Environmental Health and Safety

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Are you tired of lessons and definitions of heat stress, heat exhaustion and heat stroke every summer? Don’t get me wrong, these are important topics for our employees to know and understand. My concern is many of our employees are a little short on actionable information past the three definitions.

It’s that time of year again. OSHA is putting its Campaign to Prevent Heat Illness in Outdoor Workers in full swing, in an attempt to raise awareness and educate workers and employers about the dangers of working in hot weather and provide resources and guidance to address these hazards.

Although worker safety hazards in the oil and gas extraction industry are well known, there is very little published data regarding occupational health hazards (e.g., types and magnitude of risks for chemical exposures) during oil and gas extraction operations.

A new study published recently in the journal Neurology suggests a link between workplace solvents and memory loss. Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health and the University of Colorado School of Public Health examined the results of memory and cognitive tests conducted more than 2,000 retirees of the French national utility company about ten years after they’d retired.

As of December 1, 2014, manufacturers will no longer be allowed to ship products using old labels. Instead, they must be in compliance with the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) regulations incorporated into the Hazard Communications standard published by OSHA in 2012. Among the changes: new GHS labels.