CSB Land Use Study RFI

Yesterday the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) posted a request for information to the FedBizOps.Gov web site to support a possible solicitation for a study about land use patterns around high-risk chemical facilities. The CSB is planning on conducting a study related to the proximity of community buildings to the fence line of facilities handling flammable, explosive or toxic chemicals.

The study would focus on four major topics:

• Review and evaluate how the proximity of facilities handling hazardous chemicals can pose a risk to communities across U.S. as a result of fires, explosions and chemical releases resulting in health or environmental effects.

• Identify approach(es) that could be used to determine appropriate distances between communities and hazardous facilities, accounting for chemical toxicity, flammability, and explosion potential and blast overpressure.

• Review current regulations, including state and local ordinances and recommended practices related to land use and development in close proximity to existing chemical facilities, as well as the siting of new chemical facilities and determine whether existing requirements and practices are adequate in their degree of alignment with the technical analysis from Tasks 1 and 2.

• Identify the appropriate regulatory bodies and make regulatory policy recommendations or other recommendations as appropriate based on findings from the analysis from the tasks described above.

This RFI seeks information about organizations that might be interested in conducting this type of study. It is not a solicitation to perform the study. Part of the purpose of the RFI is to determine if there are small businesses that might be interested since the CSB may be able to source this study under a small business set-aside program.

Interested parties should submit the requested information by June 19^th, 2015.