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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, October 5, 2018 at 7:30:55 AM
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
All article summaries and tags are archived at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas
Table of Contents (13 articles)
EMERGENCY CREWS ON SCENE OF LEAKING OIL TANK ON WALMORE ROAD
Tags: us_NY, public, release, response, propane
RISK-BASED CHEMICALS MANAGEMENT APPROACH PROMOTED IN NEW NAFTA
Tags: Canada, public, discovery, environmental
ACS AXIAL: YOUR BOND WITH CHEMISTRY RESEARCH
Tags: laboratory, discovery, environmental
THE LATEST: 19 SICKENED BY CHEMICALS AT CALIFORNIA POOL
Tags: us_CA, public, release, injury, chlorine
CHEMICAL SPILL SHUTS DOWN CAPITAL BLVD THROUGH WAKE FOREST
Tags: us_NC, transportation, release, response, cleaners
UPDATE: CHEMICAL SPILL IN UPS TRUCK WAS ETHANOL
Tags: us_CA, transportation, release, injury, ethanol
NO INJURIES IN SMALL WOOD SHOP FIRE AT NEBRASKA PRISON
Tags: us_NE, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
DEQ USING DRONE TO HELP FIND SOURCE OF PFAS IN LAKE MARGRETHE
Tags: us_MI, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
CHEMICAL TANK CATCHES FIRE, PROMPTS 7-COMPANY RESPONSE NEAR NEWPORT
Tags: us_DE, industrial, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical
OSHA: DEFERRED MAINTENANCE, SKIPPED PROCEDURES LED TO REFINERY EXPLOSION
Tags: us_WI, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
E-CIGARETTE EXPLOSION AND BURN INJURIES HAVE BEEN UNDERESTIMATED BY FEDERAL AGENCIES
Tags: public, explosion, injury, batteries
PROTECTION OF CONFIDENTIAL DATA IS ESSENTIAL, GROUPS TELL U.S. EPA•ČŔ
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH & SAFETY
Tags: us_DE, laboratory, explosion, response, solvent, waste
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EMERGENCY CREWS ON SCENE OF LEAKING OIL TANK ON WALMORE ROAD
http://www.niagara-gazette.com/news/local_news/emergency-crews-on-scene-of-leaking-oil-tank-on-walmore/article_6bf64f38-c7dc-11e8-b3b7-b3850f97ee85.html
Tags: us_NY, public, release, response, propane
Emergency crews are on the scene of a leaking propane tank at a gas station at 5446 Walmore Road in Lewiston.
Walmore Road has been closed to traffic and there are reports that students and staff at nearby Tuscarora Elementary School have been evacuated.
A hazmat crew has been called to the scene to deal with the leaking 18,000-gallon tank.
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RISK-BASED CHEMICALS MANAGEMENT APPROACH PROMOTED IN NEW NAFTA
https://chemicalwatch.com/70773/risk-based-chemicals-management-approach-promoted-in-new-nafta
Tags: Canada, public, discovery, environmental
After more than a year of intense negotiations, the US, Canada and Mexico have reached an agreement on an updated North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) that promotes a risk-based approach to chemical regulations for the region.
The revised trade pact, known as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), includes a sectoral annex for chemical substances that emphasises the importance of developing and implementing chemical regulations in a manner that achieves protection of human health and the environment without creating unnecessary economic barriers or impediments to technological innovation.
The agreement calls on each country to endeavour to use a risk-based approach to regulating chemical substances and mixtures, and to encourage such a model in international forums. It further directs the countries to align their respective risk assessment methodologies and risk management measures to the extent possible within their respective legal frameworks.
Additional areas of potential cooperation between the pact members include:
implementation of the United Nations Globally Harmonized System for Classification and Labelling of Chemical (GHS);
coordination of safety data sheets and how confidential business information (CBI) is relayed on them; and
compatibility of chemical inventories;
coordination on chemical risk assessment and risk management methodologies, tools, and models, and on the development of specific chemical assessments; and
scientific criteria and data sharing.
---------------------------------------------
ACS AXIAL: YOUR BOND WITH CHEMISTRY RESEARCH
http://axial.acs.org/2018/09/14/3-reasons-to-share-your-sop/
Tags: laboratory, discovery, environmental
Everyone knows lab safety is essential. Yet accidents continue to happen. Why are lab accidents still a problem in 2018? In part, the problem may lie with chemists being reluctant to share safe Standard Operating Procedures, according to a new editorial in Organometallics. Alexander J. M. Miller and Ian A. Tonks argue that while organizations like ACS have worked to set standards and spread information, creating a culture of lab safety requires a grassroots commitment from chemists to share their experiences in the lab to keep each other safe. The pair discusses their efforts to encourage SOP sharing through their new website, The Safety Net. The site also shares other safety resources, such as laboratory signage, links to synthetic procedures that address prior safety concerns, and links to collections of physical properties of potentially hazardous chemicals, with the overall goal of creating a public forum for dialogue on best safety practices.
Learn why your lab should consider sharing its Standard Operating Procedures
---------------------------------------------
THE LATEST: 19 SICKENED BY CHEMICALS AT CALIFORNIA POOL
http://www.startribune.com/the-latest-19-sickened-by-chemicals-at-california-pool/495120221/
Tags: us_CA, public, release, injury, chlorine
Authorities now say 19 people, many of them children, were sickened by exposure to a chemical at a Southern California swimming pool. But their problems are non-life-threatening.
The Ventura County Fire Department says the people were overcome by fumes Wednesday evening at Daland Swim School in Thousand Oaks, north of Los Angeles. Some reported having trouble breathing.
A dozen people were taken to hospitals, including several who at first were described as being in a critical state.
However, sheriff's officials say all are expected to recover.
The Los Angeles Times says authorities believe an equipment malfunction began pumping extra chlorine into the pool.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL SPILL SHUTS DOWN CAPITAL BLVD THROUGH WAKE FOREST
https://abc11.com/traffic/chemical-spill-shuts-down-capital-blvd-through-wake-forest/4406187/
Tags: us_NC, transportation, release, response, cleaners
WAKE FOREST, N.C. (WTVD) -- Capital Boulevard was shut down Wednesday night for hours from Purnell Road to Stadium Drive because of a possible hazardous chemical leak from a tractor trailer.
The big rig was driving eastbound on Purnell Road when it began leaking what was later described as a "type of cleaning product."
The truck left a trail of the fluid from Purnell Road onto Capital Boulevard where it headed southbound. The driver pulled the truck over at Capital Boulevard and Club Villas, where Wake Forest Police and Fire along with a Wake County HazMat team responded.
---------------------------------------------
UPDATE: CHEMICAL SPILL IN UPS TRUCK WAS ETHANOL
https://www.almanacnews.com/news/2018/10/03/update-chemical-spill-in-ups-truck-was-ethanol
Tags: us_CA, transportation, release, injury, ethanol
The toxic-substance spill at the center of a hazardous-materials incident involving a UPS delivery truck on Bohannon Drive in Menlo Park on Tuesday (Oct. 2) was ethanol, not benzonitril, a cyanide-related chemical originally thought to have leaked from a package in the truck.
A battalion chief from the Menlo Park Fire Protection District, after determining that the spill was contained inside the truck, allowed UPS officials on the scene to call in a clean-up crew under contract to UPS, according to fire district Chief Harold Schapelhouman.
The private clean-up crew, in protective suits, made a video recording of the truck's interior that showed a leak coming from a gallon-sized container of ethanol, Schapelhouman said in a press statement.
The incident began with the UPS driver, a 41-year-old man, calling 911 at 10:24 a.m. to report difficulty breathing and requesting medical assistance, Schapelhouman said. The driver also called UPS management, and representatives of the company arrived simultaneously with paramedics from the fire district, Schapelhouman said.
---------------------------------------------
NO INJURIES IN SMALL WOOD SHOP FIRE AT NEBRASKA PRISON
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/nebraska/articles/2018-10-02/no-injuries-in-small-wood-shop-fire-at-nebraska-prison
Tags: us_NE, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
TECUMSEH, Neb. (AP) ‰?? Nebraska prison officials say a chemical spill ignited a small fire in a closet at the state prison in Tecumseh.
The Lincoln Journal Star reports that no one was injured in the fire that started Tuesday inside the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution's wood shop.
A news release from the State Department of Correctional Services say the chemical ‰?? which was not identified ‰?? spilled on the floor, and rags meant to clean up the spill spontaneously combusted. Department spokeswoman Laura Strimple says the wood shop was evacuated, and ceiling sprinklers extinguished the fire.
---------------------------------------------
DEQ USING DRONE TO HELP FIND SOURCE OF PFAS IN LAKE MARGRETHE
https://upnorthlive.com/news/local/deq-using-drone-to-help-find-source-of-pfas-in-lake-margrethe
Tags: us_MI, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
CRAWFORD COUNTY, Mich. (WPBN/WGTU) -- The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality is starting to use drones to help find the source of potentially dangerous chemicals in Lake Margrethe.
The drone flights are part of a broader effort to find PFAS chemicals in different locations around the state. The drone that experts are using is rigged with an infrared camera, so in addition to having a bird's eye view of the lake, it can pick up heat signatures.
‰??We‰??re looking for either springs or groundwater seeps where the water actually enters the bottom of the lake," said Randy Rothe from the DEQ.
Images captured by the drone show much cooler ground water flowing into the lake. Those sources of ground water are where experts want to test and possibly trace back to a source of PFAS.
A possible source nearby is the Camp Grayling Airfield. One of the main uses of the man-made chemical was in foam used to put out fires.
‰??It could be from more than one source," Rothe said. "We don‰??t know that it‰??s coming from Camp Grayling. They have areas that they are going to be looking at on base itself for that information. We‰??ve had reports of houses that burned down many years ago where they have used foams. That could potentially be a source.‰??
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL TANK CATCHES FIRE, PROMPTS 7-COMPANY RESPONSE NEAR NEWPORT
https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/2018/10/02/structure-fire-near-newport-industrial-park-prompts-7-company-response/1504772002/
Tags: us_DE, industrial, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical
Fire departments across New Castle County responded to a Newport commercial structure fire, where responding crews were hospitalized a decade ago Tuesday evening.
Crews responded at 6:40 p.m. to the 300 block of Water Street for a reported fire. Chief Joseph Dierolf of Minquas Fire Company said a separating chemical tank blew its top off and caught fire.
Firefighters from several area companies work at the scene of a fire at Air Liquide in the Newport Industrial Park Tuesday. WILLIAM
Dierolf asked employees before sending in the crews if there were any chemicals he should be aware of, because of the buildings previous fire more than 10 years ago. A handful firefighters headed into the building, only to head to the hospital, feeling sick from chemical exposure last time they responded to Water Street.
The employees told firefighters they can use water, without worry that it will react to the chemicals, Dierolf said.
Emergency lights flashed on Newport‰??s industrial park and commands flowed over the scanner as more than 50 firefighters from seven companies attacked the fire.
Firefighters donned in full gear entered the manufacturing building. A call went out over the scanner to make sure the crews inside were wearing oxygen-supply masks as a precaution, Dierolf said.
---------------------------------------------
OSHA: DEFERRED MAINTENANCE, SKIPPED PROCEDURES LED TO REFINERY EXPLOSION
http://www.grandforksherald.com/news/accidents/4507652-osha-deferred-maintenance-skipped-procedures-led-refinery-explosion
Tags: us_WI, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
SUPERIOR, Wis.‰??The Occupational Safety and Health Administration said the Husky Energy refinery explosion and fire on April 26 that rocked the Duluth-Superior area could have been prevented if the company had maintained its equipment and established safety procedures.
OSHA delivered eight "serious" citations and $83,000 of fines on Tuesday, Oct. 2, to Superior Refining Company LLC, which owns and operates the Superior refinery but does business as Husky Energy.
In a news release, OSHA said the citations were issued "for failing to control the use and release of highly hazardous chemicals after an explosion and fire injured several employees" and that the explosion and fire could have been avoided.
"Ensuring the mechanical integrity of critical equipment used during the refinery shutdown operation could have prevented this incident," said OSHA Eau Claire Area Office Director Mark Hysell in the release, adding that the company was cooperating fully with investigators.
The company has 15 days to contest the citations and fines.
OSHA's citations detail the company's a lack of safety procedures for the fluid catalytic cracking unit, or FCC, where the explosion occurred.
---------------------------------------------
E-CIGARETTE EXPLOSION AND BURN INJURIES HAVE BEEN UNDERESTIMATED BY FEDERAL AGENCIES
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-10-e-cigarette-explosion-injuries-underestimated-federal.html
Tags: public, explosion, injury, batteries
Electronic cigarettes (or e-cigarettes) are devices commonly powered by a battery that aerosolize liquid and chemical flavorants. These products have become popular among people of all ages, especially youth. Some users may think of e-cigarettes as a safe alternative to traditional cigarettes. However, according to the CDC, the aerosol that e-cigarette consumers breathe in and exhale includes addictive as well as harmful substances such as nicotine, ultrafine particles, chemical flavorants linked to serious lung disease, volatile organic compounds, heavy metals, and cancer causing agents. In addition, e-cigarettes powered by lithium-ion batteries have been documented to ignite and/or explode. These explosions have resulted in severe injuries, including third degree burns, lacerations, loss of body parts (including eye, tongue, and teeth), and death.
The number of e-cigarette explosion and burn injuries have been underestimated by Federal Agencies, according to a new George Mason University study. These injuries were thought to occur rarely, however there is no national surveillance system to monitor e-cigarette caused explosion and burn injuries.
A new report published in Tobacco Control found that there are far more e-cigarette explosion and burn injuries in the United States than estimated in past reports. This study led by Dr. Matthew Rossheim in Mason's Department of Global and Community Health used data from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and found an estimated 2,035 emergency department visits from e-cigarette explosion and burn injuries from 2015 to 2017. This number, in all likelihood, is an underestimate of total injuries since not all injured people report to emergency departments.
The report calls for improved surveillance of e-cigarette injuries and better regulation of the products by the Food and Drug Administration's Center for Tobacco Products. In the meantime, users and bystanders risk serious bodily injury from unregulated e-cigarette batteries exploding.
---------------------------------------------
PROTECTION OF CONFIDENTIAL DATA IS ESSENTIAL, GROUPS TELL U.S. EPA•ČŔ
https://cen.acs.org/policy/regulation/Protection-confidential-data-essential-groups/96/i40
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
Controversy churns around a proposal that would restrict the scientific information the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency relies on for regulations. Industry generally endorses the plan, while health and environmental advocates are attacking it. Yet these opposing factions, along with scientific groups, state regulators, and the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering & Medicine, agree on one point: They want EPA to continue using at least some types of confidential information without requiring public disclosure of raw data.
EPA‰??s proposal, released in April, would require the agency to use only data and scientific models that ‰??are publicly available in a manner sufficient for independent validation.‰?? This, the agency says, will increase transparency and boost public confidence in EPA‰??s decisions. If finalized, the plan will impact the agency‰??s health-based decisions on air, water, and soil pollution, as well as its safety evaluations of commercial chemicals and pesticides.
The agency received nearly 500,000 written comments on the proposal, an EPA spokesperson tells C&EN. Posted online, a quick glance through the comments shows they are mostly one or two sentences from individuals, often in identical wording, expressing simple support or opposition to the plan and are the results of advocacy group campaigns, as noted in the official docket of comments. The agency also received scores of responses offering detailed criticism or recommendations for changing the proposal.
---------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH & SAFETY
http://www1.udel.edu/ehs/research/chemical/waste-container-explosion.html
Tags: us_DE, laboratory, explosion, response, solvent, waste
DEHS responded to two unrelated chemical waste container explosions in laboratory settings. In both cases, incompatible materials were incorrectly added to waste containers. Over time, the waste containers developed pressure causing them to rupture with extreme force. One of the waste containers exploded underneath a fume hood and damaged containers of organic solvents that were stored nearby. The other container exploded in a fume hood. Chemicals and broken glass were blown throughout the laboratory in both cases and required specialized clean-up procedures at a cost of ~$2000.00 each. Although there was great potential for injury in both cases, no one was injured in either, therefore classifying these as near miss accidents.
It is imperative that all chemical waste containers are accurately labeled and properly stored to eliminate mixing of incompatible wastes. All laboratory staff must be trained in chemical waste management and thoroughly understand the waste streams generated from their experiments.
Liquid chemical waste should be stored in sealed plastic "LDPE Nalgene Carboys" or plastic coated glass containers in secondary containment bins. DEHS no longer recommends reusing glass reagent chemical bottles. For more information and training opportunities, please visit our web site at http://www.udel.edu/ehs">http://www.udel.edu/ehs or contact the Chemical Hygiene Officer at 831-8475. In the event of a laboratory emergency or if incompatible materials are mistakenly added to a waste container, immediately contact DEHS at x8475 or University Police at 911 after hours.
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