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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Monday, February 27, 2017 at 7:48:31 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 (12 articles)
HOW MANY CHEMICALS ARE IN USE TODAY?
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental
BUSINESS LEADERS NAME REGULATIONS THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE GO
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental, ozone
IN SOUTHEASTERN COLORADO, ROBOTS CAREFULLY DISARM WWII-ERA CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Tags: us_CO, public, discovery, environmental, mustard_gas
HAZMAT RESPONSE TEAMS REMOVE OUTDATED CHLORINE CYLINDERS IN ST. JOHN'S
Tags: Canada, industrial, release, response, chlorine, gas_cylinders
TRUCK LEAK NOT HAZARDOUS
Tags: Canada, transportation, release, response, oxygen
ALCOA OFFICERS, BLOUNT COUNTY DEPUTIES SETTLE LAWSUITS WITH CSX OVER TRAIN DERAILMENT
Tags: us_TN, transportation, follow-up, environmental, acrylonitrile, toxics
REPLACEMENT CHEMICAL FOR C8 BEING STUDIED AMID SIMILAR HEALTH CONCERNS
Tags: us_OH, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
SILENT BUT TOXIC, CHEMICAL VAPORS CONTAMINATE HUNDREDS OF PROPERTIES ACROSS MINNESOTA
Tags: us_MN, public, discovery, environmental, solvent
HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDS TO SOUTHSIDE ROAD CHEMICAL SPILL SATURDAY NIGHT
Tags: Canada, public, release, response, chlorine
CHEMICAL FIRE EXTINGUISHED AT GRANTS PASS PLANT ' KOBI-TV NBC5 / KOTI-TV NBC2
Tags: us_OR, industrial, fire, response, other_chemical
LACK OF NOTIFICATION OF SARNIA FIRE FRUSTRATES OFFICIALS
Tags: Canada, industrial, follow-up, environmental, petroleum
HAWAII WANTS TO BAN CHEMICAL SUNSCREENS TO SAVE THE CORAL REEFS
Tags: us_HI, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
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HOW MANY CHEMICALS ARE IN USE TODAY?
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental
No one, not even the Environmental Protection Agency, knows how many chemicals are in use today. EPA has more than 85,000 chemicals listed on its inventory of substances that fall under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). But the agency is struggling to get a handle on which of those chemicals are in the marketplace today and how they are actually being used.
Under revisions made to TSCA last year, EPA is required to designate each of the chemicals on its TSCA inventory as either in 'active' or 'inactive' use by June 19. EPA also faces a June 19 deadline under the updated law to finalize the scope of its risk evaluations for 10 high-priority chemicals that the agency selected for review late last year.
As EPA works to meet these deadlines and implement other provisions required under the amended TSCA, the agency is finding significant gaps in its knowledge about chemicals in the U.S. market.
EPA's lack of knowledge about chemicals in commerce was on full display during a public meeting on Feb. 14 intended to help EPA flesh out major uses for the 10 substances selected by the agency for risk evaluation. Stakeholders at the meeting from industry, environmental groups, and state governments pointed out uses that EPA did not consider for many of the 10 chemicals. In other cases, participants claimed that some of the 10 chemicals are no longer being produced in the U.S. or are not being used for certain purposes.
For example, 1,4-dioxane is no longer used as an ingredient in consumer products, reported Paul DeLeo, senior director of environmental safety at the American Cleaning Institute, an industry group. He encouraged EPA to update its website and statements to reflect that change, saying the current information is 'confusing to consumers and overrepresentspotential risks.' He acknowledged that many commercial and consumer products contain small amounts of 1,4-dioxane, which is formed as a by-product in the manufacturing of certain surfactants.
Richard Morford, chief executive officer and general counsel of ENVIRO Tech International, the largest provider of solvents based on n-propyl bromide (NPB) in the U.S., criticized EPA for using outdated information on NPB, also known as 1-bromopropane. EPA claims that the solvent is used as an alternative to trichloroethylå-ene for spotting and stain removal in dry cleaning.
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BUSINESS LEADERS NAME REGULATIONS THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE GO
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental, ozone
In an effort endorsed by several chemical companies, Business Roundtable, an advocacy group composed of CEOs, has sent the Trump Administration a list of 'Top Regulations of Concern' that it believes are unnecessary.
'The majority of the regulations directly and negatively impact economic growth,' wrote Mark J. Costa, CEO of Eastman Chemical and chair of the Roundtable's Smart Regulation Committee. Also signing the letter were Dow Chemical CEO Andrew N. Liveris, who is leading a manufacturing panel for the Trump Administration, and Honeywell CEO David M. Cote.
Among the environmental rules on the list is an EPA ground-level ozone standard that reduced ozone concentration limits to 70 ppb from 75 ppb. It also hit on a rule requiring carbon capture for new coal-fired power plants and on another rule expanding of federal jurisdiction over state waters.
Business Roundtable also targeted rules related to health care, corporate governance, the workforce, taxes, the internet, and exports.
'While some of the listed regulations in isolation may not appear significant to growth, their cumulative effect has drained resources from innovation and job creation and directed them to non-value-adding administrative and bureaucratic activities,' Costa wrote.
Regulatory reform is one of the Trump Administration's strategies for jump-starting the economy. Last month, President Trump signed an executive order directing agencies to eliminate two regulations for every new regulation they implement.
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IN SOUTHEASTERN COLORADO, ROBOTS CAREFULLY DISARM WWII-ERA CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Tags: us_CO, public, discovery, environmental, mustard_gas
PUEBLO, Colorado'On the dry, windswept plains of southeastern Colorado, a military checkpoint protects a vast field of igloos built with corrugated steel, covered with a thick layer of Earth, and fitted with thick, blast-resistant doors. The walls of the igloos keep the interior a consistent 51 degrees Fahrenheit whether it's in the heat of summer or the depths of winter, and the high-altitude air has little enough water in it that corrosion-causing moisture is an afterthought.
These mounds are carefully spaced to prevent an explosion in one igloo from triggering explosions in neighboring igloos. That's because inside, the US military stores a stockpile of 780,000 unused WWII-era munitions, filled with dangerous and deadly viscous sulfur mustard agent. This stockpile of chemical weapons was shipped to these igloos in the 1950s. They have been carefully guarded since then.
Not all chemical weapons in the US were so carefully handled. Between 1967 and 1970, the US military disposed of "thousands of tons" of chemical weapons by simply dumping them in the ocean as part of Operation CHASE (Cut Holes And Sink 'Em), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In fact, the military dumped 16,000 bombs, each containing 73 pounds of chemical agent, in the ocean at a site five miles south of Pearl Harbor after World War II. In 2010, research teams decided not to move the sunken munitions because moving the bombs would be more risky than leaving them where they are.
In 1972, Congress outlawed dumping chemical weapons in the ocean, and in 1997, the US became a signatory to the Chemical Weapons Convention, an international treaty to reduce chemical weapons stockpiles. Without the option of simply dumping weaponized chemicals into the sea, incineration or neutralization was the choice on the table. Destruction plants were built around the country to reduce stockpiles. After years of planning, construction of the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP) began.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT RESPONSE TEAMS REMOVE OUTDATED CHLORINE CYLINDERS IN ST. JOHN'S
Tags: Canada, industrial, release, response, chlorine, gas_cylinders
Hazmat crews were assembled Saturday night following a report of a possible chemical spill in St. John's.
Platoon Chief Rick Mackey of the St. John's Regional Fire Department told CBC they received a call at 7:05 p.m., and initially sent a pumper crew to an ice plant at 90 Southside Road.
Upon arrival, he said crews detected a slight odour of chlorine in the area.
A six-member hazmat team was then put together, and six pumper trucks were sent to the scene.
Mackey said two outdated chlorine cylinders were located inside a contained area of the building, and were then removed and tested.
He said testing indicated low-level readings, and there was no immediate danger to the public.
The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary closed a section of road from the Canadian Coast Guard complex to Fort Amherst until 11 p.m., and asked people to stay away from the area "for their own safety."
---------------------------------------------
TRUCK LEAK NOT HAZARDOUS
Tags: Canada, transportation, release, response, oxygen
The chemicals that were leaking from a semi-trailer on Sunday are not hazardous.
A driver, who contacted police, heard a hissing noise and thought he smelled an odour coming from the truck.
"We responded and took a precautionary approach and used the Hazmat team to identify the product," said fire platoon Capt. Steve Wallick. "They found compressed oxygen that was venting."
Wallick added that the noise and venting was normal.
"It is just oxygen going into the air and it wasn't at a dangerous level that would explode," he said. "We wanted to make sure it wasn't an issue and the load was secure."
---------------------------------------------
ALCOA OFFICERS, BLOUNT COUNTY DEPUTIES SETTLE LAWSUITS WITH CSX OVER TRAIN DERAILMENT
Tags: us_TN, transportation, follow-up, environmental, acrylonitrile, toxics
KNOXVILLE ' Several Alcoa officers and Blount County deputies who filed suit against CSX Transportation Inc. over a 2015 train derailment in Maryville have dismissed their cases after striking a settlement.
The lawsuit has been pending in Knoxville's U.S. District Court since August 2015. It was filed on behalf of six Alcoa Police officers and four Blount County Sheriff's Office deputies exposed to noxious fumes while working in the disaster area of a train derailment and tank car fire on July 2, 2015.
The tank car in question was carrying a toxic chemical called acrylonitrile.
The litigation was filed not only against CSX, which operated the train, but also Union Tank Car Co., the owner of the derailed car.
---------------------------------------------
REPLACEMENT CHEMICAL FOR C8 BEING STUDIED AMID SIMILAR HEALTH CONCERNS
Tags: us_OH, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
Scientists and activists who fought DuPont to stop the use of C8 sense deja vu with the spinoff company, Chemours, and GenX, a chemical that replaced C8.
European officials announced that they will begin an intensive investigation of the compound next month.
Since 2012, DuPont, and now Chemours, has been using GenX at plants in the United States and elsewhere to make non-stick Teflon and other products.
Critics say GenX is no safer than C8 ' also known as perfluorooctanoic acid or PFOA ' which DuPont used for decades before investigations and lawsuits involving the chemical forced the company to halt production.
The company lost four jury verdicts in federal court in Columbus and agreed this month to pay nearly $671 million to settle 3,500 lawsuits. Mid-Ohio Valley residents had sued DuPont, saying they developed cancer and other ailments by drinking water contaminated with C8 that had been dumped in the Ohio River and spewed from smokestacks at DuPont's plant south of Parkersburg, West Virginia.
---------------------------------------------
SILENT BUT TOXIC, CHEMICAL VAPORS CONTAMINATE HUNDREDS OF PROPERTIES ACROSS MINNESOTA
Tags: us_MN, public, discovery, environmental, solvent
You can't see it. You can't smell it.
But toxic vapor rising from soils contaminated decades ago by industrial solvents is creating new and expensive headaches for property owners across Minnesota.
Pollution officials have identified hundreds of sites across the state that are contaminated by 'vapor intrusion,' and this month they began rolling out a new set of rules requiring property owners to test for vapors and address them before transferring property.
Even as state officials scramble to understand the scope of the problem, business owners are facing millions of dollars in new costs to make their buildings ' and their neighbors' buildings ' safe from the carcinogenic fumes that collect inside from widely used solvents long since discarded.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDS TO SOUTHSIDE ROAD CHEMICAL SPILL SATURDAY NIGHT
Tags: Canada, public, release, response, chlorine
The St. John's Regional fire department's hazardous materials(HAZMAT) response team were called to a report of a chlorine spill on Southside Road Saturday night.
Deputy chief Don Byrne says the report came in at about 7:30 p.m. and roads to the area were closed for the safety of residents and the general public. The area around the spill site was also evacuated and members of the media were asked to move to a safe area.
The reported spill occurred at DWI Services Ltd. just east of the Prosser's Rock small boat basin and involved two one-hundred-pound chlorine tanks stored at the rear of the building.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL FIRE EXTINGUISHED AT GRANTS PASS PLANT ' KOBI-TV NBC5 / KOTI-TV NBC2
Tags: us_OR, industrial, fire, response, other_chemical
Grants Pass, Ore.- Rural Metro Fire crews responded to a chemical fire Rural Metro Fire responded to a chemical fire Friday morning.
The fire started just after 7 a.m. at Playcraft Systems in the North Valley Industrial Park. When firefighters arrived, they found a burning dip tank on the side of the building. Crews were able to put the fire out using portable dry chemical extinguishers and water.
The tank contained a mineral oil-based product called Die Slick 445X Lubricant, which is used in the final process of manufacturing at the facility.
All workers were safely away from the area and no injuries were reported. Fire and smoke did not extend into the building and the business was able to stay in operation.
---------------------------------------------
LACK OF NOTIFICATION OF SARNIA FIRE FRUSTRATES OFFICIALS
Tags: Canada, industrial, follow-up, environmental, petroleum
It took two hours for Jeff Friedland, director of St. Clair County Homeland Security and Emergency Management, to hear about what appeared to be a massive fire in Sarnia's Chemical Valley late Thursday.
And he didn't hear it from Canadians; he learned about it on social media.
"People on our side were honestly scared. I'm hearing some feared for their lives, they thought the whole thing was blowing up," Friedland said.
It wasn't until after 9 p.m. that Friedland said he got official word from Canada about the "operating issue" and grass fires at the Imperial Oil refinery complex.
While the incident appeared much worse than it was, Friedland said the two countries need to work on communicating better.
"It just seems like we continue to have a roller coaster ride on information sharing and communication on both sides," he said. "We've had some events where we could do better; I'm not throwing stones. We need to sit down at the table with the right people who make a difference and get something that works."
---------------------------------------------
HAWAII WANTS TO BAN CHEMICAL SUNSCREENS TO SAVE THE CORAL REEFS
Tags: us_HI, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
Sunscreen may be good for your skin, but some kinds are not necessarily the best for the environment
Last month, Will Espero, a Hawaiian state senator, proposed a bill that would ban the sale of chemical sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate across the islands. Prescriptions for the sunscreen would be allowed.
Why? A ton of sunscreen winds up in the global coral reef system every year ' 14,000 tons, to be exact ' and research indicates that oxybenzone can lead to coral bleaching. Some studies suggest one drop is even enough to damage the reefs.
To those who know the underwater world well, this isn't new news. Many divers are warned to steer clear of chemical sunscreens ' when we swim, after all, lotion can bleed off onto the reefs.
According to Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural Resources, "researchers have found oxybenzone concentrations in some Hawaiian waters at more than 30 times the level considered safe for corals."
The beaches of Maui, specifically, have already suffered the consequences, reports Scientific American.
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