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Government delays implementing chemical security rulesMissouri The Department of Homeland Security indefinitely delayed the requirement that farmers possessing chemicals of interest must register with the government. The announcement, released as a letter from the assistant secretary at DHS, stated that the registration deadline had been extended indefinitely for any farm operation that was registering in the program solely because they had or handled a chemical of interest, said John Lory, University of Missouri agronomist. The extension applied to "farms (e.g., crop, fruit, nut, and vegetable); ranches and rangeland; poultry, dairy, and equine facilities; turfgrass growers; golf courses; nurseries; floricultural operations; and public and private parks operations." The exemption does not apply to chemical distribution facilities or commercial chemical application services; these facilities still are required to meet the Jan. 22 deadline. DHS released a list of chemicals in November 2007 and required anyone who possessed more than a threshold quantity of that chemical to register with the government and complete a Top-Screen assessment. Farmers who handle ammonium nitrate were the most likely to be affected by the rules. Farmers who maintain large inventories of propane, anhydrous ammonia or biogas also had the potential to be affected by the rules. The indefinite extension of the registration deadline does not mean that farmers will not be affected by these rules. We all will have to wait to see what DHS decides about farm requirements under chemical reporting rules, Lory said. 1/21/08 Date: 1/17/08
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