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In a settlement agreement announced June 7, 2021, the EPA said it will require reporting on asbestos usage under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), according to San Francisco CBS. The legal battle over this decision was preceded by the 2017 EPA refusal to consider a petition to close some asbestos reporting “loopholes.” “The EPA […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) emergency temporary standard (ETS), which applies only to employers of healthcare and healthcare support services employees who potentially are exposed to COVID-19, became effective June 21 (86 FR 32376). Covered employers must comply with most provisions of the ETS by July 6 and with the physical barriers, ventilation, […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published its long-awaited emergency temporary standard (ETS) and accompanying guidance, “Protecting Workers,” on June 10, 2021. The ETS applies to covered healthcare employers, while the guidance articulates best practices for all employers in providing a “safe and healthful workplace.” Like the emergency rules issued by the Michigan Occupational Safety and […]
Are you prepared to fully reopen your facilities during an ongoing, if waning, pandemic and the threat of wildfires this summer? States and localities are rolling back pandemic precautions as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccinations roll out across the United States–President Biden pledged May 4 that 70 percent of American adults would receive at least […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Region V office in Chicago recently established a regional emphasis program (REP) of targeted outreach and enforcement of the agency’s occupational noise exposure standard (29 CFR 1910.95) in Midwest manufacturing facilities. OSHA Region V includes the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. “Earning a living […]
Michelle Tinsley, Co-founder of YellowBird, has been involved in the field of technology for more than 30 years. For our latest “Faces of EHS” profile, we sat down with Michelle to discuss why she made the leap from tech to environment, health, and safety; her thoughts on YellowBird’s importance as an EHS recruiting tool; as […]
Imagine suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning, reporting it, and then being fired for seeking medical attention. Toxic work environment? The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says yes. Poisoned, Then Fired A Texas hotel is in hot water with OSHA. In January 2019, an employee of All Seasons Hospitality and Investments notified her employer she […]
On June 11, 2021, the EPA published advance notice of proposed rulemaking to add 1-bromopropane (1-BP) to the Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAP) list. This addition is historical as it will mark the first time an air toxin has been added to the HAP list through a petition and it “is the first time that a […]
In a report dated May 24, 2021, the EPA Office of Inspector General (OIG) determined that the Agency “deviated from typical procedures in its 2018 Dicamba pesticide registration decision.” The watchdog report found required internal peer reviews were not conducted for three dicamba pesticide products. “While division-level management review is part of the typical operating […]
In his April 2020 letter to Amazon’s shareholders, Jeff Bezos declared that Amazon will become the safest place to work on Earth. To support that goal, the company recently launched a massive campaign to cut workplace injuries in half by 2025. While this reduction metric is helpful, Bezos’s major ambition to be “the safest workplace” […]