The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has announced more than $4 million in FY 2017 Hazardous Materials Instructor Training (HMIT) and Supplemental Public Sector Training (SPST) grants.
Nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, is the most common inhaled anesthetic used by dental practitioners. Although considered safe for occasional use in patients, studies show that long-term, work-related exposure may increase the risk of diseases of the nervous system, kidneys, and liver and of miscarriage and infertility. Fortunately, there are ways to minimize exposure of dental workers to nitrous oxide.
Think the office you work in is a relatively tame environment, hazard-wise? Ever consider the fact that printers – a common piece of workplace equipment – emit chemicals into the air?
Jet fuel is a fairly common smell in the passenger cabin when a plane is preparing to taxi. Far less so is the aroma of dirty socks, rancid cheese, or a wet dog— unpleasant signs that engine oil vapors have seeped in, too.
Depending on the industry, employees may be at risk from exposure to tobacco smoke, carbon monoxide, allergens, bacteria, viruses, and chemicals that build up indoors. Employees may also be exposed to airborne contaminants on the job such as dusts, welding fumes, gases, solvent vapors and mists.
On June 8 approximately 350 Hanford workers were ordered to “take cover” after alarms designed to detect elevated levels of airborne radioactive contamination went off, according to local press reports.
It was quickly determined that radioactive particles had been swept out of a containment zone at the plutonium finishing plant (PFP) demolition site.
A proposed ASTM International standard will protect worker’s health by monitoring the levels of hydrogen sulfide gas in workplace air.
The proposed standard (WK59402, Test Methods for Measurement of Hydrogen Sulfide in Workplace Air by Direct-Reading Electrochemical Detectors) is being developed by the ASTM International committee on air quality (D22).
A web-based survey conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) found that a perceived management commitment to safety was linked to a better use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and engineering controls to reduce the likelihood of health care professionals experiencing spills, leaks or skin contact during the administration of liquid antineoplastic drugs (AD).
Cal/OSHA has cited an aircraft parts manufacturer $87,500 for numerous workplace safety and health violations including failure to provide workers with effective training on hazardous chemicals in their work area and willful failure to notify workers of their exposure to hexavalent chromium, a hazardous chemical known to cause cancer commonly referred to as chromium-6.
A confined space tragedy in South Florida claimed the lives of three workers – two of them would-be rescuers – and resulted in citations and penalties against two companies.
