Chemical Hazards Response Information Service

CHRIS Chemical Hazards Response Information Service... 

NRC/U.S. Coast Guard coordinate numerous information services, systems, and centers to assist in emergency response. Included are the Marine Safety Information Center, Hazard Assessment Control System, Chemical Hazard Response Information System, Oil and Hazardous Materials-Technical Assistance Data System, Structural and Nomenclature Search System, and Pollution Equipment Inventory System. 

CHEMTREC The Chemical Transportation Emergency Center located in Washington, D.C., a public service provided by the private Chemical Manufacturers Association, provides emergency response information and assistance twenty-four hours a day for responders to hazardous materials incidents. 

When CHEMTREC receives an emergency call, an Emergency Services specialist obtains the caller s name and organization, telephone and fax number, the location of the incident, the shipper, consignee, and carrier, the product name, and the nature of the incident. CHEMTREC then provides immediate emergency response information about the chemical(s) involved, often obtained from the manufacturer s product-specific MSDS in the Center s library of nearly 2.5 million such documents. These are accessed in seconds and faxed to responders on-scene at a hazardous materials incident. Other sources of information are other technical text references and computer databases. 

The Seveso Directive is administered by the European Union through the Major Accident Hazards Bureau services (MAHB) located within the Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Ispra, Italy. The Bureau also oversees the European Community s Documentation Centre Industrial Risk (CDCIR) and manages the Major Accident Reporting System (MARS) with the aim to create a repository of information and facilitate the exchange between the members of the European Community. MARS follows the requirements of the Seveso II directive and collects information about major chemical incidents as well as the response and results. Member States are required to report the events by using standardized forms. 

The Chemical Transportation Emergency Center (CHEiMTREQ was established as a public service by the American Chemistry Council (ACC) in 1971. It was organized in response to several accidental chemical releases for which responders could not obtain adequate information to mitigate the hazards. ACC s approximately 190 member companies represent more than 90% of the productive capacity for basic industrial chemicals in the United States. 

With the growing threat posed by terrorism and weapons of mass destruction (WMD), CHEMTREC has developed resources to meet the response community s need for information about these new hazards. In addition to assembling product information on chemical and biological agents that can be immediately relayed to responders, CHEMTREC has an up-to-date network of contacts with military, health services, and law enforcement personnel. The Center can quickly put emergency responders in touch with experts in this field. 

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