OSHA investigators have determined that Spirit Aerosystems Inc. exposed employees to airborne concentrations of hexavalent chromium nearly double the permissible exposure limit. Hexavalent chromium is a known carcinogen.
The Kansas-based aircraft manufacturer faces proposed penalties totaling $194,006 for one willful and five serious violations.
Factory workers participating in a National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) study had urinary BPA levels that far exceeded those found in the public.
For years, manufacturers have used the industrial chemical BPA, or bisphenol A, to make polycarbonate plastic, epoxy resins, and other specialty materials. Although BPA’s effects on people remain unclear, health concerns about the chemical have arisen because it weakly mimics the hormone estrogen.
In the early 1970s, a Johnson & Johnson official posed a question that haunts the company today. If Johnson’s Baby Powder contained asbestos at a level of, say, 1 percent, how much of the cancer-causing substance would a baby inhale when dusted with the powder?
The EPA is considering eliminating age requirements that currently prevent teen workers in the agriculture industry from handling dangerous pesticides.
The rule, which prohibits workers under 18 years old from being in contact with pesticides, was issued in 2015 because pesticides can affect brain development and increase cancer risk in children.
A chemical release that sent 140 people to the hospital was caused by a truck driver who mistakenly connected the hose for one chemical to the line for another. The Oct. 21, 2016 incident in Atchison, Kansas also provides valuable lessons in chemical safety, according to the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB), which used it as the basis of a case study titled “Key Lessons for Preventing Inadvertent Mixing during Chemical Unloading Operations.”
Workers who were dismantling a mercury boiler in Portsmith, New Hampshire were exposed to high levels of mercury, according to OSHA inspectors who took action following workers’ complaints.
In response, OSHA cited Manafort Brothers, Inc. of Plainville, Connecticut for two willful and six serious violations concerning mercury, respirators, protective clothing, and sanitary conditions. The construction contractor faces penalties of $329,548.
What is "indoor air quality"?
Indoor air quality (also called "indoor environmental quality") describes how inside air can affect a person's health, comfort, and ability to work. It can include temperature, humidity, lack of outside air (poor ventilation), mold from water damage, or exposure to other chemicals. Currently, OSHA has no indoor air quality (IAQ) standards but it does provide guidelines about the most common IAQ workplace complaints.
Look for signs of a possible leak:
• Persistent bubbling in standing water
• Discolored or dead vegetation around the pipeline area
• Dense white cloud or fog
• Slight mist of ice
• Unexplained frozen ground near the pipeline
Listen for any unusual noise:
• Whistling, hissing or roaring sound
New workplace safety and health issues continue to emerge around the relatively new fields of nanotechnology, advanced materials, and additive manufacturing, which makes updated on information a challenge for safety professionals and others.
Because many people turn to Wikipedia for information, scientists with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) gathered with “Wikipedians” from across the Midwest to expand and improve Wikipedia articles about nanotechnology OSH.
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