have passed the relevant examination. Positions with eligibility requirements shall be held by persons who have obtained the required eligibilities. Article 5 No entity or individual may produce, deal or use hazardous chemicals the production, trading or use of which has been prohibited by the state. If the state has restrictive provisions on the use of hazardous chemicals, no entity or individual may use them in violation of such restrictive provisions. Article 6 The departments responsible for the safety regulation of the production, storage, use, trading and transport of hazardous chemicals (hereinafter referred to as “safety regulatory departments of hazardous chemicals”) shall fulfill their duties according to the following provisions: 1. Safety regulatory departments shall be responsible for the overall safety regulation of hazardous chemicals, organize the formulation, publication and adjustment of the catalogue of hazardous chemicals, check the safety conditions of building, renovating and enlarging construction projects for producing and storing hazardous chemicals (including those for transporting hazardous chemicals through long-distance pipelines), issue upon examination hazardous chemical production safety permits, safety permits for the use of hazardous chemical and permits for the business operation of hazardous chemicals, and be responsible for the registration of hazardous chemicals. 2. Public security organs shall be responsible for the public safety management of hazardous chemicals, issuance, upon examination, of permits for the purchase of highly toxic chemicals and passes for the road transport of highly toxic chemicals , and the road traffic safety management of vehicles carrying hazardous chemicals . 3. Quality supervision, inspection and quarantine departments shall be responsible for issuing licenses for manufacturing industrial products to enterprises producing hazardous chemicals and the packages and containers thereof (not including fixed-type large storage tanks for hazardous chemicals, hereafter the same), overseeing the quality of their products and inspecting the import and export of hazardous chemicals and the packages thereof. 4. Environmental protection departments shall oversee and regulate the disposal of waste hazardous chemicals, organize the environmental harm appraisal and the environmental risk evaluation of hazardous chemicals, determine which hazardous chemicals shall be subject to prioritized environmental management, shall take charge of the environmental management registration of hazardous chemicals and new chemical substances, investigate into the relevant environmental pollution accidents and ecological damage incidents of hazardous chemicals within the scope of their duties, and be responsible for the emergency environmental monitoring at the scene of hazardous chemical accidents. 5. Transport departments shall be responsible for the licensing of the road transport and water transport of hazardous chemicals and the safety management of transport vehicles, oversee the water transport safety of hazardous chemicals, and certify the drivers, seamen, loading and unloading management personnel, transport escorts, declaration personnel and spot container piling inspectors of the enterprises engaged in the road or water transportation of hazardous chemicals. The railway regulatory authorities shall be responsible for the safety management of the railway transport of hazardous chemicals and the transport vehicles. The civil aviation departments shall be responsible for the safety management of the air transport of hazardous chemicals, air transport enterprises and the transport vehicles thereof. 6. Health departments shall be responsible for the management of the toxicity identification of hazardous chemicals and the organization and coordination of the medical treatment of the injured or dead in hazardous chemical accidents. 7. Industry and commerce departments shall issue business licenses to enterprises producing, storing, dealing in and transporting hazardous chemicals upon the strength of the permits issued by the relevant departments and investigate into the illegal purchases of hazardous chemicals committed by enterprises operating hazardous chemicals. 8. Postage departments shall be responsible for investigating and inspecting the mailing and delivery of hazardous chemicals. Article 7 A safety regulatory department of hazardous chemicals may take the following measures in the process of supervision and inspection: 1. Entering the work places of hazardous chemicals to make on-site inspections, questioning the relevant entities and persons of the relevant situation, and consulting and copying the relevant documents or materials; 2. If discovering any hidden risk of hazardous chemical accidents, ordering the liable party to eliminate it immediately or within a certain time limit; 3. Ordering the liable party to immediately stop using the facilities, equipment, devices, apparatus and transport vehicles that fail to conform to the relevant laws, administrative regulations or rules or fail to reach the national or industrial standards; 4. Upon the approval of the person-in-charge of the department, closing the places used for the illegal production, storage, use or dealing of hazardous chemicals, and seizing illegally produced, stored, used, traded or transported hazardous chemicals as well as the raw materials, equipment and transport vehicles used for the illegal production, use and transport of hazardous chemicals; and 5. If discovering any illegal act that endangers the safety of hazardous chemicals, correcting it on the spot or ordering the liable party to correct within a certain time limit. A safety regulatory department of hazardous chemicals shall assign at least two supervisors or inspectors for a supervision or inspection task. The supervisors or inspectors shall product their law enforcement certificates. The relevant entities and individuals shall be cooperative as long as the supervision or inspection is made by the legal procedure, and may not refuse or impede it. Article 8 The people's governments at or above the county level shall establish a coordination mechanism for the safety regulation of hazardous chemicals, provide support for and urge the safety regulatory departments of hazardous chemicals to fulfill duties, and coordinate in solving the major problems existing in the safety regulation of hazardous chemicals. The safety regulatory departments of hazardous chemicals shall cooperate with each other and strengthen the safety regulation of hazardous chemicals. Article 9 All entities and individuals have the right to report the violations of this Regulation to the safety regulatory departments of hazardous chemicals. The safety regulatory departments of hazardous chemicals shall handle them and transfer those not within their scope of functions and duties to the competent departments without delay. Article 10 The state encourages enterprises producing hazardous chemicals and enterprises using hazardous chemicals in production to adopt advanced technologies, techniques, equipment and automatic control systems which are good for improving the safety level and to store hazardous chemicals in a special manner, deliver them in a unified way and distribute them in a centralized way. Chapter II Production and Storage Safety Article 11 The state shall make overall plans and reasonable arrangements for the production and storage of hazardous chemicals. The industry and information technology department and other relevant departments under the State Council shall be responsible for the planning and layout of the production and storage of hazardous chemicals in different sectors. In the process of making urban and rural planning, the local people's governments shall, under the principle of guaranteeing safety, designate certain areas exclusively for the production and storage of hazardous chemicals in light of the local actualities. Article 12 Work safety departments shall be responsible for checking the safety conditions of building, renovating and enlarging construction projects for producing and storing hazardous chemicals (hereinafter referred to as “construction projects”). A construction entity shall study the safety conditions of its construction project, commission an agency with the qualifications required by the state to make a safety evaluation on the project, and make a report on the safety study and the safety evaluation to the work safety department of the people's government at or above the level of districted city at the locality of the construction project. The work safety department shall make a decision within 45 days after receiving the report and notify the construction entity of the decision in writing. The specific measures shall be formulated by the work safety administration under the State Council. Port administrative departments shall be responsible for checking the safety conditions of building, renovating and enlarging port construction projects for storing, loading and uploading hazardous chemicals pursuant to the provisions of the transport department under the State Council. Article 13 Entities producing or storing hazardous chemicals shall set up obvious signs for the pipelines they lay down for transporting hazardous chemicals and inspect and check such pipelines on a regular basis. Before starting a construction operation that may endanger the safety of a hazardous chemicals pipeline, the construction entity shall notify in writing the entity which owns the pipeline at least 7 days beforehand, make an emergency plan with the said entity, and take corresponding safety protection measures. The entity which owns the pipeline shall designate special personnel to provide safety protection guidance on the scene. Article 14 A hazardous chemical producing enterprise shall, before production, obtain a safety permit for producing hazardous according to the Regulation on Work Safety Licenses . Enterprises producing any of the hazardous chemicals as listed in the catalogue of industrial products whose production is subject to the production licensing system of the state shall obtain a permit for the production of industrial products according to the Regulation of the People's Republic of China on Permits for the Production of Industrial Products . Departments responsible for issuing permits for the safe production of hazardous chemicals and permits for the production of industrial products shall notify the industry and information technology departments, the environmental protection departments and the public security organs at the same level of the issuance of such permits in a timely manner. Article 15 A hazardous chemicals producing enterprise shall provide the technical specifications of chemical safety commensurate with the hazardous chemicals it produces, and affix or hang on the packages (including external packing cases) of hazardous chemicals a chemical safety label consistent with the packed hazardous chemicals. The contents of the safety technical specifications and the safety label shall conform to the requirements of the national standards. A hazardous chemicals producing enterprise shall, if discovering that the hazardous chemicals it produces contain any new dangerous property, immediately make an announcement thereon and revise the safety technical specifications and the safety label of the chemical product. Article 16 Enterprises producing hazardous chemicals whose production is subject to prioritized environmental management shall report the discharge of such chemicals into the environment and other relevant information to the environmental protection departments according to the provisions of the environmental protection department under the State Council. The environmental protection departments may take corresponding environmental risk control measures in light of the actual situations. Article 17 The packages of hazardous chemicals shall conform to the provisions of laws, administrative regulations and rules as well as the requirements of national standards and industrial standards. The material used to make packages and containers of a hazardous chemical as well as the packaging model, specifications, packaging method and per-unit mass (weight) shall be commensurate with the properties and uses of the hazardous chemical. Article 18 Enterprises producing packages and containers for hazardous chemicals whose production is subject to production licensing by the state shall obtain a permit for the production of industrial products according to the Regulation of the People's Republic of China on the Permit for the Production of Industrial Products . Packages and containers of hazardous chemicals they produce may not leave factory for distribution until they have passed the examination of the inspection institutions recognized by the quality supervision, inspection and quarantine department under the State Council. Ships transporting hazardous chemicals and the containers they are equipped with shall be produced according to the ship inspection norms of the state, and shall not be put into use until they have passed the examination of the ship inspection institutions recognized by the maritime administration. For repeatedly used packages and containers of hazardous chemicals, users shall check them before each use and, if discovering any hidden safety problem, repair or replace them. Users shall take records of the use of the packages and containers and keep records for at least 2 years. Article 19 The devices for producing hazardous chemicals and the storage facilities of large quantities of hazardous chemicals which constitute a major source of danger (excluding transport vehicles used as petrol and gas stations) shall keep afar from the following premises, establishments and areas as required by the relevant state provisions: 1. Residential areas, commercial centers, parks and other densely populated premises; 2. Schools, hospitals, cinemas, theatres, gymnasiums and other public utilities; 3. Drinking water sources, water plants and water-source reserves; 4. Stations, docks (excluding those approved for the loading and unloading of hazardous chemicals), airports, telecommunications trunks, telecommunications centers, railway lines, arterial road traffic lines, arterial water traffic lines, subway ventilation pavilions and subway entries and exits; 5. Protective zones of basic farmland, basic rangeland, livestock and poultry genetic resource conservation areas, large-scale raising plants (communities) of livestock and poultry, fishing zones, and the production bases of seeds, breeders and aquatic fingerlings; 6. Rivers, lakes, famous scenic sites and nature reserves; 7. Forbidden military zones and military control zones; and 8. Other sites, establishments and areas as specified by any law or administrative regulation. Where any existing device for producing hazardous chemicals or storage facility of large quantities of hazardous chemicals which constitute a major source of danger fails to conform to the preceding paragraph, the work safety department of the local people's government at the level of districted city shall, together with other relevant departments, oversee the rectification process of the entity to which the device or facility belongs within a prescribed time; whether it needs to change the line of production, stop production, be relocated or close down shall be decided and implemented by the people's government at the same level In selecting the site of a storage facility of large quantities of hazardous chemicals which constitute a major source of danger, it is required to stay away from seismic active faults and areas prone to floods or geological hazards. For the purpose of this Regulation, the term “major source of danger” refers to cells (including sites and facilities) that produce, store, use or transport hazardous chemicals, the quantities of which amount to or exceed the threshold quantity. Article 20 An entity producing or storing hazardous chemicals shall, according to the category and dangerous properties of the hazardous chemicals it produces or stores, set up monitoring, controlling, ventilation, sun-proof, temperature-controlled, fireproof, fire fighting, blast-proof, pressure discharging, poison-proof, neutralizing, moisture-proof, lightening-proof, static-proof, antisepsis, and anti-leakage safety facilities or equipment, such as protection dams and segregated operations, etc. at the work places, and maintain them on a routine basis according to the national standards, industrial standards or relevant state provisions so as to guarantee the normal functioning thereof. An entity producing or storing hazardous chemicals shall set up eye-catching safety warning signs on its work places and safety facilities or equipment. Article 21 Entities producing or storing hazardous chemicals shall set up telecommunications and alarm devices at their work places and guarantee the availability thereof. Article 22 An enterprise producing or storing hazardous chemicals shall hire an institution with the qualifications required by the state to make a safety evaluation on its work safety conditions once every three years and make a safety evaluation report after that. Such a safety evaluation report shall cover the problems existing in the current work safety conditions and a schedule for correction. An enterprise producing or storing hazardous chemicals shall submit the safety evaluation report and the implementation of the rectification schedule to the work safety department of the local people's government at the county level for archival purposes. An enterprise storing hazardous chemicals in a port area shall submit the safety evaluation report and the implementation of the rectification plan to the port administrative department for archival purposes. Article 23 An entity producing or storing highly toxic chemicals or hazardous chemicals as set forth by the public security department of the State Council that can be used to produce explosives shall truthfully record the quantity and destination of highly toxic chemicals or hazardous chemicals that can be used to produce explosives, take necessary safety protection measures to prevent them from being lost or stolen, and, if discovering that any of them is missing or stolen, immediately report to the local public security organ. An entity producing or storing highly toxic chemicals or hazardous chemicals that can be used to produce explosives shall set up a security body equipped with full-time security guards. Article 24 Hazardous chemicals shall be stored at designated warehouses, sites or store rooms (hereinafter referred to as “designated warehouses”) and managed by designated persons. Highly toxic chemicals and other hazardous chemicals stored in large quantities which constitute a major source of danger shall be stored in designated warehouses separately, the acceptance, distribution and safekeeping of which shall be under the charge of two persons. The way the hazardous chemicals are stored and the quantity thereof shall conform to the national standards or the relevant state provisions. Article 25 Entities storing hazardous chemicals shall establish inspection and registration systems for the entry and exit of hazardous chemicals. A storage entity shall report the storage quantity, place and management personnel of highly toxic chemicals and other hazardous chemicals stored in large quantities which constitute a major source of danger it has stored to the work safety department of the local people's government at the county level (or the port administrative department if they are stored at a port area) and the public security organ for archival purposes. Article 26 The designated warehouses of hazardous chemicals shall conform to the national and industrial standards and be equipped with eye-catching signs. For the designated warehouses used to store highly toxic chemicals and hazardous chemicals which can be used to produce explosives, technical protective facilities shall be established according to the relevant state provisions. An entity storing hazardous chemicals shall regularly inspect and check the safety devices or equipment of its designated warehouses for hazardous chemicals. Article 27 Where an entity producing or storing hazardous chemicals changes its production line, stops production, closes its business operations or is dissolved, it shall take effective measures to timely and properly dispose of its hazardous chemicals producing apparatus and storing facilities as well as the hazardous chemicals stored by it, and may not discard any hazardous chemicals at will. The disposal plan shall be submitted to the work safety department, the industry and information technology department, the environment protection department and the public security organ of the local people's government at the county level for archival purposes. The work safety department shall, together with the environmental protection department and the public security organ, oversee and inspect the disposal process and, if discovering that the entity fails to dispose as required, order it to dispose of them immediately. Chapter III Use Safety Article 28 An entity using hazardous chemicals shall guarantee that its conditions for use (and techniques) conform to laws, administrative regulations, national standards and industrial standards, and establish and improve the safety management rules and safe operation rules for hazardous chemicals according to the category, dangerous properties, dosage of the hazardous chemicals it uses as well as how it is used so as to guarantee the use safety thereof. Article 29 A chemical enterprise which uses hazardous chemicals in its production in an amount of a certain quantity (except for a hazardous chemical producing enterprise, hereinafter the same) shall obtain a permit for the safe use of hazardous chemicals under this Regulation. The quantitative criteria for hazardous chemicals as mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall be determined and announced by the work safety department together with the public security department and the agricultural department under the State Council. Article 30 To apply for a permit for the safe use of hazardous chemicals , a chemical enterprise shall meet the following conditions in addition to those set forth in Article 28 of this Regulation: 1. Having designated technical personnel qualified for the hazardous chemicals used by the entity; 2. Having a safety management body and full-time safety management personnel; 3. Having an emergency response plan for hazardous chemical accidents and necessary apparatus and equipment for emergency rescue as required by the relevant state provisions; and 4. Having co......