Thursday, September 18, 2025
Media contact: Deidre Nelms, Communications Director, Coming Clean, dnelms@comingcleaninc.org
The Coalition to Prevent Chemical Disasters published updates to its open-access chemical disaster tracking tool today that allow users to see how close they live to highly hazardous facilities covered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Risk Management Program (RMP). The Chemical Incident Tracker continues to allow users to search for chemical releases, fires and explosions that have been reported in the media since January 2021, using an interactive map. The tracker is updated with new incidents weekly.
Chemical incidents endanger communities on a near daily basis in the U.S. Since January 2021, the coalition has tracked more than 1246 incidents involving hazardous chemicals, an average of five incidents per week. This year, chemical explosions have killed workers, contaminated entire communities, and triggered dozens of evacuations.
In April 2025, EPA removed a public data tool from its website that allowed communities to search for facilities in their zipcode that use and store highly hazardous chemicals above thresholds regulated by the Risk Management Program, and review their accident reports.
The Trump Administration has announced that it plans to “reconsider” updates to the RMP rule finalized in 2024 that were intended to more effectively prevent chemical disasters. And it has encouraged Congress to eliminate the Chemical Safety Board, the only independent agency that investigates chemical disasters and issues independent safety recommendations.
“The government has a responsibility to protect people from chemical disasters. This fact should not be political, but unfortunately the health and safety of workers and communities continues to be sidelined by this EPA for the desires of chemical companies to avoid transparency or accountability,” said Stephanie Herron of the Environmental Justice Health Alliance for Chemical Policy Reform. “People have a right to know basic information that impacts the safety of their families regardless of political whims, which is why our coalition has stepped in to help fill in the gaps.”
“Workers and fenceline communities have a right to know about chemical hazards that endanger their lives, homes, and families, as called for in the Louisville Charter for Safer Chemicals. It’s scandalous that the Trump Administration is putting the profits of billion dollar companies ahead of the safety of workers, teachers, and families,” said Steve Taylor, Programs Director of the environmental health network Coming Clean.
