From: "Secretary, ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety" <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety tweets and headlines (8 articles)
Date: Mon, 26 Aug 2013 07:51:12 -0400
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: A21F7C4E-20B0-49CE-9788-137BBCA70E05**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Monday, August 26, 2013 7:47:26 AM

A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
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acsdchas C&EN Safety Zone Blog: Thursday chemical safety round up http://t.co/kdUGx2OUQu

acsdchas RT **At_Symbol_Here**USDOL: #OSHA announces proposed rule to lower worker exposure to respirable #CrystallineSilica. Learn more at: http://t.co/8mQ5f8ctfx 14 hours ago reply reply all retweet fwd

acsdchas C&EN Safety Zone: Attorneys will argue on three motions on Monday in case against Patrick Harran http://t.co/YY3LOAlUiE

acsdchas Here's how injury rates differ for workers on evening and night shifts. Our recent study here http://t.co/mproG5N80F http://t.co/UQ9R7Rdie5

acsdchas C&EN: Study Finds High Methane Losses From Fracking http://t.co/hEMQPGXoC9

acsdchas RT **At_Symbol_Here**ChemistryWorld: Greener flares replace toxic perchlorates with cheap nitrogen rich tetrazole http://t.co/hjKyX52sEh 14 hours ago reply reply all retweet fwd

acsdchas UL white paper on improving health and safety in healthcare outlines the steps necessary to develop a safety culture. http://t.co/mJNw0gNo3b

acsdchas J Chem Ed: Green Chemistry Courses at a Liberal Arts College Increase Awareness http://t.co/sOs3CDxcMV http://t.co/CmEg2OExaj

acsdchas JOEN: Nanoparticle Filtration Performance of Filtering Facepiece Respirators and Canister/cartridge Filters http://t.co/8WgfYgISuc

acsdchas Hwy transportation incidents are the leading cause of US occupational fatalities; workers 65 & older at highest risk. http://t.co/d3rvRtBbkM

labsustain RT **At_Symbol_Here**sustainableprof: How green is your event? Learn best practices for sustainable event management http://t.co/DgbSOjpv9B #sustainableprof 11 hours ago reply reply all retweet fwd

acsdchas NIOSH Program: Prevention through Design : Publications http://t.co/CyTqj1O5KO [http://t.co/bMzfhfj7OC]

labsustain ES&T: Long-Term Trends in Motor Vehicle Emissions in U.S. Urban Areas http://t.co/k0SAk4egqV http://t.co/dQGcnbszdh

acsdchas The energy wasted by the US economy (61%) could power the UK for 7 years: http://t.co/fBfYMVFzwN HT **At_Symbol_Here**opower http://t.co/BsSk2YLdj8 14 hours ago reply reply all retweet fwd

Table of Contents (8 articles)

OFFICIALS: GAS RELEASE CONTAINED WITH NO OFF-SITE IMPACT
Tags: us_LA, industrial, release, response, sulfur_dioxide

CHEMICAL EXPLOSION INJURES WISCONSIN MAN
Tags: us_MI, public, explosion, injury, other_chemical

CHEMICAL SPILL SENDS TWO WORKERS TO HOSPITAL
Tags: us_WV, industrial, release, injury, nitric_acid

AFTER WEST DISASTER, NEWS STUDY FINDS U.S. CHEMICAL SAFETY DATA WRONG ABOUT 90 PERCENT
Tags: us_TX, public, discovery, environmental

NEW OSHA RULES WOULD CUT SILICA DUST EXPOSURE
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental, silica

LACQUER SPILL CREATES HAZMAT SITUATION AT ESSEX FACTORY
Tags: us_MD, transportation, release, response, paints

DRUM OF DEPLETED URANIUM FOUND AT FLORIDA AIRPORT
Tags: us_FL, public, discovery, response, radiation, uranium

ATTORNEYS WILL ARGUE ON THREE MOTIONS ON MONDAY IN CASE AGAINST PATRICK HARRAN
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, follow-up, response, illegal


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OFFICIALS: GAS RELEASE CONTAINED WITH NO OFF-SITE IMPACT
http://ebrnorth.wafb.com/news/news/77761-officials-gas-release-contained-no-site-impact
Tags: us_LA, industrial, release, response, sulfur_dioxide

BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB)- The Department of Environmental Quality said there was a gas release Friday morning from one of the chemical plants in Baton Rouge, but it was contained shortly after.
....
A DEQ spokesperson said sulfur dioxide and sulfur trioxide leaked from a damaged converter that had to be shut down. A shelter in place order was briefly issued inside the plant, but no injuries were reported.

Officials at Solvay Rodia said the situation was minor and never posed a threat to the public.

"We have a very good safety program in place, this was a minor leak on an exchanger," said Daniel Tate, site manager. "It's just an SO3 cloud that's very visible, so we just wanted to take every precaution we could alerting the agencies early to make sure and we brought it under control very quickly."

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CHEMICAL EXPLOSION INJURES WISCONSIN MAN
http://abc10up.com/chemical-explosion-injures-wisconsin-man/
Tags: us_MI, public, explosion, injury, other_chemical

One man was taken to the hospital after injuries after a chemical explosion in Marquette County.

Troopers from the Negaunee Post of the Michigan State Police say sixty-year-old John Groschopf from Bristol, Wisconsin, was mixing a chemical product called Tannerite together when it exploded in his hands.

Groschopf and two teenagers were target shooting in a gravel pit near Chief Lake in Republic Township Saturday afternoon when the explosion occurred.

Police say Groschopf was mixing the chemicals when they exploded, causing serious injuries to his hands and torso. One teenager received injuries to his ears due to the loud blast; the other teenager was wearing ear protection and not injured.

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CHEMICAL SPILL SENDS TWO WORKERS TO HOSPITAL
http://www.wsaz.com/news/charlestonnews/headlines/Chemical-Spill-Sends-Two-Workers-to-Hospital-220949231.html
Tags: us_WV, industrial, release, injury, nitric_acid

INSTITUTE, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- Two workers were taken to the hospital after a chemical spill.

It happened just before 3:00 p.m. Saturday at Catalyst Refinery.

Emergency responders say the company lost 75 gallons of nitric acid when an accident happened inside the production area. It's unclear at this time exactly what caused it.

Two workers were taken to the hospital; one suffered burns and the other was having breathing issues.

The Institute Fire Department responded as a precaution, but the company was able to handle everything internally.

There is no evidence of acid outside the building.

The company is in the process of neutralizing the acid to make it safe inside.

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AFTER WEST DISASTER, NEWS STUDY FINDS U.S. CHEMICAL SAFETY DATA WRONG ABOUT 90 PERCENT
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/west-explosion/headlines/20130824-after-west-disaster-news-study-finds-u.s.-chemical-safety-data-wrong-about-90-percent.ece
Tags: us_TX, public, discovery, environmental

Even the best national data on chemical accidents is wrong nine times out of 10.
A Dallas Morning News analysis of more than 750,000 federal records found pervasive inaccuracies and holes in data on chemical accidents, such as the one in West that killed 15 people and injured more than 300.
In fact, no one at any level of government knows how often serious chemical accidents occur each year in the United States. And there is no plan in place for federal agencies to gather more accurate information.
As a result, the kind of data sharing ordered by President Barack Obama in response to West is unlikely to improve the government?s ability to answer even the most basic questions about chemical safety.

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NEW OSHA RULES WOULD CUT SILICA DUST EXPOSURE
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/24/business/new-rules-would-cut-silica-dust-exposure.html?_r=1&
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental, silica

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration proposed long-awaited rules on Friday to limit crystalline silica, a move it said would prevent nearly 700 deaths a year by reducing exposure to these very small particles that can cause lung cancer and other diseases.

OSHA faced heavy pressure from labor leaders, who argued that the current exposure limits, adopted four decades ago, were lax and should be strengthened to prevent silicosis, an irreversible respiratory disease that can be fatal. But business groups lobbied against the proposal, questioning whether it would be feasible to carry out and noting that silicosis deaths were declining.

?Exposure to silica can be deadly, and limiting that exposure is essential,? said David Michaels, the assistant secretary of labor in charge of OSHA. He estimated that the proposed rule would prevent 1,600 new cases of silicosis each year.

Dr. Michaels said the rules ? issued after two and a half years of delay ? would affect 534,000 businesses, 90 percent of them in construction. He said it would cost industry $640 million to comply with the new rules, averaging $1,242 a company ? but he estimated that the total benefits would exceed $4 billion.

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LACQUER SPILL CREATES HAZMAT SITUATION AT ESSEX FACTORY
http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2013/08/23/lacquer-spill-creates-hazmat-situation-at-essex-factory/
Tags: us_MD, transportation, release, response, paints

ESSEX, Md. (WJZ)? A tanker leaked gallons of lacquer at the Crown Cork and Seal building in Essex on Friday afternoon.

It happened just after noon at the factory, located on 8801 Citation Road.

The factory section of the building was evacuated while Maryland Department of Environment and hazmat crews worked to clean up the spill.

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DRUM OF DEPLETED URANIUM FOUND AT FLORIDA AIRPORT
http://www.kxan.com/news/drum-of-depleted-uranium-found-at-florida-airport_42039346
Tags: us_FL, public, discovery, response, radiation, uranium

MIAMI (AP) ? Part of the Opa-locka Executive Airport in South Florida had to be temporarily evacuated after a 55-gallon drum containing depleted uranium was found.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue authorities report that the exposed drum was found Thursday near a dismantled plane at the airport. A hazmat team from Miami International Airport went to the site. Authorities say teams are monitoring for any radiation but only minimal levels have been detected.

Most deplete uranium is a byproduct of the production of enriched uranium, which is commonly used in nuclear reactors and weapons. It has significantly less radiation than natural uranium.

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ATTORNEYS WILL ARGUE ON THREE MOTIONS ON MONDAY IN CASE AGAINST PATRICK HARRAN
http://cenblog.org/the-safety-zone/2013/08/attorneys-will-argue-on-three-motions-on-monday-in-case-against-patrick-harran/
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, follow-up, response, illegal

On Monday, Aug. 26, University of California, Los Angeles, chemistry professor Patrick G. Harran is scheduled to appear in court for a hearing regarding felony charges of violating the state labor code. The charges stem from the death of research assistant Sheharbano (Sheri) Sangji after a 2008 fire in Harran?s lab.

Harran was initially charged in the case on Dec. 29, 2011. Preliminary hearing testimony was heard in November and December, 2012. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench ruled on April 26 that there was sufficient evidence to send the case to trial.

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