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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, January 18, 2017 at 8:04:15 AM
A membership benefit of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
All article summaries and tags are archived at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas
Table of Contents (13 articles)
EPA CRANKS OUT TOXICS RULES DURING OBAMA'S LAST DAYS IN OFFICE
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental
HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDS TO G&K SERVICES
Tags: us_MN, industrial, release, response, sulfuric_acid
CHINA SAYS 2,500 WARTIME JAPANESE CHEMICAL WEAPONS DESTROYED
Tags: China, public, discovery, environmental, waste
DOZEN CHILDREN SENT TO BAYONNE HOSPITAL AFTER CHEMICAL INCIDENT: HOSPITAL
Tags: us_NJ, transportation, release, injury, other_chemical
CHEMICAL FIRE RESOLVED AT ROTHSCHILD PAPER MILL
Tags: us_WI, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
STANFORD TEAM CREATES BATTERY W/ BUILT-IN FIRE EXTINGUISHER TO AVOID FUTURE NOTE 7-LIKE DISASTERS
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, discovery, environmental, batteries, fire_extinguisher
NC SIBLINGS BURNED TRYING TO ROAST MARSHMALLOWS INSIDE
Tags: us_NC, public, fire, response, propanol
HAZMAT CLEARS FUEL FROM STORM SEWER
Tags: us_IN, public, release, response, gasoline
HAZMAT CALLOUT AFTER LIQUID NITROGEN LEAKS ON FREIGHT TRAIN IN SOUTH AUCKLAND
Tags: New_Zealand, transportation, release, response, liquid_nitrogen
3 ROAD WORKERS DEAD AFTER COLLAPSING UNDERGROUND IN KEY LARGO ' WSVN 7NEWS
Tags: us_FL, industrial, release, death, unknown_chemical
CHEMICAL SPILL IN MARLBOROUGH CONTAINED BY FIREFIGHTERS
Tags: New_Zealand, transportation, release, response, pesticides
ACTIONABLE LEVEL FOR PFOA IN DRINKING WATER LOWERED
Tags: us_WV, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
CHINA JAILS MANAGERS FOR POLLUTION
Tags: China, industrial, follow-up, environmental, dye, illegal, sulfuric_acid, waste
---------------------------------------------
EPA CRANKS OUT TOXICS RULES DURING OBAMA'S LAST DAYS IN OFFICE
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental
The Environmental Protection Agency's office that oversees the safety of chemicals in industrial and household products has been exceptionally busy in the final days of the Obama Administration. The office has been feverishly working to ensure that it meets several upcoming deadlines under the revised Toxic Substances Control Act. It has also been pushing out several proposed rules under TSCA that would ban or restrict certain uses of some high-risk solvents.
The revised TSCA, which was enacted in June 2016, gives EPA until June 2017 to develop processes for prioritizing high-risk chemicals and evaluating their safety. EPA must also develop a process by June for updating the chemical inventory to reflect only chemicals that are in current use. That means manufacturers need to provide EPA with information on chemicals they have made or used within the last 10 years.
EPA is well on its way toward meeting the one-year deadlines mandated under the new TSCA. The agency proposed three new rules on January 13 that provide, for the first time in 40 years, a foundation for prioritizing and evaluating high-risk chemicals in U.S. commerce.
Among the proposals are a rule that requires chemical manufacturers and importers to notify EPA of chemicals being produced, a rule to establish how EPA will choose chemicals for risk evaluation, and a rule that will establish how EPA evaluates the risks of chemicals.
'After 40 years we can finally address chemicals currently in the marketplace,' says James J. Jones, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Chemical Safety & Pollution Prevention. The action 'will set into motion a process to swiftly evaluate chemicals and meet deadlines required under, and essential to, implementing the new law.'
The American Chemistry Council, which represents chemical manufacturers, commends EPA for releasing its proposed processes in time to meet the June deadlines under the new TSCA. But the group is urging the agency to provide clearer criteria for identifying low- and high-priority chemicals.
'The risk-based prioritization rule must do more than address procedural requirements,' ACC says in a statement. 'It must explain how statutory decisions will be based on the best available science and the weight of the scientific evidence.' the group notes.
Likewise, environmental groups are applauding EPA for staying on schedule to meet the June deadlines. EPA staff 'deserve major kudos for their tireless work over these past seven months to reach this milestone,' says Richard Denison, a lead senior scientist at the environmental group, Environmental Defense Fund.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDS TO G&K SERVICES
Tags: us_MN, industrial, release, response, sulfuric_acid
St. Cloud Fire Department's Hazardous Materials Chemical Assessment Team responded to a chemical reaction Tuesday morning at G&K Services on Kuhn Drive.
The chemical reaction was caused when a delivery vendor combined about 425 gallons of hydrofluorosilicic acid with 25 gallons of sulfuric acid in a bin, according to Battalion Chief Jerry Raymond.
"When those two chemicals mix, it gives off chlorine," he said at the scene.
St. Cloud Fire Department responds to a chemical reaction Tuesday, Jan. 17, at G&K Services in St. Cloud. (Photo: Jenny Berg, jberg**At_Symbol_Here**stcloudtimes.com)
G&K Services sells and rents workplace uniforms and an array of cleaning and safety products.
Employees were evacuated while the fire department examined the building. At about 11:50 a.m., employees were allowed back inside the building.
Raymond said the chemical reaction caused no threat to anyone's health.
---------------------------------------------
CHINA SAYS 2,500 WARTIME JAPANESE CHEMICAL WEAPONS DESTROYED
Tags: China, public, discovery, environmental, waste
China's military said Tuesday that more than 2,500 abandoned Japanese wartime chemical weapons collected from northern China, including Beijing and the port city of Tianjin, have been destroyed in a four-year disposal process.
Japan and China have been working together on the biggest chemical weapon cleanup effort in history, a decades-long, diplomatically sensitive project that is seen in China as a reminder of the wartime atrocities it suffered during Japan's 1937 invasion and subsequent occupation.
Under the terms of a 1997 treaty, Tokyo is responsible for cleaning up hundreds of thousands of chemical weapons left behind by its occupation troops at the end of World War II. China says thousands of Chinese have been killed or hurt since the end of the war in 1945 by accidents related to the buried weapons.
China's ministry of defense said Tuesday that the weapons' disposal at a facility in Shijiazhuang city in Hebei province, neighboring Beijing, had finished in a "safe, orderly and smooth manner." The weapons are generally burned in specially designed furnaces.
---------------------------------------------
DOZEN CHILDREN SENT TO BAYONNE HOSPITAL AFTER CHEMICAL INCIDENT: HOSPITAL
Tags: us_NJ, transportation, release, injury, other_chemical
BAYONNE -- Twelve children were sent to the hospital after officials say a truck carrying a "pungent chemical" emitted the substance into the air while passing by two city schools.
Bayonne Medical Center spokesman Jarrod Bernstein said all but one of the children were brought to the hospital by parents or guardians.
Half of the children, including the sole child who was transported by ambulance to the hospital, were treated and released in the immediate hours after the incident. The remaining children arrived around 6:30 p.m. and are currently in "stable" condition, according to Bernstein.
Bayonne Fire Chief Keith Weaver said this evening that he was told by a state Department of Environmental Protection representative that the truck did not spill the chemical on the ground at any time on its way from Bayonne to Linden.
The fire chief said he was told that only vapors of the substance -- which is called ethyl acrylate and is used in the manufacturing of paint -- made it into the environment. The cause was reportedly a malfunctioning gasket in a top side valve on the truck's trailer.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL FIRE RESOLVED AT ROTHSCHILD PAPER MILL
Tags: us_WI, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
ROTHSCHILD, Wis. (WAOW) -
Black smoke billowed out of an empty building Monday at Domtar Paper in Rothschild after an overheated chemical began to smolder, according to David Faucett the Domtar plant manager.
The building's alarm system triggered around 9 a.m. but no one was in the building at the time, Faucett said. The sprinkler system put out the smoldering pipe before fire officials arrived on scene.
'We've got very good teams, very good training on how to handle this,' Faucett said. 'We knew exactly what the chemicals were. There were no exposures.'
The fire is still under investigation. Faucett said they believe the fire was due to a mechanical failure.
---------------------------------------------
STANFORD TEAM CREATES BATTERY W/ BUILT-IN FIRE EXTINGUISHER TO AVOID FUTURE NOTE 7-LIKE DISASTERS
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, discovery, environmental, batteries, fire_extinguisher
Since the official recall of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7, phone manufacturers have been assuring customers that their devices are safe to use. Some, like LG, are even testing their batteries in extreme conditions to make sure that they don't overheat or catch on fire. Thanks to a research team at Stanford University, we may have less to worry about when batteries explode‰?|
The Stanford team has built their own lithium-ion battery which includes a capsule of triphenyl phosphate (TPP) residing within the battery's electrolyte fluid. If the battery's internal temperature reaches 150 ĺˇC (302 ĺˇF), the capsule will melt and release the TPP chemical.
TPP is a type of chemical fire retardant that ' as tested by the team ' is capable of extinguishing a battery fire in 0.4 seconds.
This is a much-needed safeguard as lithium-ion batteries tend to be temperamental, with a simple manufacturing or charging defect capable of igniting the battery.
Although Samsung has yet to officially release a statement on their Note 7 explosion findings, it is believed that the battery had a defect that led to the handsets catching on fire.
Hopefully, technology like this will help prevent accidents in the future especially as we become more dependent on lithium-ion batteries to power both our mobile handsets and items like electric vehicles. You can read more about this new 'fire extinguisher' battery technology in a peer-review journal published by Science Advances.
---------------------------------------------
NC SIBLINGS BURNED TRYING TO ROAST MARSHMALLOWS INSIDE
Tags: us_NC, public, fire, response, propanol
GOLDSBORO, N.C. - A North Carolina brother and sister are being treated for serious burns after they trying to roast marshmallows indoors in Goldsboro, authorities said.
The 8- and 12-year-olds were using rubbing alcohol to light a flame, but the chemical caused the fire to spread quickly.
Their mother used a water bottle to douse her daughter.
Her son had already run outside, where neighbors stepped in to help.
Another sibling said they have all learned a lesson.
'I made a promise to myself that I was never going to mess with lighters or fire again because I learned my lesson,' the sibling said.
Family members said the children suffered burns to their faces and bodies.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT CLEARS FUEL FROM STORM SEWER
Tags: us_IN, public, release, response, gasoline
MUNCIE, Ind. ' The Indiana Department of Environmental Management is investigating after fuel was allegedly dumped from the Phillips 66 gas station into the storm water sewer collection lines leading from the station at the corner of Wheeling and Centennial avenues Monday morning.
Emergency services, including Muncie police, fire and Delaware County EMS were on the scene starting at 7:30 a.m. Monday after a call about a strong gasoline odor in the area. Responding units from Hazmat were still at the gas station as of 5:30 p.m. due to the cleanup needed.
Jason Rogers, Director of Emergency Management said that residents living down the storm lines flow would potentially have noticed an odor because of the fuel concentrations.
A resident that lived in Cardinal Vista, located at 1200 W. Bethel Ave., noted that a fuel like odor was noticeable in their apartment when they awoke Monday morning.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT CALLOUT AFTER LIQUID NITROGEN LEAKS ON FREIGHT TRAIN IN SOUTH AUCKLAND
Tags: New_Zealand, transportation, release, response, liquid_nitrogen
A large canister of liquid nitrogen spilled, sending plumes of condensation into the air, from a train in South Auckland on Monday night.
Three fire trucks and a Hazmat unit were sent to the leak, coming from a freight train which had stopped at the Pukekohe Station at 10.15pm.
A fire service spokesman said all trains were halted going both ways, due to the incident.
"It seems to be leaking from a gas cylinder of liquid nitrogen in the train.
"We're on standby until we can get someone there to assess it."
He said the train hadn't been evacuated, to his knowledge. It was not clear how many people were on board.
Liquid nitrogen, the gas in its cooled form, is used in a myriad of ways as a type of coolant.
It creates clouds of vapour - similar to dry ice - when exposed to air.
In medicine, it's used freeze off warts and pre-cancerous cells, while restaurants use it to instantly freeze food and beverages.
However, liquid nitrogen is dangerous and potentially deadly. It can cause frostbite or cryogenic burns if handled improperly, and can lead to asphyxiation in confined spaces.
---------------------------------------------
3 ROAD WORKERS DEAD AFTER COLLAPSING UNDERGROUND IN KEY LARGO ' WSVN 7NEWS
Tags: us_FL, industrial, release, death, unknown_chemical
KEY LARGO, FLA. (WSVN) - Police are investigating after three construction workers in Key Largo died while working underground, Monday morning.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, at around 8:30 a.m., three workers went inside a drainage manhole on Long Key Road to investigate a newly paved road when they collapsed.
Monroe County Sheriff's Office released the identity of the victims as 34-year-old Elway Gray of Fort Lauderdale, 49-year-old Louis O'Keefe of Little Torch Key and 24-year-old Robert Wilson of Summerland Key.
Two of the three workers were pulled from the trench and confirmed dead at the scene, near Mile Marker 106, by authorities. The third employee has yet to be found and is presumably dead, police said.
'Unfortunately, all three individuals have passed away,' said Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay. 'We are right now just trying to decontaminate the firefighters who went inside the hole and decontaminate the area.'
Several of the construction workers were overcome by fumes.
'The smell is just a really strong, strong rotten egg smell, and I'm assuming it's the smell that comes from below the earth,' said area resident Barbara Guerra. 'It was very strong this morning.'
A Key Largo volunteer firefighter attempting to save these men collapsed underground, as well, and was pulled from the hole. The firefighter was airlifted to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
'The firefighter was unresponsive, not breathing. A couple of sheriff's deputies were able to revive him with CPR measures,' Ramsay said. 'Last I heard, he was in a coma state, so I think his condition is pretty critical.'
Two deputies who were on the scene were also affected and were taken to Mariner's Hospital for evaluation.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL SPILL IN MARLBOROUGH CONTAINED BY FIREFIGHTERS
Tags: New_Zealand, transportation, release, response, pesticides
Blenheim Volunteer Fire Brigade was called to a chemical spill at Toll Freight in Spring Creek about 5.15pm on Monday.
Crews from Picton and Nelson with specialised equipment also went to the spill at the shipping container after a report of a concentrated weed killer leaking.
Chief fire officer Nigel Botham said his crew, wearing hazmat suits for protection, worked for almost four hours to contain the spill.
"It was a slow and painful job but we did it, and did it well," he said.
The 20 litre container of chemicals had been cut open by a nail on a palette, Botham said.
"The crews operated with a high level of professionalism and care. The situation could have been a lot worse," he said.
---------------------------------------------
ACTIONABLE LEVEL FOR PFOA IN DRINKING WATER LOWERED
Tags: us_WV, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
DuPont and its spin-off Chemours must further limit the perfluorinated chemical exposure of residents near a chemical manufacturing plant in Parkersburg, W.Va., under a revised deal with EPA. The facility formerly used perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) for decades. Through a recent update to a 2009 consent order with EPA, the companies must supply an alternate source of drinking water for residents when PFOA is measured at 70 parts per trillion in their piped-in drinking water. This lowers a threshold for such action that was set in 2009 of 400 ppt PFOA in drinking water and follows the agency's 2016 lifetime health advisory limit for the chemical. The updated drinking water order comes amid ongoing litigation between the companies and residents of Parkersburg. The plaintiffs, with claims that tainted water has harmed their health, have brought 3,500 lawsuits against the chemical manufacturers. PFOA was once used in the manufacture of nonstick materials. Though U.S. manufactur!
e of PFOA has stopped, the perfluorinated chemical is environmentally persistent and has been linked to disease in people.
---------------------------------------------
CHINA JAILS MANAGERS FOR POLLUTION
Tags: China, industrial, follow-up, environmental, dye, illegal, sulfuric_acid, waste
A court in China has fined the dye producer DyStar $3 million for environmental crimes and sent some of the company's managers to jail. The case helps explain why China's rivers still suffer from severe pollution despite the country's strict regulations. According to the Ministry of Environmental Protection, 28% of rivers and lakes in China were 'unfit for human contact' in 2015.
In May 2014, public security officials from the city of Yangzhou boarded a ship owned by a local merchant, Weidong Ding, as part of an inquiry into illegal industrial waste dumping in the area's rivers. Once aboard, according to an account posted on a city court website, investigators became suspicious of the ship's smell. They took the captain into custody after discovering tons of hazardous industrial waste on-board.
The captain led investigators to Jun Wang, a manager at Dystar's plant in Nanjing. From 2010 to 2014, Wang had conspired with a local truck fleet owner, Zhanrong Wang, to dispose of DyStar's waste sulfuric acid at a price of $84 per metric ton. Their scheme also involved one of the company's floor managers, Jinjun Huang, and the plant manager, surnamed Li.
Whenever DyStar's tanks of spent sulfuric acid became full, Wang's trucks would come to transport the material to Ding's ships. After dark, the ships would then dump the waste in the Taidong River and the New Tongyang Canal. Over four years, DyStar disposed of nearly 3,000 metric tons of its hazardous waste in this manner.
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