Document b54Jvn8rjnmdKamx2213Mo3qZ

CHEMICAL MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION March 30, 1992 Art Gellner Certainteed Corp. Pete Manena Rd. Sulphur, LA 70663 Dear Mr. Gellner: I am writing this letter to you at the request of Mr. John Coburn, Chairman of the Vinyl Chloride Panel and Mr. Denny Mounts of OxyChem. In April, the Vinyl Chloride Panel will complete its first year of activity. Over the past year, the Panel has developed the foundations for an emergency response network that will respond to vinyl chloride transportation incidents throughout the United States. The Panel, with the help of a consultant, finalized a routing and transportation map of vinyl chloride shipments by railroad to aid in organizing emergency response. The emergency response network, VCNet, will operate through CMA's CHEMTREC division using response teams from Panel member companies and "for-hire" contract companies. VCNet also will coordinate its activities with railroad and community response teams. VCNet is a chemical specific effort like Chlorep and PERT. As a shipper of empty vinyl chloride rail cars, your company carries the same DOT regulatory responsibilities as the loaded vinyl chloride shipper. Participating in VCNet may allow your company to respond more efficiently, because the organized response capabilities already are in place. VCNet will save your company time and money. A copy of the VCNet Policy Statement and Operating Rules is enclosed. The Panel has conducted workshops providing training to emergency response personnel on vinyl chloride. A copy of the latest workshop agenda is enclosed. Attendance at the workshops has been strong, and the Panel intends to hold more workshop sessions in the future. At the Panel meetings, member companies also exchange incident information. Such exchanges help minimize potential future incidents for all participating companies. The current Vinyl Chloride Panel members include: BFGoodrich Chemical Group; Borden Chemicals and Plastics; Dow Chemical Company; Formosa Plastics; Georgia Gulf Corporation; JTS Enterprises, Inc.; Occidental Chemical Company; PPG Industries, Inc.; and, Vista Chemical Company. Westlake Chemical Corporation has been invited to join the Panel. 2501 M Street, NW, Washington. DC 20037 202-887-1100 Telex 89617 (CMAWSH) CMA 110375 Art Gellner March 30, 1992 Page 2 I am writing to urge your company to consider becoming a part of VCNet and the Vinyl Chloride Panel. Your participation in this effort will benefit your company, industry and the community by encouraging the saf transport of vinyl chloride and the exchange of information regarding vinyl chloride. The members of the current Vinyl Chloride Panel, except for JTS Enterprises, contributed $11,000 each for operating expenses for 1991. In addition, for 1992 these companies paid their pro-rata share of the $65,000 based on their 1991 rail car-miles relative to the total industry rail car-miles for vinyl chloride shipments. JTS Enterprises became a Panel member in 1992. to encourage you to join, the Panel has established an Associate Membership category for users of vinyl chloride. The 1992 dues for Associate Members are set at $2,000 per company. This will entitle you to all the information that the Panel has developed in 1991. The 1993 budget and dues structure will be decided by the Panel in the Fall. If you decide to join the Panel, please sign the enclosed commitment for $2,000 and return it to me by May 1, 1992. By joining the Panel and actively participating in it, your company may meet several Responsible Care Codes, especially the Product Stewardship code, the Community Awareness code, and the Distribution code. The following documents are enclosed to familiarize you with Panel activities: a) 1992 Vinyl Chloride Panel commitment form; b) an Agenda for the April 7, 1992 meeting; c) VCNet Vinyl Chloride Safety Awareness Training brochure; d) the Vinyl Industry Policy Statement and Agreement; a copy of the VCNet Operating Rules; and, a copy of the VCNet Emergency Response Program CHEMTREC instruction sheet; e) February 5, 1992 Record of Conference Call; f) January 21, 1992 Record of Meeting; and, g) April 4, 1991 Record of Meeting. This Record of Meeting will provide you an overview of the Panel goals and objectives and the scope of activities. You are welcome to attend the April 7 Panel meeting to personally meet with other company representatives who share the common goal of improving transportation safety for vinyl chloride. If you have any questions concerning the Panel, please contact me at (202) 887-1192. Also, please let me know if you are planning to attend the meeting. Sincerely, cc: Vinyl Chloride Panel w/o enclosures Hasmukh C. Shah, Ph.D. Manager, Vinyl Chloride Panel CMA 110376