NIEHS Disaster Preparedness App Available for Download

October 21, 2019

The NIEHS/Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) Disaster Preparedness mobile app allows workers exposed to hazards on disaster sites to access a full suite of awareness-level training resources with a simple tap of the screen. From within the app, you can select and download training materials on a variety of disaster types and related topics.

Once downloaded, the materials can be accessed anytime, anywhere—no Internet connection required.

Free Amazon HD 10 Tablet with RCRA and DOT Training

Annual training is required by 40 CFR 262.17(a)(7). Learn how to complete EPA’s new electronic hazardous waste manifest, and the more than 60 changes in EPA’s new Hazardous Waste Generator Improvements Rule. Environmental Resource Center’s Hazardous Waste Training is available at nationwide locations, and via live webcasts. If you plan to also attend DOT hazardous materials training, call 800-537-2372 to find out how can get your course materials on a new Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet at no extra charge.

Dollar Tree Store Cited for Exposing Employees to Safety Hazards

OSHA has cited national discount retailer Dollar Tree Stores Inc. for exposing employees to safety hazards, at its store on Atlanta Highway in Athens, Georgia. The company faces $125,026 in proposed penalties.

OSHA cited the company for exposing employees to struck-by, trip and fall hazards by failing to keep passageways and walking surfaces in a clean, orderly and sanitary condition. OSHA found unsafely stacked cases of merchandise and blocked emergency exits, and cited Dollar Tree for not maintaining access to portable fire extinguishers.

"These hazardous conditions unnecessarily exposed employees to potentially life-threatening injury," said OSHA Area Director William Fulcher, in Atlanta-East. "There is no reason why the employees in this store should have been subjected to the same hazards previously identified and cited at other Dollar Tree locations."

Dollar Tree Stores has a long history of serious and repeated violations related to unsafe stacking of merchandise and blocked exits. Since 2015, OSHA has cited the Chesapeake, Virginia-based company for similar violations at locations in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Wisconsin, Idaho, Texas, New York, and Rhode Island.

OSHA provides web based resources on safe working surfaces and exit route requirements.

Administrative Law Judge Upholds OSHA Citations in Wood Chipper Fatality Case

OSHA willful and serious citations against Tony Watson—doing business as Countryside Tree Service—were affirmed by an administrative law judge with the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. OSHA issued its citations after an employee died after being pulled into a wood chipper on his first day on the job at a Schenectady, New York, worksite. The judge’s decision also orders the employer to pay $66,986 in penalties.

OSHA’s investigation revealed that Watson directed the employee to feed materials into the wood chipper, knowing that he had not trained the employee on how to do so safely.

OSHA cited Watson for five violations of workplace safety standards on November 2, 2016. Watson contested the citations to the OSHRC leading to a trial in October 2017. The judge found that Watson willfully permitted the victim to work with the wood chipper without proper safety training, in spite of Watson’s knowledge of the need for such training.

“The U.S. Department of Labor pursues appropriate legal actions to ensure that employers comply with the law to safeguard their employees against potentially deadly or disabling workplace hazards,” said Regional Solicitor of Labor Jeffrey S. Rogoff.

OSHA’s Albany Area Office conducted the original inspection. Senior Trial Attorney Terrence Duncan from the Department’s Regional Office of the Solicitor in New York litigated the case. View the decision here.

OSHA’s Tree Care Industry webpage offers resources on recognizing and preventing tree care hazards, including Hazards of Wood Chippers, and Solutions for Tree Care Hazards.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to help ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

Proposed No Significant Risk Level for p-chloro-α,α,α-trifluorotoluene

California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has proposed to adopt a Proposition 65 No Significant Risk Level (NSRL) of 23 micrograms per day for p-chloro-α,α,α-trifluorotoluene (para-Chlorobenzotrifluoride, PCBTF). Public comments concerning this proposed action must be received by OEHHA by December 2, 2019.

OEHHA also announced the release for public comment of a draft document that summarizes a cancer inhalation unit risk factor (IUR) for p-chloro-α,α,α-trifluorotoluene(para-Chlorobenzotrifluoride, PCBTF). IURs are used in the Air Toxics Hot Spots Program to estimate lifetime cancer risks associated with inhalation exposure to a carcinogen. The public comment period for these IURs will end December 2, 2019.

The PCBTF cancer inhalation IUR and slope factor values are as follows: