The following is the American Chemistry Council’s response to activist security claims in Delaware:

It’s unfortunate Greenpeace continues to use the issue of security in a misguided attempt to ban essential chemicals, like chlorine, that are vital to protecting human health and producing everything from solar cells to the airship they used as part of their protest. 

We disagree with the notion you can secure all facilities by simply requiring them to use different chemicals. Experts agree an effective security plan addresses potential security vulnerabilities while at the same time taking into account other important considerations like protecting jobs, managing environmental concerns, and ensuring worker safety. Ironically, some of the “solutions” Greenpeace touts are more energy intensive and produce more waste.

Keeping our communities safe is a goal we all share. Since 2001, our members have invested more than $8 billion on facility security enhancements under ACC’s Responsible Care Security Code.

We also continue to be strong proponents of federal chemical security regulations to ensure that all chemical facilities take the necessary steps to enhance security. Regulations like the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) have won praise from Congress. This is a security program with teeth and bite for those who fail to take security seriously.

Under CFATS, any facility that fails to act can be fined and/or shut down by DHS. The rules require chemical facilities to address a wide range of threats, such as preventing a bomb-laden car from reaching a target, or preventing the theft or diversion of materials from a site.

By not boxing facility operators into a singular approach for securing their facilities, the rules encourage operators to consider and implement a wide array of security measures from process changes to hardening their facilities. For example, since DHS began implementing CFATS the number of high-risk facilities has been reduced from 7000 to 6000 sites, with a majority of these facilities doing so through changes to their processes.

We support the extension of CFATS and are working with Congress to support passage of S. 2996, the “Continuing Chemical Facilities Antiterrorism Security Act of 2010” bipartisan legislation that focuses on thwarting terrorism while helping to secure more than 10,000 jobs in Delaware that depend on our industry.