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MSHA

Zatezalo confirmed as MSHA chief

November 15, 2017
President Trump’s controversial choice to head up the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) was confirmed by the U.S. Senate today. The 522-46 vote to approve David Zatezalo was split along party lines. At issue: Zatezalo was chairman and CEO of Rhino Resources at a time when the company earned two “pattern of violations” notices from MSHA due to its safety violations.
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pesticide
A ProPublica story

A wide-open door for pesticide lobbyists at the Agriculture Department

A former lobbyist for the pesticide industry now leads the deregulatory team at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Visitor logs show old ties remain strong.
Danielle Ivory Robert Faturechi
November 15, 2017
At a private meeting in September, congressional aides asked Rebeckah Adcock, a top official at the Department of Agriculture, to reveal the identities of the people serving on the deregulation team she leads at the agency. Teams like Adcock’s, created under an executive order by President Trump, had been taking heat from Democratic lawmakers over their secrecy. What little was publicly known suggested that some of the groups’ members had deep ties to the industries being regulated.
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train

“Amtrak’s safety culture is failing”

Harsh criticism from NTSB after fatal train derailment
November 15, 2017

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has determined that the April 3, 2016, derailment of Amtrak train 89 near Chester, Pennsylvania was caused by deficient safety management across many levels of Amtrak and the resultant lack of a clear, consistent and accepted vision for safety. A backhoe operator and a track supervisor were killed, and 39 people were injured when Amtrak train 89, traveling on the Northeast Corridor from Philadelphia to Washington on track 3, struck a backhoe at about 7:50 a.m.


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European Union

The high cost of occupational cancers in Europe

November 15, 2017
Work-related cancers in member countries of the European Union (EU) annualy cost between €270 and €610 billion– or $318- $719 billion in U.S. dollars. That cost, which was tallied in a study released by the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) this week, represents 1.8% to 4.1% of the gross domestic product of the EU. The study was presented at the ‘Work and Cancer’ conference held in Brussels.
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sick
A NIOSH Science Blog post

Flu virus generated in coughs and exhalations

William G. Lindsley PhD
November 15, 2017
It’s flu season. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducts research on protecting health care providers and other workers from infectious diseases including influenza. A significant portion of our research deals with understanding how the influenza virus is transmitted. Influenza is known to be transmitted through respiratory secretions containing the virus.
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A Confined Space blog post

The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead…

November 14, 2017
Today is the 42nd anniversary of the wreck of he Edumund Fitzgerald which sent 29 mariners to a watery grave and was immortalized by Gordon Lightfoot in what was probably the most famous song about a workplace disaster.  WXYZ in Detroit notes that “Of the more than 1000 ships in the graves under the icy waters of the Great Lakes, the Edmund Fitzgerald is still the largest to ever go down.” The 729-foot freighter was caught in storm carrying hurricane-strength winds on Nov. 10, 1975, and sank as it carried a load of iron ore across Lake Superior.  (H/T to Thurman Wenzl for the reminder.)
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construction

OSHA sets crane operator certification compliance date

November 14, 2017
OSHA) last week issued a final rule setting November 10, 2018, as the date for employers in the construction industries to comply with a requirement for crane operator certification. The final rule becomes effective November 9, 2017.
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California
A FairWarning story

California throttles down pollution from small engines

Stuart Silverstein
November 14, 2017
New California rules aimed at curbing the surprising amount of pollution coming from leaf blowers, lawn mowers and other small gas-powered machines cleared a final hurdle Monday, and are set to take effect on Jan. 1. The requirements mark another step in the state’s long-running battle to reduce emissions from a category of small engines that have come to rival cars as a source of smog-forming pollution.
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traffic

NTSB says feds failing to keep unsafe drivers off roads

November 14, 2017
A sleep-deprived driver operating a motorcoach during early morning hours on a California highway caused a crash that killed four of the 24 passengers, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said in a report released yesterday. “Here’s yet another fatal crash involving both a motorcoach carrier with a starkly evident history of safety problems and a severely fatigued driver,” said NTSB Chairman Robert L. Sumwalt.
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robot
Man v. machine

NIOSH announces new robotics research center

November 13, 2017
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has established a new Center for Occupational Robotics Research (CORR) to provide scientific leadership to guide the development and use of occupational robots that enhance worker safety, health, and well-being. Although robots have been used in workplaces for decades, the use of robots that are designed to be used alongside human workers is increasing, as is the likelihood of robot-related deaths, according to NIOSH.
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