Respiratory


Carbon nanotubes have been found to quickly cause adverse lung health effects in mice.

NIOSH Sets Meeting on Carbon Nanotubes Bulletin

The agency has finished a draft Current Intelligence Bulletin containing an assessment of the toxicological data and recommendations for safe handling of the materials.

Court Grants MSHA Injunctive Relief against Maine Quarry

The Mine Safety and Health Administration announced recently that it successfully obtained a court order that imposes a number of requirements on Sullivan Granite Co. LLC, which operates Brown's Meadow Quarry in Franklin, Maine.

MSHA Increases Focus on Exposure Monitoring at Metal, Nonmetal Mines

"We want to ensure that miners are protected from overexposure to harmful contaminants and mine operators have required safety and health programs in place to meet that objective," said Joseph A. Main, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health.

Late 2011 Action Set for Construction Confined Spaces Rule

Semiannual agendas published Monday in the Federal Register are later than usual. Those from the Labor Department's units are sparse.

The authors tested how well various types of ventilation worked at capturing the dust produced by methods currently used for manual concrete surface grinding.

Study Says More Protection Needed for Manual Concrete Grinding

Evaluating the equipment, engineering controls, and grinding methods currently used for manual concrete surface grinding, a study published in JOEH says current methods to control dust aren't sufficiently protective.

Stroke Drops to Fourth Leading Cause of Death in 2008

Heart disease and cancer, the two leading causes of death, still accounted for nearly half (48 percent) of all deaths in 2008.

IAFC, IAFF Launch Carbon Monoxide Awareness Campaign

The new education campaign urges firefighters to take personal responsibility for their health and safety by recognizing the occupational hazards of carbon monoxide exposure and wearing protective masks during both active fire and overhaul operations to prevent unnecessary risks.

From 1965 to 2006, there were about 2.2 million tank car shipments of chlorine, and only 788 accidents involving them occurred.

Many Questions About Railroad Escape Respirator Proposal

The proposal published by the Federal Railroad Administration is unworkable as written because it would require performance that currently approved escape respirators aren't tested for, ISEA and others said in their comments.



Severe Violators Case Carries $396,000 in Penalties

OSHA filed 28 citations in all against U.S. Minerals LLC of Dyer, Ind. and said violations have been found at four of its facilities.

Occupational asthma costs are high, and U.K. employers bear little of the costs, a study found.

UK Employers Escaping Occupational Asthma Costs

Individuals and the government bear about all of the costs, according to the study.

The document contains suggested formats and procedures for fall prevention, hazard identification, and more.

Tower Erectors' Group Updates Safety Guide

The updated document, available to NATE members, contains 18 sections. Everything from hazard identification to RF exposure, emergency response, training, and the HazCom Standard is covered.

A number of employees nationwide who have been exposed to diacetyl have developed the serious respiratory illness which in some cases has resulted in patients being placed on lung transplant wait lists or dying.

California Becomes First State to Set Safety Guidelines for Diacetyl

The new standard requires employers covered by the standard to create a regulated area for each process using diacetyl, unless the process is enclosed. Employers must also provide safeguards for employees who work with diacetyl at certain concentrations.

OSHA Updates Shipyard PPE Directive

The directive recognizes updated consensus standards and includes more information about the PPE shipyard employers must provide to workers at no cost, as well as PPE for which they don't have to pay.

EPA determined the 16 chemical being added are used and/or manufactured in amounts above the reporting thresholds.

EPA Adds 16 Chemicals to EPCRA List

The final rule that is effective Nov. 30, 2010, adds them to the section 313 list of toxic chemicals, as EPA proposed in April 2010.

Air Travelers at Risk from Secondhand Smoke: CDC

Although more airports prohibit smoking today than in 2002, smoking is still allowed inside seven of the nation's largest airports, including three of the five busiest airports.

Owner, Company Convicted in Rochester Asbestos Case

The Justice Department announced Monday that a federal court jury convicted Keith Gordon-Smith and his asbestos abatement company, Gordon-Smith Contracting Inc., of violating CAA asbestos work practice standards and lying to hide the violations.

CBRN Respirator Meeting Set For Dec. 9

The meeting will discuss NIOSH's work on a performance standard for CBRN respirators. The project is Docket Number 082-A, Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Combination Respirator Unit.

Two Texas Companies Cited for Exposing Workers to Lead

OSHA began its inspection on May 12 at the company's worksite in Dallas after receiving a complaint alleging workers were being exposed to lead while cutting lead cable that was to be recycled.

Joseph A. Main

MSHA to Hold Six Coal Mine Dust Rule Hearings

The first of the public hearings will be in West Virginia on Dec. 7. The hearings are about the proposed rule published Oct. 19.

CrVI concentrations varied significantly depending on the type of welding being done.

CrVI Study Shows Limits, Promise of Local Exhaust Ventilation

The three authors of the paper published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health conducted the research because there have been few studies on welders' exposures, especially in construction.

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