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**At_Symbol_Here**ACSDCHAS and **At_Symbol_Here**LabSustain tweets and Chemical Safety Headlines
Links to the headlines below can be found at the http://www.dchas.org/newsflash
cornelllabsafe "Female Enrollment in Cornell?s College of Engineering Reaches Record High"
acsdchas beyond benign: Green Analytical Chemistry Short Course"
acsdchas Widener University recently signed the Green Chemistry Commitment, becoming the 18th institution to sign
cornelllabsafe Nat Acad of Sci: Limited Affordable Low-Volume Manufacturing:Summary of a Workshop (2014)
JChemHealthSafe Jan/Feb issue of **At_Symbol_Here**JChemHealthSafe now available **At_Symbol_Here**sciencedirect 15 hours ago reply reply all retweet fwd
JChemHealthSafe Rebuilding West - An Editorial in pictures in **At_Symbol_Here**JChemHealthSafe
acsdchas US Gov: portable back-up generator, make sure you run it outside to prevent CO poisoning
acsdchas RT **At_Symbol_Here**chemsafetyboard: Rafael Moure-Eraso op-ed: How soon they forget: Regulatory paralysis claims lives
cornelllabsafe Targeted Campaigns Highlight Procurement Services? Sustainability Efforts | Cornell Sustainable Campus
cornelllabsafe Widener University recently signed the Green Chemistry Commitment, becoming the 18th institution to sign
Table of Contents (14 articles)
**At_Symbol_Here**CENMAG CSB REGULATORY OVERHAUL STUMBLES
Tags: industrial, follow-up, response, petroleum
**At_Symbol_Here**CENMAG WALMART AND TARGET TAKE AIM AT HAZARDOUS INGREDIENTS
Tags: public, follow-up, response
**At_Symbol_Here**CENMAG COVER STORY ON OBSCURE CHEMICAL TAINTS WATER SUPPLY
Tags: us_WV, public, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
CALIFORNIA OFFICIALS DESTROY EXPLOSIVE-FILLED HOME
Tags: us_CA, public, explosion, injury, explosives
MAN INJURED IN SCARBOROUGH CHEMICAL EXPLOSION
Tags: Canada, industrial, explosion, injury, other_chemical
COMMENTARY: HOW SOON THEY FORGET: REGULATORY PARALYSIS CLAIMS LIVES, THREATENS SAFETY
Tags: industrial, follow-up, environmental
HAZMAT CREWS CLEAN UP FUEL SPILL IN CANAL
Tags: us_UT, public, release, environmental, diesel, petroleum
SMALL CHEMICAL PLANT FIRE NEAR ALMEDA SHUTS RAILROAD
Tags: us_TX, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
SUSPECTED BACKPACK METH LAB FOUND IN MARIETTA
Tags: us_GA, public, discovery, response, meth_lab
CHEMICAL SPILL BILL MOVES ON TO MORE COMMITTEES
Tags: us_WV, public, follow-up, environmental
POLICE: NEPHEW MAKING METH IN UNSUSPECTING HOMEOWNERS' BASEMENT
Tags: us_MD, public, release, response, meth_lab
MAN CHARRED TO DEATH IN EXPLOSION AT FIREWORK UNIT
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, death, fireworks
CREWS RETURN TO SITE OF ADAIR CO. EXPLOSION
Tags: us_KY, public, explosion, response, natural_gas
15 WORKERS EVACUATED AS A PRECAUTION FROM OUT-OF-CONTROL OIL WELL IN NORTHWESTERN NORTH DAKOTA (2/14/14 7:08 AM)
Tags: us_ND, industrial, release, environmental, petroleum
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**At_Symbol_Here**CENMAG CSB REGULATORY OVERHAUL STUMBLES
Tags: industrial, follow-up, response, petroleum
Over two weeks in late January, the Chemical Safety & Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) released two controversial and lengthy investigation reports on the causes of a pair of tragic petrochemical accidents. At public hearings near the accident sites, the board presented its reviews of the April 2, 2010, explosion and fire that killed seven workers at the Tesoro refinery in Anacortes, Wash., and the Aug. 6, 2012, accident at the Chevron refinery in Richmond, Calif., which sent smoke high into the atmosphere and drove 15,000 residents to seek aid at area hospitals.
CSB?s reports found fundamental flaws in plant management and government regulatory oversight at the petrochemical facilities. As a result, in the reports, CSB staff and board Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso urged sweeping changes in U.S. refinery regulations, including the introduction of a regulatory scheme, a ?safety case approach,? used in other parts of the world.
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**At_Symbol_Here**CENMAG WALMART AND TARGET TAKE AIM AT HAZARDOUS INGREDIENTS
Tags: public, follow-up, response
Megaretailers Walmart and Target announced last fall that they would reduce or eliminate ingredients in household goods that they deem harmful to human health and the environment. The policies, which focus on cleaners and personal care products, were applauded by advocacy groups that are pushing companies to disclose ingredients and apply more stringent safety criteria than required by law.
In the months since the announcements, both companies have gone silent about the policies. Neither Walmart nor Target agreed to speak with C&EN for this story. But interviews with executives and advocates who have worked with the firms on their strategies make it clear that the programs are still works in progress.
Although both retailers devised their approaches to respond to pressure from consumers, that is not the only driver, experts say. ?The retail regulation you are seeing is a direct response to the failure of government to directly regulate those chemicals,? says Martin Wolf, director of product sustainability at Seventh Generation, a consumer goods company that focuses on environmentally friendly products. The proliferation of state chemical laws is another driver.
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**At_Symbol_Here**CENMAG COVER STORY ON OBSCURE CHEMICAL TAINTS WATER SUPPLY
Tags: us_WV, public, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin gave the 300,000 residents of Charleston unwanted and unexpected news on Jan. 9. Their water was tainted with an obscure chemical used in coal processing. He ordered them to stay away from their taps.
?I learned about the water contamination from watching the announcement on TV at about 6 PM,? recalls Juliana Serafin, an assistant professor of chemistry at the University of Charleston. She was worried. She?d taken a shower that afternoon after her regular 4-mile run. Her daughter had drunk a huge cup of hot tea.
But other than a slight black-licorice odor in her laundry room, she says, ?neither of us noticed anything unusual.? This telltale smell, in fact, was reported by many residents earlier in the day and led to officials discovering the contamination.
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CALIFORNIA OFFICIALS DESTROY EXPLOSIVE-FILLED HOME
Tags: us_CA, public, explosion, injury, explosives
Sheriff's deputies in far Northern California on Sunday successfully incinerated a mobile home whose resident had amassed more than 60 pounds of highly volatile explosive material days after evacuating dozens of people living nearby.
The chemicals, gunpowder, primers for firearms cartridges and other materials found in the house in a sparsely populated area of Redding earlier this month made it too unstable for deputies to even walk on the property without risking a blast, Shasta County sheriff's Lt. Dave Kent said.
Sheriff's officials consulted with water and air quality officials before starting the incineration with a remote-ignited flame at midday Sunday, and the fire went off without incident, he said.
"What's left of the residence is still smoldering, so now we are in a cool-off period before officials can render that property safe for other residents to come back," Kent said. "No other homes outside of that property caught fire, so that was very good for us and for the residents."
Authorities had been waiting for the weather to clear before incinerating the home, and Sunday's clear skies provided good conditions. It could be up to 24 hours before authorities can go onto the property to check the area, and once they determine it is safe, evacuees will be let back in, Kent said.
"We're taking every precaution to make sure the property is rendered safe," he said.
The mandatory evacuations around the residence began Feb. 7 and were expanded on Friday, bringing the total to about 46 homes under evacuation orders, Kent said.
Authorities found the combustible material on Feb. 6 after responding to an explosion at the home that took off a man's hand.
The resident, identified as D. Ray East, 63, lost his left hand above the wrist, broke his right elbow and injured his right eye in the blast, Kent said.
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MAN INJURED IN SCARBOROUGH CHEMICAL EXPLOSION
Tags: Canada, industrial, explosion, injury, other_chemical
An explosion at a chemical plant in Scarborough left one person injured Sunday morning.
Toronto fire spokesperson Capt. David Eckerman said an employee of the Digital Specialty Chemicals Ltd. plant called about an explosion at 470 Coronation Dr. near Morningside Ave. and Lawrence Ave. E. around 7:35 a.m.
Upon arrival, firefighters found an employee covered in a black substance with burns to his legs Eckerman said. According to police, the man, believed to be in his mid-40s, also had minor burns on his jaw line.
The man was decontaminated with a mobile shower and rushed to hospital for treatment.
Toronto police said there was concern that the employee had inhaled the chemicals. The man is reportedly conscious and stable, according to police.
The explosion was caused by a chemical called cyclopentadiene, Eckerman said. Police said the chemical affects the respiratory system and can quickly get into the lungs.
While eight people were in the plant at the time, only one injury was reported as of 9 a.m. Eckerman said a TTC shelter bus had been called to provide a warm place for the employees stranded outside.
Fire officials ventilated the place, Eckerman said ? a process which included releasing the chemicals into the atmosphere. As a precautionary measure, fire officials stood about 30 metres from the scene.
The Ontario Fire Marshal has been notified of the incident as well as the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Labour.
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COMMENTARY: HOW SOON THEY FORGET: REGULATORY PARALYSIS CLAIMS LIVES, THREATENS SAFETY
Tags: industrial, follow-up, environmental
Just a few days ago, on Feb. 7, we commemorated the sixth anniversary of the catastrophic combustible sugar dust explosions and fires at the Imperial Sugar refinery in Port Wentworth, which claimed the lives of 14 workers.
Six years have gone by and still we wait for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue tough regulations on combustible dust as the Chemical Safety Board has recommended on several occasions, tragically following these horrible, deadly accidents.
I believe strongly that we need to overcome the paralysis that is preventing the updating and more vigorous enforcement of workplace safety and environmental rules and regulations.
In the last year, two significant industrial disasters have highlighted the importance of regulating chemical hazards in our communities. In April 2013, the small community of West, Texas, became known as ?the town that blew up,? after an ammonium nitrate explosion at a fertilizer plant destroyed much of the town and claimed the lives of 15. More recently, in January 2014, approximately 300,000 residents in West Virginia lost access to clean, potable water after a chemical of poorly understood toxicity leaked from decades-old storage tanks into their water supply.
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HAZMAT CREWS CLEAN UP FUEL SPILL IN CANAL
Tags: us_UT, public, release, environmental, diesel, petroleum
WEST HAVEN, Weber County ? Hazmat crews responded to reports of an oily substance in a canal Saturday morning.
"An individual walking their dog noticed an oily substance in the canal and reported it," Fire Marshal Brandon Thueson, of the Weber Fire District, said in a statement.
Investigators who responded to the scene at 4400 South and 4700 West believe the substance was diesel fuel, and that it came into the canal through the storm drain system.
Crews were able to contain the spill by using "absorbent materials designed to stop the flow of hazardous material," Thueson's statement said.
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SMALL CHEMICAL PLANT FIRE NEAR ALMEDA SHUTS RAILROAD
Tags: us_TX, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
A one-alarm fire was reported at a small DuPont chemical plant in the 12700 block of Almeda Road, near West Orem on Saturday afternoon.
The nearby Union Pacific railroad tracks was briefly shut down due to large-diameter hose being stretched across the tracks to supply water fto irefighters at the scene.
Houston fire officials report that there were no injuries, evacuations or shelter-in-place orders needed.
It was not known exactly what sparked the fire at the DuPont Chemical and Manufacturing outfit.
DuPont public affairs representative Nate Pepper said late Saturday afternoon that there was an investigation underway to determine the cause of the fire.
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SUSPECTED BACKPACK METH LAB FOUND IN MARIETTA
Tags: us_GA, public, discovery, response, meth_lab
Investigators found all the makings of a methamphetamine lab inside a backpack Friday afternoon. And thanks to an alert business owner, Marietta police quickly identified a person of interest.
Around 4:30 p.m., a witness called police after watching someone walking with a backpack stop and toss it into bushes after a police car drove by, according to Officer David Baldwin.
The same officer returned to the area, detained the subject and looked into the backpack before calling other officers to the scene.
?He looks into the backpack and sees all of the ingredients needed to make methamphetamine,? Baldwin said late Friday.
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CHEMICAL SPILL BILL MOVES ON TO MORE COMMITTEES
Tags: us_WV, public, follow-up, environmental
CHARLESTON -- Two more House of Delegates committees will debate SB373, commonly referred to as the chemcial spill bill, after the amended measure was unanimously approved by the House health committee late Wednesday night. The bill would regulate above-ground storage tanks and also require water utilities to submit plans to deal with possible contaminations.
The revised measure, which the Senate passed Jan. 28, now moves on to the House Judiciary Committee, where it must be approved before the House Finance Committee takes it up. Both committees must endorse the legislation before it comes to the House floor for a vote by the full membership.
The revised version of the Senate bill that was unanimously approved by the House Health Committee creates a new section of code requiring the Department of Environmental Protection to compile and maintain a list of all potential water contaminants -- not just contaminants from above-ground storage tanks -- within about 25 miles of public water sources.
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POLICE: NEPHEW MAKING METH IN UNSUSPECTING HOMEOWNERS' BASEMENT
Tags: us_MD, public, release, response, meth_lab
Edgewater homeowners wondered just what their nephew was doing in the basement of their home.
Turns out they were right to worry. The nephew was reportedly making methamphetamine in the basement, filling the home with dangerous gases and vapors, and bringing potentially explosive chemicals into the house.
Anne Arundel Police were called to the house in the 3600 block of Seventh Avenue on Thursday evening by the homeowners. While at the house, officers smelled a chemical odor and saw items that the nephew indicated he used to make methamphetamine for his personal use.
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MAN CHARRED TO DEATH IN EXPLOSION AT FIREWORK UNIT
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, death, fireworks
VIRUDHNAGAR: A 36-year-old man working in a firework factory at a village near Sivakasi in Virudhunagar district was charred to death after an explosion ripped apart a room in the cracker unit on Friday.
The victim was identified as V Sabarimalayan (36) of Pallapatti near Thiruthangal. Preliminary inquiry by police and revenue officials has revealed that friction of chemical substances sparked a fire that led to the explosion. Sabaraimalayan was mixing chemicals to stuff inside the crackers at the fireworks' manufacturing unit when the friction could have happened, said officials.
Sivakasi revenue divisional officer R Keerthi Priyadarshini said that Sabarimalayan died on the spot as fire engulfed the entire room he was working. She said that other workers managed to escape from the explosion. While three labourers who were working along with Sabaraimalayan got out of the room moments before the explosion to have cup of tea, those in nearby rooms fled soon after they heard the sound of crackers bursting.
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CREWS RETURN TO SITE OF ADAIR CO. EXPLOSION
Tags: us_KY, public, explosion, response, natural_gas
ADAIR COUNTY, Ky. ?Crews are back at the site of a devastating gas explosion in Adair County on Friday.
A massive explosion rocked a small south-central Kentucky town just after 2 a.m.
Witnesses to the explosion report that the fireball was shooting hundreds of feet into the night sky.
In the state of Kentucky, there are 7,500 miles of gas line.
The explosion took place Thursday, just after 2 a.m. in the town of Knifley, in Adair County.
The company that owns the line, Columbia Gulf Transmission, said the line ruptured and exploded, but they're still not sure why.
The line was about 30 feet underground, about 150 to 200 feet away from Highway 76.
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15 WORKERS EVACUATED AS A PRECAUTION FROM OUT-OF-CONTROL OIL WELL IN NORTHWESTERN NORTH DAKOTA (2/14/14 7:08 AM)
Tags: us_ND, industrial, release, environmental, petroleum
WATFORD CITY, North Dakota ? Fifteen workers were evacuated as a precaution from the site of an out-of-control oil well in northwestern North Dakota.
McKenzie County Emergency Manager Jerry Samuelson tells The Bismarck Tribune (http://bit.ly/1g408EM">http://bit.ly/1g408EM) that no fire or explosion occurred at the Whiting Petroleum site five miles southwest of Watford City late Thursday afternoon. But he says oil and water blew a plume from the well until the company was able to divert the flow into nearby storage tanks.
State Health Department environmental geologist Kris Roberts says the volume of well fluids involved wasn't immediately known. He says an inspector was to be at the scene Friday.
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