A coalition of more than 100 health, labor, community, environmental justice and public interest organizations released a new national poll showing that U.S. voters strongly support new federal requirements to prevent disasters at facilities that store hazardous chemicals, according to The Coalition to Prevent Chemical Disasters.
The Coalition urged the Obama administration to adopt policies that would require chemical facilities to use safer chemicals and processes where available and affordable.
The poll, conducted by Lake Research Partners found:
- 55 percent of likely voters agreed to the idea of new safety requirements, while 7 percent opposed the idea.
- 59 percent of likely voters agree that federal government “must do more to protect the safety and security of millions of Americans by requiring high-risk chemical facilities to switch to safer processes and chemicals when they are available, effective and affordable.”
- 22 percent of likely voters agree that “requiring chemical facilities to switch processes is unnecessary government bureaucracy and too expensive. We cannot afford new burdensome regulations that cost businesses money, raise the prices of goods for consumers, and threaten to cut thousands of jobs."
On Aug. 1, Obama issued an executive order requiring three federal agencies to coordinate their activities to propose new policies that will significantly enhance the safety and security of chemical facilities. Under the order, the EPA and other agencies have until Oct. 31 to identify new policy options and until May 1, 2014, to report their recommendations to the president.
For more information, visit www.preventchemicaldisasters.org.