Practical EHS Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
As today’s workplace becomes more complex, regulation of that workplace increases. In this section, you’ll find the practical advice you need to understand exactly what OSHA, other federal agencies, and their state counterparts, require of you, and to comply in the ways that best satisfy both your and their needs. Look also for important court decisions, advice on how to handle enforcement actions, and news of upcoming changes in workplace health and safety law.
Free Special Report: What to Expect from an OSHA Inspection
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has again cited Robbinsville, New Jersey, frozen food manufacturer CJ TMI Manufacturing America LLC after a worker suffered an amputation, the agency announced March 6. OSHA cited the employer with four willful, one repeat, and three serious violations and proposed penalties totaling $551,719. The agency has inspected CJ TMI […]
The EPA recently announced it finalized amendments to the 2018 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Fees Rule that update how the Agency will recover authorized costs of the law’s implementation and ensure collected fees provide the Agency with 25% of authorized costs consistent with direction from Congress. The Agency expects these amendments to strengthen its […]
Written safety plans are often the foundation of an organization’s safety program – spelling out safety goals, identifying hazards and controls, outlining standards and training, documenting procedures, specifying roles and responsibilities, and establishing lines and methods of communication and feedback. There are many regulations for which OSHA felt it necessary to require a written safety […]
Back to Basics is a weekly feature that highlights important but possibly overlooked information that any EHS professional should know. This week, we examine compliance with OSHA’s Process Safety Management standard. Is your workplace covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Process Safety Management (PSM) standard? Application of the PSM standard was covered […]
Macon, Georgia, plumbing contractor Pyles Plumbing and Utility Contractors Inc. faces $308,125 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties following a fatal trench collapse that claimed the life of a 20-year-old worker and hospitalized another, the agency announced February 29. OSHA investigators learned that on August 10, 2023, two employees were installing sewer-line piping […]
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) defense of “demonstrated” as an element of imposing best available control technology (BACT) in prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) permitting. CAA regulations The federal Clean Air Act (CAA) authorizes the EPA to establish nationwide air pollution standards, including standards for emissions […]
On January 11, 2024, the EPA announced a proposal to strengthen Clean Air Act (CAA) standards for large municipal waste combustors (LMWC) that burn municipal solid waste (MSW). LMWCs are incinerators that combust greater than 250 tons per day (tpd) of MSW. “If finalized, the updated standards would reduce emissions of nine pollutants, including smog- […]
The EPA recently announced a proposed rule to assess a charge on certain large emitters of methane waste from the oil and gas sector that exceed emissions intensity levels set by Congress. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 amended the Clean Air Act (CAA) to add Section 136: Methane Emissions and Waste Reduction Incentive […]
Henry Brick Co. Inc., a Selma, Alabama, brick manufacturer, faces $124,212 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties for exposing employees to respirable crystalline silica, the agency announced February 27. Exposure to crystalline silica can lead to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, kidney disease, and lung cancer. OSHA cited Henry Brick Co. with 11 serious […]
MDLG Inc., a Phenix City, Alabama, sawmill, faces $2,471,683 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fines following a worker’s death, the agency announced February 22. A 67-year-old sawmill supervisor at MDLG, operating as Phenix Lumber Co., had climbed on top of an auger to access a difficult-to-reach area to unclog a woodchipper. The employee was […]