Practical EHS Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Every day in America, 30,000 people suffer an asthma attack. Five thousand of them go to the emergency room, 1,000 are admitted to the hospital—and 11 will die. Although those numbers include asthma sufferers of all ages—children are especially susceptible to asthma-causing chemicals—a significant number are workers. As many as 15 percent of adults develop […]
Sector Highlights from the 2013 Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program In 2013 1,572 power plants reported, which is down from 1,589 in 2011 and 1,601 in 2012. This sector consists of facilities that produce electricity by combusting fossil fuels and/or biomass and the emissions from this sector are solely from stationary fuel combustion sources, although carbon […]
Yesterday, we looked at Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) extension of the certification deadline for crane operators—and noted that employers are still required to provide comprehensive training for crane operators. One element of that training includes ensuring that operators can recognize, based on both visual and auditory inspection, the shift inspection elements required by […]
National Highlights from the 2013 Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program Mandatory reporting of GHGs became law in October 2009 for sources emitting 25,000 metric tons or more of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) per year in the United States. Reporting began in 2010 and in 2011, the EPA published the first GHGRP report setting a benchmark for […]
Just ahead of its original deadline for the certification of crane operators under the 2010 final rule on Cranes and Derricks in Construction, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has offered employers and crane operators a break. In a rule finalized on September 25, 2014, the Agency has extended the deadline for operator certification […]
Deadly Chemical Plant Releases Violate Multiple Regulations In a settlement with a multinational company that operates a chemical plant in Belle, West Virginia, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) alleged that between 2006 and 2010, eight releases of hazardous substances occurred, one of which resulted in the death of […]
A tree-trimming accident leads to a fatality—and a reconsideration of safety training for outdoor work. Today’s Advisor reports on the accident and reiterates OSHA’s safety recommendations for tree-trimming activities.
Conclusions from the TSCA Assessment of Dichloromethane According to the EPA, the use of products containing DCM for paint stripping poses some of the highest exposure risks compared to all uses of DCM. The chemical is a volatile organic compound (VOC) and is also considered to have “likely carcinogenic properties.” In 2012, 261.5 million pounds […]
Yesterday, we looked beyond using recordable injuries, illnesses, and workers’ compensation claims as ways to evaluate the effectiveness of your safety program, finding numerical ways to evaluate safety communication in the workplace. Today, we’ll look at three more metrics you can measure that go beyond the Form 300 in giving you information about how your […]
Conclusions from the TSCA Trichloroethylene Assessment Each year, the United States uses 225 million pounds of TCE, a volatile organic compound (VOC) and human carcinogen. TCE is used widely, primarily in industrial and commercial processes as a solvent, degreaser, and fixative. EPA’s Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (EPA/OPPT) focused the TCE assessment on characterizing […]