Hazardous Materials
Workers and 9/11 Responders Mourn Passing of Dr. Stephen Levin
Dr. Stephen Levin, former medical director of Mount Sinai Medical Center’s Irving J. Selikoff Occupational and Environmental Medical Center and a long-time advocate for workers, has died of cancer. He was 70 years old....
CSB Provides Update on Safety Progress 5 Years After Little General Propane Explosion
Five years ago on Jan. 30, a propone explosion at the Little General convenience store in Ghent, W.Va., killed four people and injured six others. To mark the anniversary of this tragic event, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) provided an update on the board's recommendations, which were issued to improve propane technician training and emergency response efforts...
CSB Calls For Hazardous Waste Facility Safety Standard
On Dec. 17, a chemical fire at an Ohio hazardous waste facility fatally injured one worker and severely burned another. In the aftermath of this incident, U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso highlighted the importance of creating a national fire code for hazardous waste facilities...
AHMP Emergency Response Simulation Shows Importance of Communication, Preparedness
On Aug. 30, the Alliance of Hazardous Materials Professionals (AHMP), along with the University of Texas (UT) at Austin, simulated a response scenario involving a chemical spill. AHMP Executive Director Cedric Calhoun, FASAE, CAE, spoke with EHS Today to discuss the response efforts and the importance of communication and preparedness...
Managing Compliance: Going Beyond ‘Be Prepared’
The recent earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan have prompted companies around the globe to re-examine their emergency response strategies...
Working Near Fields Sprayed with Certain Pesticides Could Increase Parkinson’s Risks
While studying a variety of workers – from teachers, firefighters, clerks and other non-agricultural employees – who worked near, but not in, fields sprayed with specific types of pesticides, UCLA researchers discovered a threefold increase in the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease...
AIHce: The Industrial Hygienist’s Role in Green Chemistry and Chemical Reform
Keynote speaker Michael P. Wilson, Ph.D., told attendees at the May 17 AIHce opening session that while they might be unsure how green chemistry relates to their profession, it is nonetheless “immediately applicable to the practice of industrial hygiene” by encouraging safer engineering, design and chemistry...
Senate Introduces Safe Chemicals Act of 2011
On April 14, Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., along with Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and others, introduced the Safe Chemicals Act of 2011 to upgrade the nation’s system for managing chemical safety and protect communities from toxic chemicals...
Chemical Workers Perceive High Risk of Safety Threats
In an analysis of focus group interviews, a team of scientists found chemical workers perceive a high risk of on-the-job chemical threat but are resigned to accepting the risks. The study also noted a certain level of distrust of management and health advisors, problems with written safety guides and the need to include more experienced workers in the development of safety training programs...
New CSB Safety Video Highlights Hazards of Gas Releases
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has released a new safety video depicting two major accidents caused by the intentional release of flammable fuel gas near work areas...
NIST Develops New Guidance for First Responders Collecting Suspected Biothreat Agents
To help first responders at all levels of government deal safely and more effectively with suspected biothreat agents, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and a broad team of federal, state and local agencies and other organizations updated an existing standard for sample collection and developed overall guidance for when to collect a sample and how to coordinate with other agencies and organizations...
Are First Responders Prepared for CBRNE Incidents?
Results of a recent nationwide survey of emergency medical technicians (EMTs) reveal that most first responders feel underprepared and inadequately equipped for a disaster involving a chemical, biological or radiological agent...
NIEHS to Fund $36 Million in Worker Safety Training, Efforts to Reduce Hazard Exposure during Disaster Response
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) is awarding $36 million in grants to 20 organizations that develop safety and health training for workers involved in hazardous waste operations and transportation, environmental restoration of contaminated facilities and chemical emergency response. These training programs can receive annual funding for up to 5 years...
Former CSB Chairman Discusses Deepwater Horizon Investigation, Board Priorities
John Bresland, former chairman and current board member of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB), spoke with EHS Today about the board’s investigation into the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion, the board’s priorities, combustible dust regulation and more...
NSU Receives $1.6 Million Grant to Train Oil Rig Workers to Prepare for Spills
Nova Southeastern University (NSU) recently received a $1.6 million federal grant to help train oil industry workers and others in related industries to better prepare for and respond to oil spills and hazardous materials events...
CSB Chairperson Calls for Effective Safeguards at Oil and Gas Sites Across Mississippi
On Aug. 19, CSB Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso called on Mississippi legislators and officials to increase safeguards at oil and gas sites across the state...
OSHA Warns Gulf Coast Employers Against Withholding HAZWOPER Certificates
OSHA has received numerous complaints from workers taking part in the Gulf Coast oil spill cleanup whose employers are refusing to provide them with a certificate following their completion of training under the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response, or HAZWOPER, standard...
The Importance of Pipe Marking Safety
When people think of workplace safety, they typically think of fall protection, personal protective equipment, machine safety and so on. They often overlook another very important part of workplace safety – pipe marking...
The Importance of Mobile Radiation Detection for Homeland Security
The successful test of a mobile radiation detection system in our nation’s capital led one official to say that major U.S. municipalities should adopt the technology...
CSB Sheds Light on Fatal Kleen Energy Explosion, Highlights Gas Blow Hazards
In a Feb. 25 statement, U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) Lead Investigator Don Holmstrom said the fatal Feb. 7 explosion at the Kleen Energy Plant in Middletown, Conn., occurred during a planned gas blow. He expressed broader safety concerns over natural gas power plants venting gas near worksites, a practice he called “inherently unsafe.”...
Survey: Improved Chemical Security Makes Millions Safer
A new survey by the Center for American Progress identified 554 drinking water and wastewater plants in 47 states that have replaced extremely hazardous substances with safer and more secure chemicals or processes...
Chemical Emergencies: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
Don’t kid yourself. Just because we don’t hear about Bhopal-sized chemical releases doesn’t mean our workplaces are safe from chemical emergencies...
What You Need to Know about Dust Explosions and Your Facility, Part 2
This two-part series examines the causes of dust explosions, their devastating impact and the measures suggested by OSHA, the National Fire Protection Agency and the Chemical Safety and Hazard Review Board to eliminate them...
Coalition Calls for Improved Chemical Plant Safety
Corresponding with the 25th anniversary of the Bhopal, India, disaster, a coalition of labor and environment groups called for increased safety at U.S. chemical plants through improved processes and reduced onsite hazardous chemical storage...
OSHA Releases Guidance on Training, PPE for EMS Responders
OSHA issued the guidance document Best Practices for Protecting EMS Responders During Treatment and Transport of Victims of Hazardous Substance Releases to address adequate training and PPE for emergency medical services responders who assist victims of hazardous substance release incidents...
