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Table of Contents (14 articles)
KAMO HIGH SCHOOL IN NORTHLAND EVACUATED AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL
Tags: New_Zealand, laboratory, release, response, bromine
NEIGHBORS OF WHEATFIELD LANDFILL SEEK U.S. INTERVENTION
Tags: us_NY, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
CANNABIS TESTING AND TREATMENTS ARE PUT TO THE TEST
Tags: us_CA, public, discovery, environmental
FIRE AT CHEMICAL UNIT IN HYDERABAD'S JEEDIMETLA AREA, 8 INJURED
Tags: India, industrial, fire, injury, pharmaceutical
STATES REACH A $650 MILLION SETTLEMENT OVER EXPLODING TAKATA AIR BAGS
Tags: us_DC, transportation, discovery, environmental
ROLE OF STATES IN CHEMICAL SAFETY
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
VT. FIREFIGHTER CHARGED WITH LIGHTING CHILDREN'S HANDS ON FIRE
Tags: us_VT, public, fire, response, other_chemical
CHEMICAL HAZARD ON HOPPERS CROSSING STREET
Tags: canada, public, release, response, pesticide
FIRE BURNS WATERLOO TRAILER
Tags: canada, industrial, fire, response, wastes
MERCURY SPILL IN SAN JACINTO RESIDENCE REQUIRES HAZMAT CLEANUP
Tags: us_ca, release, public, response, mercury
3M TO PAY $850 MILLION TO SETTLE FLUOROSURFACTANTS LAWSUIT
Tags: us_mn, release, industrial, follow-up, toxics
TWO DEAD AFTER CARBON MONOXIDE INCIDENT
Tags: us_GA, public, release, death, carbon_monoxide
PATIALA: 3 KILLED, 11 FALL ILL AS AMMONIA LEAKS AFTER CYLINDER BLAST
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, death, ammonia, gas_cylinders
WEST: NURSING HOME SETTLES FERTILIZER EXPLOSION LAWSUIT
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, environmental, ag_chems
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KAMO HIGH SCHOOL IN NORTHLAND EVACUATED AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL
https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/northland/101712606/kamo-high-school-in-northland-evacuated-after-chemical-spill
Tags: New_Zealand, laboratory, release, response, bromine
A Northland school has been evacuated after a chemical spill during a science class.
Science students at Kamo High School noticed fumes leaking out of a resource cupboard during class on Friday morning, a spokesman for Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) said.
Their teacher opened the cupboard to find 55 grams of sodium bromide had spilled out of its container and reacted with something to produce the fumes, the spokesman said.
All students in the school were evacuated.
One Hazmat unit and three fire trucks were still at the scene at 1pm.
Bromine gas can cause coughing, irritation, burns and serious lung problems from long-term exposure.
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NEIGHBORS OF WHEATFIELD LANDFILL SEEK U.S. INTERVENTION
http://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/neighbors-of-wheatfield-landfill-seek-u-s-intervention/article_0fe54b17-2d13-5d20-bd8d-eba2a4f7ca2a.html
Tags: us_NY, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
North Tonawanda residents who live near the old Niagara Sanitation Landfill in Wheatfield say they're sick of waiting for action.
During a "Congress on Your Corner" session Thursday at North Tonawanda City Hall, representatives of U.S. Rep. Brian Higgins' office heard pleas from residents who want the U.S. government to look into contamination from the landfill.
They said the state Department of Environmental Conservation has presented findings about the severity of existing contamination that contradict the results of private testing the residents had performed in their homes. They've reported the presence of dioxins, PCBs and DDT.
"Everyone is getting sick and we want to get out of there," resident Mary Jo Kerr said. "But no one, financially, can do that."
Residents say their health has suffered due to prolonged exposure to contaminants from the landfill, which was used to store materials removed from Love Canal in the 1960s. Most of the residents say they want out of the neighborhood, but can't afford to move or can't find anyone willing to purchase their property.
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CANNABIS TESTING AND TREATMENTS ARE PUT TO THE TEST
https://www.potnetwork.com/news/cannabis-testing-and-treatments-are-put-test
Tags: us_CA, public, discovery, environmental
Cannabis testing involves more than just a potency check. Marijuana is continually at risk of contamination from mold and bacteria. Producers and distributors may have cannabis treatment procedures in place to reduce mold counts, but not every state is committed to standardized safety cannabis tests.
A Lack of Standardized Cannabis Testing
The mold and bacteria that is naturally attracted to marijuana flowers can be lethal to users who choose to inhale their herb. Pathogens put users at risk for lung infections, even cancer. Laboratories across the country are outfitted to test marijuana cannabinoid concentration and residual pesticides, but only a handful of states require microbial testing.
Microbial testing involves an examination of the total yeast and mold count (TYMC) that can cause pathogens to grow within the cannabis plant. Some states put regulations in place to limit TYMC. Others are more lenient. In Colorado, commercial cannabis cannot contain more than 10,000 mold colonies per gram. In Vermont, no laboratory regulations are enforced. And in California last year, twenty dispensaries were unwittingly selling contaminated cannabis.
These inconsistencies between states are troubling, but it is hard to regulate procedures that are new and, at best, inconsistent. In a recent editorial in The Cannabis Industry Journal, Ketch DeGabrielle, the former operations manager of Los Suè±os Farm, discusses the different treatment procedures available to the cannabis industry. "Cannabis is finally becoming a legitimized industry," he writes. "And we will see regulations that make cannabis production look more like food production each year."
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FIRE AT CHEMICAL UNIT IN HYDERABAD'S JEEDIMETLA AREA, 8 INJURED
https://www.ndtv.com/delhi-news/fire-at-chemical-unit-in-hyderabads-jeedimetla-area-8-injured-1816169
Tags: India, industrial, fire, injury, pharmaceutical
HYDERABAD: A massive fire broke out at a pharmaceutical unit in the Jeedimetla industrial area of Hyderabad this morning. Ten people were rescued from Vijayasree Chemicals and eight of them have sustained injuries. They have been taken to the Gandhi Hospital.
The Jeedimetla industrial area is home to hundreds of small scale industries, and larger chemical and pharmaceutical industries. Therefore, fire officials were concerned about the spread of fire. However, about nine fire engines managed to bring fire under control, they said.
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STATES REACH A $650 MILLION SETTLEMENT OVER EXPLODING TAKATA AIR BAGS
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2018/02/22/states-reach-a-650-million-settlement-over-exploding-takata-air-bags/
Tags: us_DC, transportation, discovery, environmental
Virginia, Maryland and the District on Thursday were among dozens of states to to reach a $650 million settlement with the U.S subsidiary of a Japanese company that manufactured faulty air bags installed in millions of automobiles worldwide, bags that sprayed deadly shrapnel that killed at least 22 people and injured hundreds more.
The agreement was reached with TK Holdings, Inc., the American subsidiary of Takata as part of a settlement between 44 state governments and the District, requiring a $650 million payout by the Japanese firm. Nearly 34 million of the 250 million vehicles on U.S. roads have been part of the largest recall in U.S. history.
Unlike most air-bag makers, Takata uses ammonium nitrate to trigger a small explosion that inflates the air bag when the vehicle strikes something. But in some vehicles " particularly those that were several years old and kept in regions of the country with high humidity " the ammonium nitrate burns too fast, causing the chemical"s container to explode and spray drivers and passengers with metal shrapnel.
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ROLE OF STATES IN CHEMICAL SAFETY
http://sunnewsreport.com/role-states-chemical-safety/
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) is highlighting the important role of individual state governments in driving critical chemical safety change.
A number of state governments have made significant safety improvements following a chemical disaster within their state to protect their residents and the environment with the common goal of preventing future similar incidents.
The CSB has issued 80 safety recommendations to 22 different state governments stemming from 27 CSB investigations.
Currently, only six of these investigations still have open recommendations issued to state governments. These CSB recommendations range from identifying risks and
increasing safety inspections to developing and adopting significant, state-level chemical safety legislation.
Several states have taken significant steps to implement positive safety changes in light of chemical disasters.
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VT. FIREFIGHTER CHARGED WITH LIGHTING CHILDREN'S HANDS ON FIRE
http://www.wcax.com/content/news/Vt-firefighter-charged-with-lighting-childrens-hands-on-fire-474766713.html
Tags: us_VT, public, fire, response, other_chemical
BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) A Vermont firefighter is charged with lighting his children's hands on fire.
Levi Dykema, 28, faces three counts of reckless endangerment after police say the Ferrisburgh dad covered his 5-, 7- and 10-year-olds' hands with hand sanitizer and ignited them. He's then accused of posting the videos to social media.
Dykema told police he was demonstrating the flammability of hand sanitizer and teaching his kids about poor decision-making.
Police say he could have seriously injured the children. Luckily, they were not burned.
Dykema pleaded not guilty.
The Select Board chair confirmed Dykema has been suspended from his position as a volunteer firefighter with Charlotte Fire and Rescue.
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CHEMICAL HAZARD ON HOPPERS CROSSING STREET
https://www.bay939.com.au/news/local-news/90432-chemical-hazard-on-hoppers-crossing-street
Tags: canada, public, release, response, pesticide
Emergency crews remain on scene in Hoppers Crossing, where 400 litres of pesticide has leaked from a pair of containers. CFA, MFB, HAZMAT crews, Victoria Police, EPA and WorkSafe are all attending the site of the spill on Dunlop Road. A scientific officer from the Melbourne Fire Brigade has also been advised. An exclusion zone is still in place while chemicals from the drums are decanted and moved and the spill is cleaned up.
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FIRE BURNS WATERLOO TRAILER
http://wcfcourier.com/news/local/fire-burns-waterloo-trailer/article_3d637f7e-15e7-5ffa-a5d3-fb2dc5066b24.html
Tags: canada, industrial, fire, response, wastes
WATERLOO " Fire consumed a trailer and scorched the side of a building when a chemical reaction sparked a blaze Wednesday night.
No injuries were reported, and the building took no structural damage, according to Waterloo Fire Rescue.
The fire broke out shortly 6 p.m. when workers at Kinzler Construction Services on Geraldine Road were disposing of different types of old expanding insulation foam, said Battalion Chief Mike Moore. When the different foams mixed, it created a chemical reaction that generated heat and ignited the 20-foot tandem axel trailer about 10 feet from the building, he said.
The building had minor exterior damage, and firefighters removed light smoke from inside, he said.
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MERCURY SPILL IN SAN JACINTO RESIDENCE REQUIRES HAZMAT CLEANUP
https://www.pe.com/2018/02/21/mercury-spill-in-san-jacinto-residence-requires-hazmat-cleanup/
Tags: us_ca, release, public, response, mercury
A hazardous materials crew is scheduled to clean up a mercury spill Thursday, Feb. 22, after a vial of the chemical from a gold mining kit broke in a San Jacinto residence two days earlier, according to a Riverside County environmental health official.
The accidental release was reported at 5:50 p.m. Tuesday at a residence in the 1700 block of Wheelbarrow Way in San Jacinto triggering a response by Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire and the county"s Department of Environmental Health, according to a county fire news release.
The owners of the home were cleaning up inside after the occupant had died. "They found a box, opened it up and it contained this kit and somehow a vial fell out and broke," said Lisa Mitchell, county supervising environmental health specialist.
County officials recommended the owners and another tenant "stay out of the house until we can get it cleaned up," Mitchell said.
Elemental mercury is used in small-scale gold mining.
"Mercury is mixed with gold-containing materials, forming a mercury-gold amalgam which is then heated, vaporizing the mercury to obtain the gold," according to a federal Environmental Protection Agency website.
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3M TO PAY $850 MILLION TO SETTLE FLUOROSURFACTANTS LAWSUIT
https://cen.acs.org/articles/96/i9/3M-pay-850-million-settle.html
Tags: us_mn, release, industrial, follow-up, toxics
3M has agreed to pay $850 million to the state of Minnesota to resolve a $5 billion lawsuit over drinking water contaminated with fluorochemicals such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). 3M resolved the case on Feb. 20, just as it was about to go to trial in state court.
The settlement comes in the form of what 3M calls a grant to the state for water quality and sustainability. The firm says the funds will be used to reduce perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in the region. 3M adds that it "does not believe there is a PFC-related health issue."
Others do see health concerns. "The settlement is an enormously important advance to protect the health of over 67,000 Minnesotans ... who deserve clean and safe drinking water," Michigan Governor Mark Dayton said in statement.
3M produced PFCs, including PFOA, at a plant in Cottage Grove, 16 km south of St. Paul. The firm says it ceased manufacturing PFOA and associated chemicals in 2008. Among PFOA"s uses was as a surfactant to make 3M"s Scotchgard stain repellent finishes for textiles.
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TWO DEAD AFTER CARBON MONOXIDE INCIDENT
http://savannahnow.com/crime-courts/news/2018-02-20/two-dead-after-carbon-monoxide-incident
Tags: us_GA, public, release, death, carbon_monoxide
Two people have died after a carbon monoxide incident in the 2200 block of North Fernwood Drive on Tuesday, Deputy Chatham County Coroner Sarah Smith said.
Savannah police spokeswoman Bianca Johnson said officers located Martha Brown, 91, and her son John Duncan, 70, deceased in a back room of the home.
Savannah Fire"s Rescue 2 team arrived at 4:28 p.m., SFES spokeswoman Jenel Few said. Firefighters entered the home and found the residents in a back bedroom, but they were not responsive and could not be moved, Few said.
The Hazmat Team was called in to conduct an air test in the home, which determined that the carbon monoxide level was dangerously high, at 900 parts per million.
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PATIALA: 3 KILLED, 11 FALL ILL AS AMMONIA LEAKS AFTER CYLINDER BLAST
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/patiala-3-killed-11-fall-ill-as-ammonia-leaks-after-cylinder-blast/articleshow/63005759.cms
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, death, ammonia, gas_cylinders
SANDHARSI (PATIALA): Three people were killed and 11 injured after inhaling ammonia gas, which leaked when a massive cylinder storing the chemical exploded outside a food processing unit near Sandharsi village on Ghanaur-Shambhu road on Tuesday. The victims were working in the unit when the explosion occurred due to a sudden rise in pressure inside the ammonia cylinder.
The three deceased - Surinder Kumar (42), Charanjit Singh (22) and Gurjinder Singh (19) - were near the cylinder when it exploded around 1.30am. They ended up inhaling a huge quantity of the gas, which quickly spread to other areas of the unit. Out of the 11 injured people undergoing treatment at Government Rajindra Hospital, four are critical.
Personnel of the National Disaster Response Force were pressed into action following the leak, while chemical experts from National Fertilizers Limited rushed to the spot and secured the vicinity by 12.30pm. The response team carried an elaborate inspection of pipes inside the unit and sealed all joints, since the cylinder was linked to other containers by metal pipes. Fire tenders and senior officials of the police and district administration also visited the spot. CM Amarinder Singh ordered a magisterial probe, promised to provide free treatment for the injured and declared an ex-gratia of Rs 1 lakh for the next of kin of the deceased. He also directed Patiala DC Kumar Amit to oversee the rescue and relief operations.
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WEST: NURSING HOME SETTLES FERTILIZER EXPLOSION LAWSUIT
http://www.kwtx.com/content/news/West-Nursing-home-settles-fertilizer-explosion-lawsuit-474649393.html
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, environmental, ag_chems
WEST, Texas (KWTX) West Rest Haven nursing home has settled a lawsuit it filed in the wake of the April 17, 2013 explosion that leveled the facility.
Details of the settlement that named fertilizer manufacturers CF Industries, El Dorado Chemical Company and the International Chemical Company, were not disclosed.
The explosion at the West Fertilizer Company killed 15, injured more than 200 and leveled homes and businesses.
The blast displaced all 133 residents in the 145-bed nursing home facility.
The nursing home has been rebuilt and re-opened in 2015 with 120 beds and 116 residents.
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