The Local Emergency Planning Committee plans for hazardous chemical incidents under the federal Community Right to Know Act.
The Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) was a result of a federal law being passed when a toxic chemical accident in Bhopal, India killed over 2,000 people in 1984. Eight months later another toxic chemical escaped from a plant in West Virginia. In 1986, the federal government passed the “Community Right to Know Act”.
The law gave states and local government the power to compile lists of hazardous chemicals that are being stored in their communities, to provide this information to the public and emergency personnel when requested, develop emergency plans for dealing with an accident, emergency notification, and toxic chemical release reporting.
The governor appoints individuals to serve on the Missouri Emergency Response Commission (MERC). In turn each county or region must establish an LEPC to carry out the federal and state mandate on the local level.
Representatives on the LEPC include elected officials, law enforcement, emergency management, firefighters, health & medical and owners/operators of chemical facilities.
For the current versions of these business forms, please contact Christian County Emergency Management at 417-582-5400 or cert@christiancountymo.gov.
