Washington, DC, April 26, 2005 - Carolyn Merritt, the chairman and chief executive officer of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB), will present testimony on chemical plant and community emergency preparedness issues as part of a panel before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, chaired by Senator Susan Collins of Maine. The panel is entitled "Chemical Attack on America: How Vulnerable Are We?"

Chairman Merritt praised Senator Collins and the Homeland Security Committee for holding the hearing, saying, "From what the CSB has seen in its investigations of chemical accidents, many communities may be vulnerable and inadequately prepared for a major chemical release, caused either by an accident or an attack. The time for planning is now, not after a tragedy. I commend Chairman Collins for her leadership and foresight in convening this hearing before such a tragedy has occurred."

Chairman Merritt will discuss findings from CSB chemical accident investigations that may provide indications of how well chemical plants, communities, emergency responders and the public are prepared for a large-scale chemical release, either from an accident or a terrorist attack.

The hearing will be held Wednesday, April 27, at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Rm. 562, beginning at 10 a.m. Other panelists appearing with Chairman Merritt, following an individual panel with Sen. Jon S. Corzine, include: John B. Stephenson, Director, Natural Resources and Environment, U.S. Government Accountability Office; Richard Falkenrath, Ph.D., Visiting Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, The Brookings Institute; and Stephen E. Flynn, Ph.D., Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Senior Fellow in National Security Studies, Council on Foreign Relations.

The hearing will be live webcast on the following links:

http://hsgac.senate.gov/index.cfm?Fuseaction=Hearings.Live

http://www.capitolhearings.org (audio only)

The CSB is an independent federal agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents. The agency's board members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. CSB investigations look into all aspects of chemical accidents, including physical causes such as equipment failure as well as inadequacies in safety management systems.

The Board does not issue citations or fines but does make safety recommendations to plants, industry organizations, labor groups, and regulatory agencies such as OSHA and EPA. Further information about the CSB is available from www.csb.gov. For more information, contact Daniel Horowitz, (202) 261-7613 / (202) 441-6074 (cell) or Sandy Gilmour (202) 261-7614 / (202) 251-5496 cell.