Washington — A long-standing Chemical Safety Board concern is no more: The agency has cleared its backlog of open investigations and incident reports.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency has initiated its 12-month review process to prioritize five toxic chemicals for risk evaluation under the Toxic Substances Control Act.

Tumwater, WA — Process safety management-focused updates to Washington state’s workplace safety rules for petroleum refineries are set to go into effect Dec. 27.

Washington — A new Environmental Protection Agency decision framework for determining the eye irritation or corrosion potential of new chemicals aims to “provide results more relevant to humans” – without animal testing.

Washington — Hazards related to combustible dust “must be controlled beyond the existing regulatory requirements,” says the Chemical Safety Board, which has renewed its call on OSHA to begin rulemaking on a general industry standard.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency is seeking comment on a draft risk evaluation that states tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate, or TCEP, poses “unreasonable risk” to workers under certain conditions.

Washington — Chemical facilities that handle hazardous gases or cryogenic asphyxiants such as liquid nitrogen should maintain atmospheric monitoring and alarm systems and educate workers on hazards.

Washington — Swiftly isolating chemical releases and keeping workers safe “should not be mutually exclusive,” the Chemical Safety Board says.

Washington — The Chemical Safety Board is “very determined” to avoid an investigation backlog similar to the one it recently cleared, board Chair Steve Owens said during the agency’s first public business meeting of 2024.

Washington — Employers whose workers use 3D printers in non-industrial settings can take steps to limit employee exposure to emissions from heated filaments, polymers and powders, NIOSH says.

Washington — OSHA has updated its process safety management enforcement policy for the first time in 30 years.

Washington — Onshore oil and gas wells need appropriate well planning and control measures in place to “mitigate the potential for the ignition of flammable material,” the Chemical Safety Board says.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency expects a final rule that would increase fees to defray administration costs of the Toxic Substances Control Act to bolster chemical-review efficiency and safety protections.

Nanjing, China — A recent study highlighting the expected ties between exposure to cancer-causing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, and a risk factor for heart disease could impact workers.

Washington — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has again extended a trial of faster line speeds at select pork-processing facilities, saying it’s continuing to study the effect on worker safety.

Washington — Protecting workers in the engineered stone industry from exposure to crystalline silica will be the topic of an OSHA webinar scheduled for March 14.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency is aiming to “improve safety at facilities that use and distribute hazardous chemicals,” as well as protect nearby communities, via a final rule.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency will ban the use and import of chrysotile asbestos – a known human carcinogen – under a final rule announced March 18.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency intends to significantly reduce emissions of ethylene oxide – a gas used to sterilize medical devices that’s been linked to cancer and neurological problems – under a new final rule.

Washington — A new hazard alert from OSHA is aimed at increasing awareness and ensuring actions are being taken to reduce the “alarming number” of serious, preventable injuries in poultry, meat and other food processing establishments.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency is accepting public comment on a draft risk evaluation that states the chemical substance formaldehyde poses “unreasonable risk” to workers under certain conditions.

Washington — Chemical manufacturers and importers of 16 different chemicals would be required to submit data from unpublished health and safety studies, under a recently announced Environmental Protection Agency proposed rule.

Washington — More than 5,300 industrial facilities must submit plans for responding to “worst case” chemical discharges into waterways during adverse weather events, under a new Environmental Protection Agency final rule.

Morgantown, WV — Turning mundane manufacturing tasks into games may boost worker engagement, motivation and productivity – but it also may stress out some people, results of a recent study show.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency is seeking feedback on Part 2 of a final draft risk evaluation that claims legacy use and disposal of asbestos presents an unreasonable health risk to demolition workers, firefighters and other workers in certain situations.

Washington — As the Environmental Protection Agency considers regulating the manufacture, processing and distribution of lead wheel weights, it’s seeking stakeholder feedback on how workers and families may be exposed to lead.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency says a new rule “charts the path for our risk evaluations to ensure we meet the core objective to protect public health under our nation’s premier chemical safety law.”

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency will ban most industrial and commercial uses of the carcinogenic chemical methylene chloride, under a final rule announced April 30.

Washington — The National Fire Protection Association’s voluntary standard on preventing fires and uncontrolled chemical reactions at hazardous waste facilities carries significant influence from the Chemical Safety Board – and CSB officials appreciate it.

Dallas — During inclement weather, facility operators are obligated to maintain safety, minimize any chemical/oil releases and discharges, and report them in a timely manner.

Washington — OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (1910.1200) will now align with the seventh revision of the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Sacramento, CA — The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health recently launched a campaign to increase awareness of the dangers of silica dust in the engineered stone industry.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency will designate as hazardous two cancer-causing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, with wide industrial and consumer use, under a new final rule.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled a public meeting in advance of the 46th session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency wants to ban certain commercial uses of the chemical substance n-methylpyrrolidone and establish worker protections for various others.

Washington — Establishing and implementing engineering controls as “preventive safeguards” during a process hazard analysis can help prevent liquid overflow and a possible chemical disaster, the Chemical Safety Board says.

Washington — The Chemical Safety Board is urging chemical facilities to prepare for a season of “potentially more frequent and more powerful hurricanes and other extreme weather events.”

Washington — Updates to Environmental Protection Agency reviews of new chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act will strengthen worker protections, an agency official says.

Washington — In light of reports of avian flu in dairy cattle and “a small number of workers exposed to infected animals,” OSHA has issued a hazard alert.

Washington — Chemical facilities should clearly mark pressure-retaining components of plug valves and require new valves to be designed to prevent the inadvertent removal of these components.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency has released a guide intended to increase understanding of – and compliance with – its ban on most industrial and commercial uses of methylene chloride

Cincinnati — Various psychosocial, organizational and physical factors may increase workers’ risk of low back pain, according to a recent study led by NIOSH researchers.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to ban many commercial uses of the carcinogenic chemical 1-bromopropane and require worker protections for the remaining uses.

Washington — Citing health risks to workers and unborn children, the Environmental Protection Agency has taken action – effective immediately – to discontinue the use of the weed-control pesticide dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate.

Washington — Updates to an Environmental Protection Agency standard that outline the criteria cleaning products must meet to earn the “Safer Choice” label will help protect workers, the agency says.

Washington — Many chemical facilities “have not fully recognized that the effective remote isolation of equipment is critical to quickly stopping releases of hazardous materials” and protecting workers, the Chemical Safety Board says.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency is delaying the data submission period for a final rule requiring manufacturers and importers of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances to report information on PFAS use, exposures and hazards.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency has published a final rule that restores pesticide application exclusion zone requirements intended to protect farmworkers, pesticide handlers and workers’ families.

Washington — OSHA has expanded and updated its inspection guidance for animal processing and slaughtering.

Washington — Chemical facility owners and operators should take into account how simultaneous operations can affect work and ensure they have written, easy-to-understand procedures in place, the Chemical Safety Board says in a new video.