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What's New!
March 2007
03/22/07 Bush Announces Intention to Nominate Sullivan as New ATF Director - The President intends to nominate Michael J. Sullivan, of Massachusetts, to be Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives at the Department of Justice. Read Full Press Release.
03/07/07 ISEE Releases Public Relations Video, Face to Face: Greeting the Homeowner - CLEVELAND, OH - The International Society of Explosives Engineers has announced the release of "Face-to-Face: Greeting the Homeowner", produced by the Society of Explosives Engineers Education Foundation. The video is approximately 38 minutes in length. Read Full Press Release.
February 2007
02/08/07 ATF Makes Senior Staff Changes - WASHINGTON - Acting Director Michael J. Sullivan of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) announced today the appointments of Ronnie A. Carter and William J. Hoover, both of them veteran special agents who have led ATF field divisions, as, respectively, the agency's new deputy director and assistant director for field operations. Read Full Press Release
January 2007
01/26/07 ATF Issues Ruling 2007-3 Concerning the Preloading and Temporary Storage of Blasting Agents on Bulk Delivery Vehicles.....For more information: Read Full Ruling
01/22/07 ATF Issues Ruling on Computerized Inventory Records- WASHINGTON - ATF issued Ruling 2007-1, applicable to Maintaining Required Explosives Records in Computerized Form. The ruling addresses the methods used for computerized inventory record keeping stating that regulations allow for alternate methods for such records. However, good cause must be shown for using such methods and they must be consistent with the purpose of the regulations. In addition, records of acquisition and disposition, magazine summary records, and the other records required by 27 CFR Part 555, Subpart G, must satisfy the standard of permanency and are substantially equivalent to paper records if they meet the following criteria: 1. All data entered into the computer system must be recorded into the database and cannot be capable of being edited or modified at a later date. The software system must retain any correction of errors as an entirely new entry, without deleting or modifying the original entry. The system may allow for entries in a notes column to explain any correction. 2. The system must have a reliable daily memory backup capability to protect the data from accidental deletion or other system failure. For more information: Read Full Ruling
December 2006
12/22/06 Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Announced- WASHINGTON - The Department of Homeland Security made available for public review, an aggressive and comprehensive set of proposed regulations that will improve security at high-risk chemical facilities nationwide. The proposed regulations are expected to be published in the Federal Register next week as an Advanced Notice of Rulemaking and will be available for public comment until February 7, 2007.
DHS wants chemical facilities fitting certain profiles to complete a secure online risk assessment to determine how vulnerable they are to attacks. The facilities would submit their security plans to DHS, which would review and approve them. The department would then conduct audits and on-site inspections to make sure the plants' owners are following the security plans. Performance standards will be designed to achieve specific outcomes, such as securing the perimeter and critical targets, controlling access, deterring theft of potentially dangerous chemicals and preventing internal sabotage.
Chemical facilities plants that do not meet the performance standards could be fined up to $25,000 a day and continuous violators could be shut down. The department is using a broad definition of a "chemical facility" that would have to follow the regulations, saying it would be "any facility that possesses or plans to possess, at any relevant point in time, a quantity of a chemical substance determined by the (DHS) secretary to be potentially dangerous or that meets other risk-related criterion identified by the department." Read Full Press Release
12/15/06 DHS Targets High Risk Hazardous Materials in Transit- WASHINGTON - The Department of Homeland Security issued today a notice of proposed rulemaking to vastly strengthen the security of the nation's rail systems in the highest threat urban areas. The proposed rule is part of a package of new security measures that will require freight rail carriers to ensure 100 percent positive hand-off of Toxic Inhalation Hazard (TIH) materials, establish security protocols for custody transfers of TIH rail cars in the high threat urban areas, and appoint a rail security coordinator to share information with the federal government, as well as formalizing the Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) freight and passenger rail inspection authority. Read Full Press Release
November 2006
11/15/06 Orica USA Inc Completes Asset Acquisition- Orica USA Inc recently announced the closing of the purchase of the explosives manufacturing plant formerly owned by Slurry Explosives Corporation in Hallowell, Kansas. Download Press Release
October 2006
10/25/06 ATF Posts Industry Newsletter- ATF has posted the most recent industry newsletter with discussions about a number of subjects relating to important topics. Click here to download a copy (pdf)
10/02/06 ATF Publishes Notice of Annual List of Explosive Materials- Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 841(d) and 27 CFR 555.23, the Department must publish and revise at least annually in the Federal Register a list of explosives determined to be within the coverage of 18 U.S.C. 841 et seq. The list covers not only explosives, but also blasting agents and detonators, all of which are defined as explosive materials in 18 U.S.C. 841(c). This notice publishes the 2006 List of Explosives Materials. The list becomes effective up publication of this notice on September 27, 2006. Download Federal Register (pdf)
September 2006
09/01/06 Federal Prosecutor Tapped for the Top Job at ATF- President Bush has appointed a federal prosecutor to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Michael Sullivan, U.S. Attorney in Massachusetts, will be acting director, succeeding Carl J. Truscott, who left in August facing a potentially negative inspector general report regarding construction issues at the agency’s new Washington, D.C. headquarters.
The 51 year old Sullivan had served as a State Representative in Massachusetts and Plymouth District Attorney before being named US Attorney in Boston by President Bush following September 11, 2001.
As US attorney. With the Sullivan appointment, all law enforcement department heads within the Justice Department are headed by former prosecutors. FBI Director Robert Mueller was a U.S. Attorney in California and Karen Tandy, Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator, was an assistant U.S. Attorney in Virginia and Washington state before being appointed to her current position. ATF itself has a budget of just under $1 billion, he said, with some 5,000 employees.
Of note is that Sullivan will not be stepping down from the US Attorney position in Boston. Instead, Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Loucks will serve as acting Prosecutor in Massachusetts while Sullivan assumes his new role in Washington. Also interesting is how the appointment might affect the federal investigation of the Big Dig in Massachusetts.
August 2006
08/08/06 ATF Director Carl Truscott Resigns....Cites Important Contributions made by ATF Employees - Carl J. Truscott - the first Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) since its move to the Department of Justice and the sixth in the Bureau's history - announced today that he has decided to pursue other challenges and opportunities. For more information, visit www.atf.gov/
July 2006
07/12/06 Biggest Trade Show Planned for ISEE's 33rd Annual Conference - The International Society of Explosives Engineers will hold its 33rd Annual Conference on Explosives and Blasting Technique at the Gaylord Opryland Resort, Nashville, Tennessee, January 28-31, 2007. Exhibit booth space assignments are underway. Companies are invited to showcase their latest state of the art technology, equipment, design, products and services to the global explosives marketplace.
Download Complete Press Release.
June 2006
06/07/06 ISEE Certificate Program Level One Available in Spanish - The International Society of Explosives Engineers is pleased to announce that the ISEE Certificate Program Level One - Practical Blasting Fundamentals, an eight Lesson Workbook Series has been translated into Spanish. The Spanish workbook series and its test and record keeping components will be available in the summer of 2006. The translation project was a cooperative effort between the ISEE and EXSA - Explosive Division, in Peru.
The ISEE will sell the Certificate Program through the ISEE Blasters Library and EXSA will offer the training program in Peru as part of an active program to educate and train blasters for the mining industry in Peru.
For more information on this program, contact Arlene Chafe at the ISEE by email at chafe@explosives.org.
April 2006
04/25/06 Dyno Nobel Acquires ETI - Dyno Nobel has finalized the purchase of ETI's commercial explosives business uniting two uniquely positioned organizations and utilizing integrated capabilities to provide greater customer benefits through a strengthened organization in North America. Download Complete Press Release.
March 2006
03/10/06 Blaster's Leadership Award Winner Announced at ISEE's 32nd Annual Conference - ISEE's 2006 Blaster's Leadership Award was presented to Thomas Barkley at the recent 32nd Annual Conference on Explosives & Blasting Technique. The Society's annual award of merit is awarded to an individual who has distinguished themselves through outstanding service to their fellow blasters in the field. Download full story
February 2006
02/10/06 Court remands case of Rocketeers vs ATF - In National Association of Rocketeers case against ATF, US Court of Appeals has remanded the case for further consideration saying that ATF's ..."explanation for its determination that APCP deflagrates lacks any coherence. We therefore owe no deference to (ATF's) purported expertise because we cannot discern it. (ATF) has neither laid out a concrete standard for classifying materials along the burn-deflagrate-detonate continuum, nor offered data specific to the burn speed of APCP when used for its "common or primary purpose." On this record, the agency's decision cannot withstand judicial review. We therefore remand the case for further consideration." The case was brought to challenge the listing of APCP as a deflagrant in ATF's Annual List of Explosives. Download Complete Court Ruling. (PDF 144K)
January 2006
01/11/06 ATF Posts Industry Newsletter - ATF has posted the most recent industry newsletter with discussions about a number of subjects relating to regulation and licensing. Click here for a copy.
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