Ethylene oxide (EtO) is a common, highly hazardous industrial chemical linked to breast cancer and immune system cancers like non-Hodgkin lymphoma and lymphocytic leukemia (see EPA IRIS Exec Summary, Dec 2016). Concerned community members in Illinois made it a 2018 campaign issue after two federal agencies released studies showing elevated cancer risks outside Chicago.

After the temporary shutdown of the Sterigenics facility in Willowbrook (IL), La Grange trustees say they will continue to actively participate in efforts to protect public health. The Sterigenics facility in Willowbrook, suspended operations after the Feb. 15 issuance of a seal order from the Illinois EPA. The seal came after the facility’s refusal to voluntarily shut down after the EPA released a report that reflected elevated levels of ethaline-oxide in the surrounding area of the facility.

The American Petroleum Institute issued a new recommended practice that revises recommended procedures to promote and maintain safe and healthy working conditions for personnel in drilling and well servicing operations. First published in 1981, the latest version of Recommended Practice 54 (RP 54) applies to rotary drilling rigs, well servicing rigs, and special services as they relate to operations on location, API said.

Texas oil and natural gas companies are fueling our lives and funding our state and local budgets. From production to pipelines, to refineries and ports, new technologies and innovations allow for safer, more efficient, and less impactful energy production, all while employing hundreds of thousands of Texans in good-paying jobs and providing funding for our schools, roads and first responders.

A consultant hired by Broomfield, CO to assess risks at planned Extraction Oil & Gas, Inc. well sites within the city identified 36 gaps in safety plans, most of which have since been addressed by city and company best practice guidelines. However, the consultant, Norwegian-based DNV-GL, did find that two of its recommendations are still not covered by the documents intended to ensure the health and safety of residents.

There is a network of thousands of miles of pipes underlying the frenzied oil and gas development in the Permian Basin of Texas. Nationally, more than 450,000 miles of such gathering lines snake underground from wells, and reports of death and injury have emerged from Texas to Pennsylvania.

Plastic is a human health crisis hiding in plain sight, according to a recent report from a coalition of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) lead by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL). To date, research into the human health impacts of plastic have focused narrowly on specific moments in the plastic lifecycle, often on single products, processes, or exposure pathways.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued five safety recommendations Thursday following completion of its investigation of the Aug. 27, 2016, chlorine release from a ruptured rail tank car near New Martinsville, West Virginia. There were eight injuries reported in connection with the accident in which 178,400 pounds of liquefied compressed chlorine was released in the course of two and a half hours after a DOT-105 rail tank car sustained a 42-inch long crack in its tank shell shortly after being loaded at the Axiall Corporation Natrium plant.

The EPA says it has put together a nationwide plan to address PFAS - an environmental danger that has gained prominence and raised alarm in recent years. The acronym stands for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, a group of man-made chemicals that have been manufactured and used in a variety of industries around the globe, including in the United States since the 1940s.

Advances in technology - such as artificial intelligence, automation and robotics – that are transforming workplaces should cause governments to act to put the digital transformation onto a sustainable footing, according to a coalition of labor groups. The warnings about the effect of technology on jobs and working conditions comes as the ILO’s Global Commission on the Future of work launches a major interim report, Working for a Brighter Future, examining the impact of digitalisation on the labour market.