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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, April 16, 2021 at 6:36:47 AM
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
All article summaries and tags are archived at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas
Table of Contents (9 articles)
FOLKESTONE AND HYTHE COUNCIL UNDER FIRE OVER CONTROVERSIAL HERBICIDE USED AT ROYAL MILITARY CANAL
Tags: United_Kingdom, public, discovery, environmental, pesticides
LIVING NEAR A US TOXIC WASTE SITE COULD SHAVE A YEAR OFF YOUR LIFE, STUDY FINDS
Tags: us_TX, public, discovery, environmental, waste
ALLERGY BREAKOUT: SMOOTHIE BLAMED FOR MASS REACTION IN DOZENS OF CHILDREN AT MELBOURNE CRECHE
Tags: Australia, public, release, injury, unknown_chemical
HWY. 400 REOPENS AFTER INCIDENT AT FERTILIZER PLANT SENDS TOXIC FUMES INTO AIR
Tags: Canada, industrial, fire, response, ag_chems
WAKEFIELD OIL TANK REMOVAL COMPANY SETTLES ALLEGATIONS OF HAZARDOUS WASTE VIOLATIONS AND ILLEGAL ASBESTOS REMOVAL
Tags: us_MA, public, discovery, environmental, illegal, waste
HAZMAT AMENDMENT DEFINES INSURANCE CLAIMS
Tags: us_IL, public, follow-up, environmental
OKLAHOMA CITY MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAB‰??S LICENSE REVOKED
Tags: us_OK, laboratory, discovery, environmental
STEELWORKERS, REFINERS ASK BIDEN TO FILL CHEMICAL SAFETY BOARD
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
K-SOLV FIRE IN CHANNELVIEW: HOUSTON TRUCK DRIVER FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST COMPANY
Tags: us_TX, transportation, follow-up, injury, hydrochloric_acid, petroleum
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FOLKESTONE AND HYTHE COUNCIL UNDER FIRE OVER CONTROVERSIAL HERBICIDE USED AT ROYAL MILITARY CANAL
https://www.inyourarea.co.uk/news/folkestone-and-hythe-council-under-fire-over-controversial-herbicide-used-at-royal-military-canal/
Tags: United_Kingdom, public, discovery, environmental, pesticides
Folkestone and Hythe District Council is under fire for using a strong and controversial herbicide at the Royal Military Canal.
A new campaign group Wild About Prince's Parade has raised concerns that glyphosate, a strong herbicide, was being used to prevent the regrowth of trees felled along the Royal Military Canal in March.
Strong herbicides such as this carry fears that chemicals washed into the canal or absorbed into the soil could cause harm to the local flora and fauna.
The group aims to raise awareness of the species which are set to be displaced from their usual habitat once construction work for the Princes Parade leisure centre development begins. They have set up an interactive online group, where members pose for photographs at the canal wearing masks representing those animals they believe are at risk of "eviction".
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LIVING NEAR A US TOXIC WASTE SITE COULD SHAVE A YEAR OFF YOUR LIFE, STUDY FINDS
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/apr/13/superfund-site-hazardous-waste-americas-dirty-divide?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Tags: us_TX, public, discovery, environmental, waste
Superfund sites are scattered across America: they‰??re places like landfills and manufacturing plants so contaminated with hazardous waste that the federal government has designated them a national priority to clean up. And according to a new, large-scale study, living near one can shave months ‰?? and in some cases, more than a year ‰?? off how long you live.
After Hurricane Harvey made landfall in south-east Texas in 2017, the University of Houston‰??s Hanadi Rifai began research along the 50-mile-long Houston Ship Channel, the petrochemical industry‰??s main artery. Rifai and her colleagues noticed how neighborhoods adjacent to hazardous waste sites, such as where the San Jacinto River meets the channel, seemed to have a lower life expectancy. ‰??That got us interested in a more comprehensive [national] study,‰?? Rifai said.
In a first-of-its-kind study out Tuesday in Nature Communications, Rifai and a team of researchers found that living in a zip code in close proximity to a Superfund site may decrease average life expectancy by 0.2 years. It could be up to a year in socioeconomically challenged communities, says Rifai, who is a professor of civil and environmental engineering and the study‰??s lead author.
In places with an even higher concentration of waste sites, like Texas‰??s Harris County, where Rifai lives, ‰??we‰??re not talking 0.2 [years] ‰?? we‰??re talking a few years.‰??
The study used data available for more than 65,000 of the 72,268 census tracts ‰?? defined geographical areas where census data is collected ‰?? within the contiguous US.
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ALLERGY BREAKOUT: SMOOTHIE BLAMED FOR MASS REACTION IN DOZENS OF CHILDREN AT MELBOURNE CRECHE
https://www.9news.com.au/national/smoothie-blamed-after-several-children-allergic-reactions-at-melbourne-kindergarten/2c65468b-9044-4688-9287-3078792d2540
Tags: Australia, public, release, injury, unknown_chemical
A smoothie is being blamed as a potential cause of a mass allergic reaction at a Melbourne child-minding service.
Parents were told their children couldn't leave Chabad House in Caulfield as paramedics assessed more than a dozen affected.
"We're only making assumptions ... possibly something in the smoothie they were drinking," Jo Wilton from Ambulance Victoria said.
None of the children required hospital treatment.
Approximately 18 firefighters responded to the outbreak.
Fire Rescue Victoria crews were called to the Glen Eira Road incident just after 4.05pm.
"A caller to Triple Zero reported multiple occupants suffering a suspected reaction to an unknown substance," FRV said in a statement.
"Firefighters arrived on scene in six minutes and worked quickly to establish the source of the reactions.
"Crews identified there was no Hazmat risk, and the likely cause of the reaction was through a food source."
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HWY. 400 REOPENS AFTER INCIDENT AT FERTILIZER PLANT SENDS TOXIC FUMES INTO AIR
https://www.680news.com/2021/04/14/section-of-hwy-400-shut-down-toxic-fumes-chemical-plant-sheppard-toronto-fince-avenue-fertilizer-plant/
Tags: Canada, industrial, fire, response, ag_chems
A major section of Highway 400 has reopened after an incident at a fertilizer plant near Sheppard Avenue sent flumes of toxic smoke into the air.
Toronto fire tells 680 NEWS all occupants of the building, around 100, have been safely evacuated.
Crews said an ‰??out-of-control‰?? reaction sent toxic smoke into the air at the facility around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Two chemicals mixed producing an unexpected third chemical and though it was believed to be a fire, there was no flame, they said.
Highway 400 was shut down between Black Creek Drive and Finch Avenue but has since reopened.
Toronto police are still urging residents to stay away from the area as a precaution.
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WAKEFIELD OIL TANK REMOVAL COMPANY SETTLES ALLEGATIONS OF HAZARDOUS WASTE VIOLATIONS AND ILLEGAL ASBESTOS REMOVAL
https://www.mass.gov/news/wakefield-oil-tank-removal-company-settles-allegations-of-hazardous-waste-violations-and-illegal-asbestos-removal
Tags: us_MA, public, discovery, environmental, illegal, waste
BOSTON ‰?? A Wakefield-based oil tank installation, maintenance, and removal company will pay up to $250,000 and will complete proper closure of an unpermitted well to resolve alleged hazardous waste and ground water discharge violations at its Wakefield headquarters and alleged illegal asbestos removal violations at an occupied building in Boston, Attorney General Maura Healey announced today.
‰??We depend on companies to honestly and accurately report on their handling of hazardous materials to protect the health and safety of workers, the public, and the environment,‰?? said AG Healey. ‰??This settlement requires this company to address any potential environmental contamination and ensures that it abides by our important environmental laws moving forward.‰??
The consent judgment, entered in Suffolk Superior Court, settles a lawsuit filed by the AG‰??s Office, which alleged that CommTank, Inc. violated the state‰??s hazardous waste management and clean water laws at its Wakefield headquarters. The AG‰??s complaint alleged that CommTank generated hazardous waste in excess of the volume permitted under its Very Small Quantity Generator status; failed to properly manage, store, and document waste oil and hazardous waste; and failed to properly train personnel in the management of hazardous waste.
The AG‰??s Office also alleged that CommTank maintained an unpermitted well in an area of its Wakefield facility where it conducted vehicle maintenance and stored waste oil and hazardous waste, thereby potentially allowing motor vehicle waste fluids to drain into the well, which led to the surrounding environment.
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HAZMAT AMENDMENT DEFINES INSURANCE CLAIMS
https://www.journal-topics.com/articles/hazmat-amendment-defines-insurance-claims/
Tags: us_IL, public, follow-up, environmental
The Park Ridge City Council is amending its ordinances affecting hazardous materials cases, following the explosion in 2019 at the Marathon gas station at 969 N. Northwest Highway and Oakton.
In addition to the damages to city emergency vehicles, the city had to provide security on the streets and route traffic away from the station corner until the site could be secured.
Subsequent cleanup of the property moved very slowly so city attorneys and fire officials looked at best practices from nearby municipalities and compared these with the intent of the state‰??s Hazardous Material Emergency Response Reimbursement Act.
Changes to the city code. which advanced to the full council in late March, define what constitutes a hazardous material emergency, who is responsible, who can be reimbursed, and the timing of that reimbursement. The responsible party in the future would be required to reimburse the city within 60 days of receiving a bill for the costs incurred by the city‰??s emergency services.
By the amendments, the city will be able to match the state‰??s definitions, to enforce the requirement for reimbursement to retrieve its expenses for its costs.
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OKLAHOMA CITY MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAB‰??S LICENSE REVOKED
https://kfor.com/news/local/oklahoma-city-medical-marijuana-labs-license-revoked/
Tags: us_OK, laboratory, discovery, environmental
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) ‰?? A judge has revoked the license of a Northeast Oklahoma City medical marijuana testing lab, five months after the Oklahoma City Fire Department‰??s fire marshal issued a stop-work order to the business.
‰??We had to take our own action against their license to be able to prevent them from continuing to conduct testing,‰?? Dr. Kelly Williams, Director of the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, told KFOR in an exclusive interview.
Williams told KFOR that Nationwide Engineering and Testing, LLC, a medical marijuana testing lab in NE OKC, did not comply with a stop work order that was issued by the Oklahoma City fire marshal due to chemicals allegedly not being properly stored back in December.
That‰??s why the OMMA asked a judge last month to revoke the lab‰??s license.
‰??We were successful in doing that. They have now lost their license to conduct laboratory testing,‰?? Williams said.
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STEELWORKERS, REFINERS ASK BIDEN TO FILL CHEMICAL SAFETY BOARD
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/steelworkers-refiners-ask-biden-to-fill-chemical-safety-board
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
The presidents of the United Steelworkers labor union and the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers have called on the Biden administration to fill the four empty seats on the U.S. Chemical Safety & Hazard Investigations Board.
The board is operating as what chair and Trump appointee Katherine Lemos has characterized as a quorum of one, with depleted staffing and a backlog of open investigations.
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K-SOLV FIRE IN CHANNELVIEW: HOUSTON TRUCK DRIVER FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST COMPANY
https://abc13.com/truck-driver-files-lawsuit-over-channelview-chemical-fire/10512528/
Tags: us_TX, transportation, follow-up, injury, hydrochloric_acid, petroleum
CHANNELVIEW, Texas (KTRK) -- A Houston truck driver is filing a lawsuit after a massive chemical fire burned for hours at a transit facility in the Channelview area last week.
Houston attorneys Benny Agosto Jr. and Ben Agosto III said they filed the suit on behalf of Antonio Alvarez on Tuesday against K-Solv, the company that controls the facility of the fire.
K-Solv provides environmental protection, disaster services and chemicals to the petrochemical industry. The company is said to be a transit facility, meaning that they don't manufacture products at that location, but rather accept and ship chemicals.
Massive flames shot out of the K-Solv warehouse on Lakeside Drive around 4 p.m. last Wednesday. According to the fire marshal's office, known chemicals on site included, but were not limited to, hydrochloric acid, acetone, ethanol, ethylene dichloride, and other acids.
After monitoring air and water quality levels the following day, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said it did not find any areas of concern.
Alvarez's attorneys said the driver, at the time of the fire, was at the facility to make a drop-off and pick up a product. When the fire went off, Alvarez ran and stumbled to the ground as he was trying to get away, according to attorneys. He reportedly sustained "substantial injuries and trauma."
"As sequential explosions rang out, Mr. Alvarez made it to a high fence that he and other facility contractors squeezed and pressed against, while trying to scale it to escape the facility," read a statement issued by Alvarez's attorneys.
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