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**At_Symbol_Here**ACSDCHAS and **At_Symbol_Here**LabSustain tweets and Chemical Safety Headlines
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
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acsdchas C&EN: Study Warns Of Fracking Water Contaminants http://t.co/oev5ygwAnT
acsdchas Newest HazCom Chemical Hazard: GHS Classification Shock http://t.co/1b2B3WNZwR
acsdchas Nat Acad Sci: Improving the Health, Safety, and Well-Being of Young Adults:Workshop Summary (2013) http://t.co/mnwTLmndUY
labsustain Sus Chem & Eng: Preparation of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes from Fullerene Waste Soot http://t.co/59AiXRdebq http://t.co/ytaaQpXm9z
labsustain American Chemical Society has launched online toolkit focusing on the #water sustainability crisis. http://t.co/cZa7zSOgzy
acsdchas C&EN Safety Zone Blog: Friday chemical safety round up http://t.co/B3coNqurWu
EHSToday Three Fatalities in Three Days Have #MSHA and Mining Industry Reeling http://t.co/bDWAhuLg3h
acsdchas Burn victim in Dow lab explosion dies http://t.co/Ta1cwYYGmx
acsdchas Health and safety inquiry into liquid nitrogen cocktail continues one year on: . http://t.co/Xhqi51mFOP
acsdchas RT **At_Symbol_Here**jkemsley: Fatal accident at Dow/Rohm & Haas now reported to be from exposure of trimethylindium to air http://t.co/vp1ACkGivZ
acsdchas C&EN: Fines Proposed For Fertilizer Tragedy: Federal agency hits West, Texas, facility with 24 safety violations http://t.co/n2sfsN9o1e
AmerChemSociety RT **At_Symbol_Here**sciencecodex: American Chemical Society: Federal shutdown undermines US innovation and critical services http://t.co/dQ9QNJP3VO
acsdchas RT **At_Symbol_Here**fabsh: The Internet in a nutshell. http://t.co/FBH56pfj9X
acsdchas ES&T: Carbon Nanotubes and C60 Fullerenes Differentially Impact the Accumulation of Pesticides http://t.co/ROVBc4Ip1p
acsdchas J Chem Ed: ZnO-Based Sunscreen: Nanoparticles in an Undergraduate or High School Chemistry Lab http://t.co/oNKBXqhsT9 http://t.co/m0kTMDVYa4
labsustain The NYS Pollution Prevention Institute's Third Annual R&D Student Competition is open. Applications are due Nov. 1 http://t.co/Yj9bSzSBm7
acsdchas C&EN: Global Warming Affirmations: Latest world report rests on stronger science, researchers say http://t.co/OdnKRa62sd
CHMMNews Six jailed over chemical leak that left 46 in hospital ? http://t.co/I9Xve10TsK http://t.co/eqCqdvL9by #HazMat 1 day ago by acsdchas
Table of Contents (15 articles)
INVENTORY OF NANOTECH PRODUCTS GETTING REVAMPED
Tags: us_VA, industrial, discovery, environmental, nanotech
TANK CAR TRAVAILS
Tags: transportation, follow-up, response, ethanol, petroleum
ROYAL SOCIETY TO CENTRALIZE FREE CHEMICAL KNOWLEDGE
Tags: laboratory, discovery, environmental
CHEMICAL RISKS: THE PERCEPTION PUZZLE
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
VIDEO REPORT: NORTH BRUNSWICK FITNESS CENTER EVACUATED, HIGH CHLORINE LEVELS REPORTED
Tags: us_NJ, public, release, injury, chlorine
FIRE DOUSED IN PETRO CHEMICAL COMPLEX
Tags: India, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
AUTHORITIES RELEASE NAME OF VICTIM, ID CAUSE OF EXPLOSION
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, follow-up, death, other_chemical
SIX JAILED OVER CHEMICAL LEAK THAT LEFT 46 IN HOSPITAL-EASTDAY
Tags: China, public, follow-up, injury, petroleum, toxics
CHEMICAL SPILL IN PHARMACY CLOSES BELFAST HANNAFORD
Tags: us_ME, public, release, injury, phenol
FINES PROPOSED FOR FERTILIZER TRAGEDY
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, death, ammonium_nitrate
CHLORINE GAS RELEASED AT CLIFTON WATER
Tags: us_CO, industrial, release, response, chlorine, gas_cylinders
BEAR SPRAY EMPTIES DOWNTOWN ANCHORAGE MALL
Tags: us_AK, public, release, injury, repellent
CHEMICAL HAZARD MAPS RELEASED ONLINE
Tags: us_TX, public, follow-up, environmental
NO INJURIES IN FIRE AT OKLAHOMA CHEMICAL PLANT
Tags: us_OK, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
OSHA FINES WEST FERTILIZER FOR HANDLING, STORAGE OF CHEMICALS
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, response, ammonium_nitrate
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INVENTORY OF NANOTECH PRODUCTS GETTING REVAMPED
http://cen.acs.org/articles/91/i41/Inventory-Nanotech-Products-Getting-Revamped.html
Tags: us_VA, industrial, discovery, environmental, nanotech
One of the most cited inventories of nanotechnology-based consumer products is getting an overhaul. The database is the Consumer Product Inventory hosted by the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Containing information about more than 1,000 manufacturer-identified nanotech products, it has not been updated since 2011, when funding for the project lapsed. ?It will have a completely new look and a lot more features,? says Todd Kuiken, senior program associate with the Wilson Center?s Science & Technology Innovation Program. Researchers at Virginia Tech?s Institute for Critical Technology & Applied Science (ICTAS) are providing funding and some of the data for the upgrade, Kuiken says. The team of researchers, led by Matthew Hull, a program manager of research for the nano-bio interface and nanoscale science and engineering at ICTAS, is generating scientific information related to the environmental impacts of na!
notech-based products throughout their life cycle. Data from that research, including potential exposure pathways, will be incorporated into the product inventory. Other experts will also be able to submit data to the inventory via an online log-in feature.
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TANK CAR TRAVAILS
http://cen.acs.org/articles/91/i41/Tank-Car-Travails.html
Tags: transportation, follow-up, response, ethanol, petroleum
The horrific train accident that occurred in Quebec in July has prompted the U.S. Department of Transportation?s Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to take the first step toward boosting safety standards for newly built railroad tank cars and the thousands of older cars currently in use. Special focus is on upgrading the cars so that they are less prone to rupture during a derailment, federal regulators say.
The agency is considering a plan to fix a design defect in the so-called DOT-111 tank car, a stainless steel model used throughout North America to haul a variety of hazardous and nonhazardous materials, including crude oil and ethanol. Of the 310,000 tank cars in the U.S. fleet, 240,000 are DOT-111s. Each car carries up to 30,000 gal of liquid.
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ROYAL SOCIETY TO CENTRALIZE FREE CHEMICAL KNOWLEDGE
http://cen.acs.org/articles/91/i41/Royal-Society-Centralize-Free-Chemical.html
Tags: laboratory, discovery, environmental
The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is creating a repository of open-access chemistry publications and data, it announced last week. Initially, the database will include open-access articles published by RSC. But the society plans to add chemistry-related papers, theses, data, and models from institutional repositories and other publishers. ?With this new service, we are improving our ability to ensure that the outputs from research activity are made as widely available as possible,? says David James, RSC executive director of strategic innovation. The society intends to make the article repository available at the end of October. The initiative is being welcomed by some chemists, who say there is value in having knowledge resources related to the chemical sciences in one place. ?Something like this is absolutely necessary,? says Peter Murray-Rust, a molecular informatics researcher and professor at Cambridge University. ?Chemistry is 20 years behind biosciences, and it has!
n?t been making progress? in developing a communal collection of knowledge resources, Murray-Rust says.
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CHEMICAL RISKS: THE PERCEPTION PUZZLE
http://cen.acs.org/articles/91/i41/Perception-Puzzle.html
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
In years to come, researchers are expected to tease out an increasingly detailed understanding of whether, how, and when exposure to specific chemicals can cause harm to humans or the environment. This expected onslaught of new scientific data could change the minds of people who view at least some products of the chemical industry as dangerous and to be avoided, say experts on how humans perceive risk.
Or it might not, they add. Human cognition ?will take the facts and turn them into how we choose to feel about them, not some mythical objective, factual, everyone-agrees-on-it truth,? says David Ropeik, a consultant on risk perception and author of two books on the topic.
Research demonstrates that information suggesting something can harm us carries more weight in the human mind than information suggesting a thing or activity is good for us, says Paul Slovic, a professor of psychology at the University of Oregon who studies risk analysis and is also president of Decision Research, a nonprofit research organization. A series of experiments by psychologist Daniel Kahneman, a Nobel Laureate in Economics, and Amos Tversky in the 1970s and ?80s showed how people make judgments under conditions of uncertainty. They demonstrated that people strongly prefer to avoid losses over acquiring gains (Amer. Psychol.1984,39, 341).
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VIDEO REPORT: NORTH BRUNSWICK FITNESS CENTER EVACUATED, HIGH CHLORINE LEVELS REPORTED
http://www.mycentraljersey.com/article/20131013/NJNEWS/310130016/VIDEO-REPORT-North-Brunswick-fitness-center-evacuated-high-chlorine-levels-reported?nclick_check=1
Tags: us_NJ, public, release, injury, chlorine
NORTH BRUNSWICK ? Members of the LA Fitness in the township were told to leave the building on Sunday morning after high levels of chlorine were reported in the pool area.
Several people reportedly were treated for coughing and eye irritation, according to an unidentified first responder at the scene.
Police said a problem with the pool pump and filter was the cause of the high chlorination incident, and the facility was expected to reopen after the pool company repaired the problem.
---------------------------------------------
FIRE DOUSED IN PETRO CHEMICAL COMPLEX
http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/fire-doused-in-petro-chemical-complex-113101300388_1.html
Tags: India, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
The fire that engulfed the thermal heat chamber of Dhansiri petro chemicals in East Midnapore district has been doused, fire brigade officials said.
The fire that caught the heat chamber early today was doused by fire tenders, they said.
The district superintendent of police S Jain confirmed there was no no report of any damage of life and property.
The exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.
Production in the Dhansiri petro chemicals which was stopped will resume soon, officials said.
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AUTHORITIES RELEASE NAME OF VICTIM, ID CAUSE OF EXPLOSION
http://peabody.patch.com/groups/police-and-fire/p/authorities-release-name-of-victim-id-cause-of-explosion
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, follow-up, death, other_chemical
The investigation into that fatal lab explosion at Dow Chemical in North Andover has determined the cause of the explosion, and the identity of the victim has been released.
Carlos Amaral, 51, of Peabody, died from injuries sustained in the explosion Wednesday. He was an employee of the company and the only person in the lab when it exploded.
State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan and North Andover Fire Chief Andrew Melnikas announced Friday that the cause of the explosion was exposure of Trimethylindium, a pyrophoric chemical, to the air.
"Either there was a malfunction of the container or human error," Melnikas said.
The investigation was carried out by the North Andover Fire Department, North Andover Police detectives, State Police and the Fire Marshall's office.
At just before noon Wednesday, police received an alert of an explosion at the plant. Firefighters and EMTs rushed to the scene, where they found one employee, Amaral, covered in severe burns.
Amaral was Medflighted to Boston, where he later died from his injuries.
The explosion is also being independently investigated by OSHA, because of the workplace death that resulted from it.
According to the Fire Marshall's office, Dow did not need a permit from the North Andover Fire Department to conduct its activities. But new safety regulations created by the state Board of Fire Prevention -- implemented as a result of several chemical explosions in Massachusetts -- will take effect in January.
"I believe the chemical process safety regulations being phased in will provide better communication and coordination with the fire service and lead to improved fire safety for workers and communities," Coan said.
---------------------------------------------
SIX JAILED OVER CHEMICAL LEAK THAT LEFT 46 IN HOSPITAL-EASTDAY
http://english.eastday.com/e/131010/u1a7703837.html
Tags: China, public, follow-up, injury, petroleum, toxics
SIX men found guilty of causing a toxic chemical leak which led to 46 people being admitted to hospital were jailed yesterday.
More than 52 tons of petrochemical C9 leaked into Jueshigang Creek, in Jinshan District, due to a faulty valve on January 10.
This severely polluted the creek and the Huangpu River, tainting some tap water supplies.
Yesterday at Jinshan District People?s Court, Wang Jinlong, legal representative of Nanjing Dragon and Phoenix Chemical Co was jailed for five years for causing an accident involving dangerous goods.
The court said Wang had asked to unload the toxic chemical at a dock that was not qualified for loading dangerous goods.
Other figures involved in the accident received shorter sentences for the same charge.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL SPILL IN PHARMACY CLOSES BELFAST HANNAFORD
http://www.penbaypilot.com/article/chemical-spill-pharmacy-closes-belfast-hannaford/22164
Tags: us_ME, public, release, injury, phenol
BELFAST - A chemical spill at Hannaford supermarket in Belfast sent three employees to the hospital and kept portions of the store closed from Thursday afternoon through late Friday morning.
In a statement Friday, Hannaford Supermarkets said a compounding agent was accidentally spilled in the pharmacy during an inventory process. A representative of the company later clarified that the chemical was phenol, which he described as being used to make medicated cream.
Belfast Fire and Rescue Department responded to the spill at 3:45 p.m. Thursday and notified state Department of Environmental Protection, according to the statement. Additionally three Hannaford employees who work in the pharmacy and were in the immediate area of the spill on Thursday were taken to Waldo County Hospital and released later the same day.
The Pharmacy was closed for the remainder of the day on Thursday. The supermarket and pharmacy were closed on Friday until 11 a.m. to monitor clean-up and ensure air quality. MDEP was on-site Friday morning to determine that there were no health or safety issues requiring follow-up.
Speaking on Friday afternoon, Peter Blanchard, MDEP director of emergency services said roughly a half-liter of an aqueous phenol solution was spilled. Phenol vapors can irritate the eyes and respiratory tract, contact can irritate the skin.
Blanchard said the material was removed from the site and properly disposed of.
---------------------------------------------
FINES PROPOSED FOR FERTILIZER TRAGEDY
http://cen.acs.org/articles/91/web/2013/10/Fines-Proposed-Fertilizer-Tragedy.html
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, death, ammonium_nitrate
The Occupational Safety & Health Administration has cited a West, Texas, fertilizer company with 24 safety violations springing from an April 17 explosion that killed 15 people and flattened much of the town.
Adair Grain Inc., the owner of West Fertilizer Co., could face fines up to $118,300 under the law. The fertilizer firm is a retail agricultural supply store and warehouse, similar to 6,000 other firms spread throughout U.S. farm communities (C&EN, April 22, page 8).
The notice of violation was publicly released on Oct. 10 by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), the day after it was issued by OSHA. The violation notice was not made public, Boxer said, because the agency is closed as part of the federal government shutdown.
?So I?m stepping in here so as a result of my telling you these things, another explosion could be prevented,? Boxer said.
Boxer, who is chair of the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee, noted that OSHA calls the violations ?serious.? She added that although the fines as set by law for these safety violations are low, she expects the amounts to grow as other federal and state agencies examining the accident complete their investigations. The company has the option of challenging the violations in court.
According to Boxer, OSHA cited facility operations at West that exposed workers to fire and explosion hazards from ammonium nitrate and to chemical burn and inhalation hazards from anhydrous ammonia storage and servicing. Specifically, the violations involve unsafe handling and storage of anhydrous ammonia and ammonium nitrate, as well as many shortcomings related to labeling and inadequate piping and valves. The violations also involve a lack of worker safety equipment and training. OSHA said the company failed to have an emergency response plan for accidents.
---------------------------------------------
CHLORINE GAS RELEASED AT CLIFTON WATER
http://www.nbc11news.com/localnews/headlines/Hazmat-situation-at-Clifton-Water-227456801.html
Tags: us_CO, industrial, release, response, chlorine, gas_cylinders
CLIFTON, Colo. (KKCO) Clifton Water received a routine shipment of chlorine and when sending back the empty cylinder, a leak of 19 pounds of gas was detected by alarms.
The Hazmat Regional Response Team along with the Clifton Fire Department responded and determined the amount of chlorine released was minimal.
Staff at Clifton Water went through an evacuation drill and used the situation to learn about what to do if the leak was big enough to cause danger.
---------------------------------------------
BEAR SPRAY EMPTIES DOWNTOWN ANCHORAGE MALL
http://www.fortmilltimes.com/2013/10/12/3021135/bear-spray-empties-downtown-anchorage.html
Tags: us_AK, public, release, injury, repellent
ANCHORAGE, Alaska --
Police and fire officials in Anchorage say bear spray was discharged Friday evening at a downtown mall, causing shoppers and workers to head for the exits.
KTUU-TV reports (http://is.gd/m76WgR">http://is.gd/m76WgR ) that hazmat crews were called shortly before 8 p.m. to the 5th Avenue Mall.
Anchorage police say people reported reactions to the powerful spray but no serious injuries were reported.
KTUU says mall officials say the mall shut down an hour early but suffered no serious damage.
The source of the bear spray wasn't immediately known.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL HAZARD MAPS RELEASED ONLINE
http://www.wacotrib.com/news/west_explosion/chemical-hazard-maps-released-online/article_5a6eb48c-f7f8-59bc-b325-942cfae7a1b1.html
Tags: us_TX, public, follow-up, environmental
Local emergency officials Thursday unveiled an interactive online map of hundreds of chemical hazard sites in McLennan County, addressing safety concerns in the wake of the April 17 West Fertilizer Co. blast.
The map is available on the website of the Waco-McLennan County Office of Emergency Management or at http://gis.ci.waco.tx.us/flexviewers/mclnt2facs">http://gis.ci.waco.tx.us/flexviewers/mclnt2facs.
It plots facilities that have to submit Tier II hazardous chemical reports to the state, and it allows users to zoom in and learn the name, phone number and emergency jurisdiction of the facility.
The emergency management office showed off the website at a quarterly meeting of the Local Emergency Planning Committee, which monitors chemical safety and education.
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NO INJURIES IN FIRE AT OKLAHOMA CHEMICAL PLANT
http://romenews-tribune.com/view/full_story/23644163/article-No-injuries-in-fire-at-Oklahoma-chemical-plant
Tags: us_OK, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
THOMAS, Okla. (AP) ? No injuries were reported after a massive fire broke out at a rural Oklahoma chemical plant.
Authorities say several explosions followed the fire late Wednesday at the Danlin Industries plant near Thomas. The plant produces chemicals for the oil and gas industry.
A Danlin official tells Oklahoma City television station KWTV that no one was at the plant when the fire broke out Wednesday night. Fire crews say the blaze is contained and they're letting it burn itself out.
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OSHA FINES WEST FERTILIZER FOR HANDLING, STORAGE OF CHEMICALS
http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2013/10/osha-fines-west-fertilizer-for-handling-storage-of-chemicals.html/?nclick_check=1
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, response, ammonium_nitrate
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is fining the parent company of the West fertilizer plant that exploded $118,300 for 24 workplace violations, including unsafely handling and storing two dangerous chemicals.
West Fertilizer Co.?s stockpile of one of those chemicals, ammonium nitrate, is what fueled the deadly and destructive explosion after a fire broke out after a workday had already ended. State fire authorities have not been able to determine a cause of the fire.
OSHA?s fines and violations were announced Thursday morning by Sen. Barbara Boxer, who chairs the Senate?s environment and public works committee. Boxer, a California Democrat, said OSHA couldn?t publicize the findings itself because of the federal government?s ongoing partial shutdown.
?So I?m stepping in here so as a result of my telling you these things, another explosion could be prevented,? Boxer said.
Boxer said OSHA found that West Fertilizer Co. failed to train and license its forklift operators, didn?t pressure test replacement hoses on chemical tanks, had inadequate relief valves, did not have an emergency response plan and also didn?t have required fire extinguishers.
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