Partnership Alliance Between NSC and OSHA Renewed
On November 18, the National Safety Council (NSC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) renewed their partnership alliance.
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EPA Looks to Trim Authority of Environmental Appeals Board
With the goal of expediting resolution of objections to permits issued by the EPA under major environmental statutes, the Agency is proposing amendments to regulations governing its Environmental Appeals Board (EAB). Among the seven proposed revisions, the most significant would strengthen the role of the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) program. Other parts of the proposal […]
Struck-by Hazards Could Be Prevented by Wearable Technology
Wearable technology could alert construction workers to nearby vehicles or equipment, preventing caught between and struck-by injuries, a recent study found. A prototype belt with vibrating motors alerted participants to the presence of vehicles and equipment in research performed by CPWR—The Center for Construction Research and Training.
EPA Adds Aerosol Cans to Federal Universal Waste Program
Sixty days after its publication in the Federal Register, a final EPA rule will formally add hazardous waste aerosol cans to the federal Universal Waste program.
EPA’s Regulations on Waste Prescription and Nonprescription Pharmaceuticals
The EPA has long emphasized that the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and its regulations were written to address the generation of solid and hazardous wastes by industrial plants and the storage, treatment, and disposal of such wastes at permitted facilities and landfills. What the regulations were not intended to cover is the generation […]
PFAS: What We Know, What’s Being Studied, and the Laws
Many stakeholders are following—or should be following—the federal government’s plans to address the impact of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) on human health and the environment. There is a lot to follow. PFAS are a family of chemicals first synthesized in the 1940s. It is a very large family. According to the EPA’s February 2019 […]
Chemical CBI Claims: Reverse Engineering Questions Proposed by EPA
The EPA is proposing to add two questions to the list of questions chemical manufacturers (which include importers) and processors must answer to substantiate claims that the identities of chemicals must be protected from public disclosure. Both questions relate to reverse engineering, defined as a process “to disassemble and examine or analyze in detail (a […]
BLS Announces Number and Rate of Injuries in 2018
The number and rate of workplace injuries in 2018 remain unchanged from 2017, the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) announced.
Driver Fatigue Study from CDC, NIOSH in Planning Stages
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) are seeking comments on a proposed study of the effectiveness of the North American Fatigue Management Program (NAFMP). The CDC and NIOSH plan to observe 180 long-haul and regional truck drivers using in-vehicle monitoring systems, questionnaires, sensors, […]
EPA Says Most Uses of Methylene Chloride Carry Unreasonable Risks
Methylene chloride, one of the most useful solvents ever developed and also one of the most dangerous, is the subject of a recently released EPA draft risk evaluation.