Hazmat


OSHA Prepping for GHS Meeting

OSHA will host a public meeting Nov. 12 to discuss proposals in preparation for the December meeting in Geneva, Switzerland.

Societies Issue Recommendations on Processing Biohazardous Medical Waste

Five societies joined in issuing guidance to personnel and health care organizations for how to handle these wastes, including waste contaminated with the Ebola virus.

This photo showing rail cars containing terephthalic acid on fire after the May 28, 2013, grade crossing collision is included in the NTSB report and credited to the Maryland Department of the Environment.

NTSB: Prohibit Hands-Free Phone Use by Commercial Drivers

The safety board determined Oct. 22 that a truck driver involved in a collision with a train in May 2013 was distracted because of a phone conversation he was having at the time.

NRC Staff Report Reignites Yucca Mountain Debate

How the 2014 midterm U.S. elections go may well determine whether the nuclear waste storage project in Nevada goes forward, four years after the Obama administration halted it.

DOT Agencies, USFA Produce Best Practices Document for Crude Oil Emergencies

Their partnership has produced a reference sheet for emergency responders.

The ammonium nitrate fire and massive explosion in West, Texas, killed 15 people and injured more than 250 others in 2013. (CSB photo)

CSB Calls for Changes in Emergency Response Guidebook

The safety board said it should offer better guidance for handling ammonium nitrate fires like the one that turned deadly in West, Texas.

The benefits of chemical substitution go beyond safety, and a strong business case can be made that its benefits include productivity improvement, as demonstrated in a 2008 AIHA study.

Taking the Lead on Chemical Substitution

It still takes individuals properly trained and positioned within an organization to make it all work. OH&S professionals are primed to take the lead.

WV Agency Sets Public Meeting on ASTs Rule

The Department of Environmental Protection is hosting the Oct. 1 meeting to hear stakeholders' comments about the draft Aboveground Storage Tank emergency rule.



Falls Still Top OSHA's List

The big three -- falls, scaffolds, and ladders -- are among the Top Ten most-violated OSHA standards for FY 2014, agency officials announced during the NSC conference.

PG&E Fined $1.4 Billion for San Bruno Explosion

It is the largest fine in the history of the California PUC.

Douglass Colony Group Inc. Cited for Exposing Workers to Asbestos

The Commercial roofer faces $81,000 in fines.

Connecticut Plastics Manufacturer Cited for Multiple Hazards

Superior Plastics has been cited for 24 safety and health violations.

Some workers are being exposed to high levels of benzene, a carcinogen, while gauging flowback tanks, the NIOSH team found.

NIOSH Documents High Benzene Exposures During Flowback Tank Gauging

Because workers' exposures can exceed the NIOSH REL and STEL, the team recommends monitoring workers, equipping them with flammable gas monitors and respiratory protection as an interim measure, and controls such as alternative tank gauging procedures and dedicated sampling ports.

Offshore Supply Vessels Regulations Published

The Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 removed the statutory size limit previously placed on offshore supply vessels and required the Coast Guard to issue the new regulations.

Three-dimensional laser scanning was performed on some of the derailed tank cars and showed the shells of the tank cars exhibited impact damage ranging from localized buckles to large-scale buckling, and they sustained significant reductions in volume. (Image downloaded from Transportation Safety Board of Canada investigation report R13D0054)

Final Report Lists Many Contributing Factors in Lac-Megantic Derailment

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada's report lists 18 contributing factors involved in the July 6, 2013, accident that killed 47 people and destroyed 40 buildings in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec.

IHMM Celebrating 30th Anniversary on Aug. 26

A free webcast of the day's symposium will be available. Speakers will include ASSE 2012-2013 President Rick Pollock, CSP, and Dan Anna, CIH, CSP, who is AIHA's president-elect.

According to PHMSA, the proposed rule will facilitate easier bulk shipments of used automobile lead acid batteries to recycling centers.

PHMSA Proposes 'Reverse Logistics' Definition in Hazmat Regulations

The agency's proposed rule defines training requirements associated with reverse logistics shipments; provides authorized packaging for reverse logistics shipments; sets segregation requirements for reverse logistics shipments; and allows more flexibility for the transportation of used lead acid batteries.

The explosion in West, Texas, prompted President Obama

Should EPA's Risk Management Program Regs List High Explosives?

The agency published a request for information about possible revisions to its RMP regulations on July 31, as required under Executive Order 13650.

Two surveys of the residents of Paulsboro, N.J., after the 2012 vinyl chloride release showed more than half of them reported new or worsened health effects after the derailment.

Safety Board Determining Cause of Paulsboro Derailment Today

Seven cars in a Conrail freight train derailed Nov. 30, 2012, in Paulsboro, N.J., with one car carrying vinyl chloride ruptured as a result. New Jersey’s Department of Health reported earlier this year that its surveys of residents showed more than half experienced new or worsening health symptoms after the chemical release.

The two DOT agencies are conducting audits, and PHMSA is making unannounced inspections, to ensure railroads

DOT Proposes DOT-111 Phase-Out, If Not Retrofitted

The agency has released details of an NPRM and an ANPRM, rulemaking efforts following the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration's rulemaking last fall.

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