Check out Safety Emporium for your N95, N99, and face shield needs.
From: Ralph Stuart <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (12 articles)
Date: Fri, 8 Jul 2022 06:03:04 -0400
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU>
Message-ID: BB62B471-DA92-41B8-8181-85FD7E8BA7BB**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, July 8, 2022 at 6:02:53 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 (12 articles)
USS MUSTIN CHEMICAL SPILL: 2 HOSPITALIZED AT BAE SYSTEMS SAN DIEGO
Tags: us_CA, transportation, release, injury, unknown_chemical
ALERT: 'HAZMAT SITUIATION' AT THE N. UTICA SHOPPING CENTER
Tags: us_NY, transportation, release, response, diesel
HAAGEN-DAZS ICE-CREAM RECALLED OVER CHEMICAL CONTAMINATION
Tags: Australia, public, discovery, response, ethylene_oxide
MAIN BREACH IDENTIFIED IN FLINT RIVER SPILL
Tags: us_MI, public, release, environmental, unknown_chemical
OWNER OF CHILLIWACK BUSINESS DESTROYED BY DRUG LAB FIRE SUING HIS LANDLORD ' CHILLIWACK PROGRESS
Tags: Canada, public, follow-up, environmental, drugs, illegal
CLAMS TAINTED WITH 'FOREVER CHEMICALS' RECALLED
Tags: us_CA, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
WORK BEGINS ON LAST CHEMICAL WEAPONS STOCKPILE IN KENTUCKY
Tags: us_KY, industrial, follow-up, environmental
DEADLY CRASH, CHEMICAL SPILL BLOCKS TRAFFIC ON I-77 IN FAIRFIELD COUNTY
Tags: us_SC, transportation, fire, death, other_chemical
HOW LONG THE CORONAVIRUS SURVIVES IN AIR DEPENDS ON RELATIVE HUMIDITY
Tags: United_Kingdom, laboratory, discovery, environmental, carbon_dioxide
PICATINNY ARSENAL CONTAMINATION LARGER THAN PREVIOUSLY KNOWN
Tags: us_NJ, industrial, follow-up, environmental, dust
PROBE FINDS CHEMICAL RESPONSIBLE
Tags: Bangladesh, industrial, follow-up, death, hydrogen_peroxide
US EPA FINDS NEW RISKS FOR 3 SOLVENTS: METHYLENE CHLORIDE, N-METHYLPYRROLIDONE (NMP), AND PERCHLOROETHYLENE
Tags: public, discovery, environmental, methylene_chloride, pce, solvent
---------------------------------------------
USS MUSTIN CHEMICAL SPILL: 2 HOSPITALIZED AT BAE SYSTEMS SAN DIEGO
https://fox5sandiego.com/news/local-news/two-hospitalized-after-chemical-spill-on-navy-ship/
Tags: us_CA, transportation, release, injury, unknown_chemical
SAN DIEGO ' Two people were hospitalized Thursday as a result of a chemical spill that prompted a hazmat response at a Barrio Logan shipyard, San Diego Fire-Rescue Department said.
At approximately 10:40 a.m. emergency crews and a hazmat team arrived to the scene aboard the USS Mustin, a Navy ship docked at the BAE Systems shipyard in the 2200 block of Belt Street, where they worked to contain a chemical spill.
By 11:20 a.m. the source of the spill had been contained and crews aboard the ship had been evacuated, SDFD said.
Two people, who were Navy personnel aboard the ship, were transported to UCSD Hillcrest with non-life threatening injuries from exposure to the chemicals, according to SDFD.
SDFD crews had cleared from the scene by noon, while Navy medical personnel remained on scene to take over evaluating patients. Hazmat units from SDFD and the County of San Diego also remained on scene.
There was a chemical release on the ship which triggered the hazmat incident, SDFD said. It was not immediately known what the hazardous material was.
---------------------------------------------
ALERT: 'HAZMAT SITUIATION' AT THE N. UTICA SHOPPING CENTER
https://www.mytwintiers.com/news-cat/alert-hazmat-situiation-at-the-n-utica-shopping-center/
Tags: us_NY, transportation, release, response, diesel
UTICA, N.Y. (WUTR/WFXV/WPNY) ' An accident in the North Utica Shopping Center involving a tractor-trailer tanker has caused a serious hazmat situation and closed the shopping center itself, Leland Ave and I-790 West until further notice.
A tractor-trailer tanker containing diesel fuel became disabled and disconnected from the cab on the entrance ramp of I-790 behind the shopping center.
Members of the Utica Police Department, local hazmat response personnel, and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation evacuated the entire shopping center, including Price Chopper, as well as the Biglots plaza.
---------------------------------------------
HAAGEN-DAZS ICE-CREAM RECALLED OVER CHEMICAL CONTAMINATION
https://www.greatlakesadvocate.com.au/story/7811914/haagen-dazs-ice-cream-recalled-over-contamination-fears/
Tags: Australia, public, discovery, response, ethylene_oxide
Some lines of Haagen-Dazs ice-cream is being recalled due to chemical (ethylene oxide) contamination.
General Mills Australia Pty Ltd is conducting the recall of Haagen-Dazs Vanilla 457ml and Haagen-Dazs Classic Collection Mini Cups 4 x 95mL.
The Vanilla 457mL has been available for sale at Coles, Woolworths and independent retailers including IGA nationally.
The Classic Collection Mini Cups 4 x 95mL has been available for sale at Coles nationally.
Consumers should not eat this product and should return the product to the place of purchase for a full refund.
---------------------------------------------
MAIN BREACH IDENTIFIED IN FLINT RIVER SPILL
https://www.wnem.com/2022/07/07/main-breach-identified-flint-river-spill/
Tags: us_MI, public, release, environmental, unknown_chemical
FLINT, Mich. (WNEM) - The main breach of a spill in the Flint River has been identified.
The Lockhart Chemical Company facility identified the main breach in a storm sewer that resulted in the discharge, according to Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) spokesperson Jill Greenberg.
The company's operations have been halted until a plan can be sent to EGLE that will ensure when production resumes, the company will not release material in the groundwater or to the Flint River, Greenberg said.
Lockhart submitted plans to EGLE and the city of Flint for bulkheading the portion of the storm sewer that runs under the facility and routing the existing storm sewer around the site. Those plans are being reviewed.
ADVERTISEMENT
The unidentified substance material collected from the river is still undergoing testing.
As of last week, a whitish discharge was seen at the outfall. Samples were taken at the manhole upstream, downstream of Lockhart, and at the outfall for analysis, Greenberg said.
---------------------------------------------
OWNER OF CHILLIWACK BUSINESS DESTROYED BY DRUG LAB FIRE SUING HIS LANDLORD ' CHILLIWACK PROGRESS
https://www.theprogress.com/news/owner-of-chilliwack-business-destroyed-by-drug-lab-fire-suing-his-landlord/
Tags: Canada, public, follow-up, environmental, drugs, illegal
The owner of a business destroyed by a fire at a neighbouring drug lab in Chilliwack is suing the landlord and the tenant of the adjacent business.
Chilliwack RCMP confirmed the dramatic fire in an industrial building on May 2, 2019 on Fourth Avenue was connected to a drug lab.
But Target Steel & Sea Containers owner Steve Heaps isn't focusing his lawsuit on the alleged illegal activity in the unit next to his business. Instead, his lawsuit is using an independent fire expert's report to point out that the building was not designed for two tenants and, illegal or legal, the volume of chemicals being stored next door should have prompted regulatory action.
---------------------------------------------
CLAMS TAINTED WITH 'FOREVER CHEMICALS' RECALLED
https://kfor.com/news/clams-tainted-with-forever-chemicals-recalled/
Tags: us_CA, public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
(NEXSTAR) ' Popular seafood brand Bumble Bee is recalling cans of smoked clams that have been found to contain so-called 'forever chemicals.'
The San Diego-based company voluntarily recalled 3.75-ounce cans from a Chinese manufacturer after Food and Drug Administration tests detected chemicals known as PFAS, an abbreviation for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.
The cans, which all have the UPC label 8660075234, were distributed to retailers nationwide.
In one of the 10 samples the FDA found the the level of PFAS was over 20,000 parts per trillion (ppt). While there still isn't federal guidance on a safe level of PFAS in food, for water that number is .004 ppt, the Environmental Protection Agency determined last month.
'These levels are extremely high,' said Legislative Attorney Melanie Benesh, of DC-based nonprofit Environmental Working Group (EWG). 'Consumers should avoid eating canned clams from this company.'
---------------------------------------------
WORK BEGINS ON LAST CHEMICAL WEAPONS STOCKPILE IN KENTUCKY
https://www.thehour.com/news/article/Work-begins-on-last-chemical-weapons-stockpile-in-17290874.php
Tags: us_KY, industrial, follow-up, environmental
RICHMOND, Ky. (AP) ' Work has begun on eliminating the last chemical weapons stockpile stored at an Army depot in Kentucky.
The Blue Grass Army Depot's stockpile of decades-old M55 rockets containing GB nerve agent makes up about half of the 523 tons of weapons that were originally stored there. The nerve agent, also known as sarin, is colorless, odorless and highly toxic.
The first of those rockets was destroyed Wednesday at the Blue Grass Chemical-Agent Destruction Pilot Plant, Army officials said in a news release.
---------------------------------------------
DEADLY CRASH, CHEMICAL SPILL BLOCKS TRAFFIC ON I-77 IN FAIRFIELD COUNTY
https://www.wistv.com/2022/07/07/deadly-accident-blocks-traffic-i-77-fairfield-county/
Tags: us_SC, transportation, fire, death, other_chemical
FAIRFIELD COUNTY, S.C. (WIS) - The South Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating a deadly crash on I-77 southbound in Fairfield County that caused significant traffic delays, and a chemical spell which led a neighboring town to shelter in place.
The crash happened just before 4 A.M. near mile marker 31, which is about three miles from the town of Ridgeway. It involved a Peterbilt tractor, and two other cars.
One person has died as a result of wreck, according to the SC Highway Patrol.
In the aftermath of the crash, a shelter in place was issued for residents in Ridgeway as first responders worked to determine what chemical had spilled onto the highway from the truck.
As the Fairfield County Fire Service put out the fire that resulted from the crash, that chemical got kicked up into the smoke.
'Smoke is always a concern, whether if it's chemical or whether it's free-burning,' he said. 'But you just want to make sure that nothing is toxic. And the biggest thing is nobody knew at the time what was burning other than seeing the fire burning.'
The chemical was later identified by the Fairfield County Fire Service as ammonium sulfate.
---------------------------------------------
HOW LONG THE CORONAVIRUS SURVIVES IN AIR DEPENDS ON RELATIVE HUMIDITY
https://cen.acs.org/biological-chemistry/infectious-disease/long-coronavirus-survives-air-depends/100/web/2022/07
Tags: United_Kingdom, laboratory, discovery, environmental, carbon_dioxide
When you exhale, the aerosol droplets you expel experience a big shock. In an instant, these particles are thrust from the humid, carbon dioxide-rich environment of the lungs into indoor air that's often the polar opposite. This abrupt transition can be a rude awakening to any viruses that have decided to hitch a ride, including the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. According to new research, SARS-CoV-2 infectivity can decrease by up to 90% within minutes of hitting indoor air (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2022, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2200109119).
The study is the first to investigate how environmental conditions can influence SARS-CoV-2's survival in aerosols shortly after exhalation. The scientists determined that the virus's lifespan is greatly affected by the relative humidity (RH) of the aerosol's new environment.
For example, at low RH (below 50%), the particles undergo a phase change: They crystallize as water evaporates off the aerosols and the salts within them concentrate, explains Jonathan Reid, lead author of the study and director of the Bristol Aerosol Research Centre at the University of Bristol. Within seconds, this can inactivate 50% of the virus within the paritcle.
At higher humidities, another'slower'mechanism dominates. When RH approaches 90%, 'a big driver for the loss of infectivity is actually a very rapid pH rise,' Reid says. The aerosol becomes more alkaline as it expels dissolved carbon dioxide while equilibrating to the lower CO2 levels outside the lungs. As a result, in more humid air, infectivity drops by 50% within the first five minutes, further decreasing to 90% within 20 minutes.
The findings are similar to what has been reported for other aerosolized viruses, such as influenza (Epidemiol. Infect. 1961 DOI: 10.1017/s0022172400039176), says Linsey Marr, an environmental engineer at Virginia Tech. 'The mechanisms and time scales sound very plausible,' she writes via email. Marr adds that, pending further evidence, these findings could eventually guide practices that mitigate the virus's spread. For example, drier indoor air could help limit exposure by making the aerosolized viruses less viable.
But Marr points out that 'other studies have shown that the virus survives better at lower RH,' a discrepancy she attributes to differences in both methodology and the timescales considered across the studies. 'I would want to be more sure about the results before recommending low RH,' she says. Dry air can also make people more vulnerable to viral infections, Marr and Reid explain, by either impeding immune response or hindering the lung's natural defense mechanisms.
However, even if the study doesn't yield any immediate updates to current mitigation strategies, Reid points out that the research is the first to provide insight into some of the processes that can alter the airborne virus's infectivity. 'It's another piece of the jigsaw puzzle to help us understand transmission risk,' he says, both for COVID-19 and other airborne diseases.
---------------------------------------------
PICATINNY ARSENAL CONTAMINATION LARGER THAN PREVIOUSLY KNOWN
https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/morris/rockaway-township/2022/07/07/picatinny-arsenal-nj-contamination-larger/6612599001/
Tags: us_NJ, industrial, follow-up, environmental, dust
ROCKAWAY TOWNSHIP ' A microcosm of American industrialization, Picatinny Arsenal has evolved more thoroughly and rapidly than just about any part of North Jersey.
It opened less than 150 years ago as the Dover Powder Depot with brick bunkers designed to fill explosive ingredients. Today, workers at the 5,853-acre complex officially known as the U.S. military's Joint Center of Excellence for Guns and Ammunition hone the nation's highest-end armament.
Surrounded by a fence and guarded 24 hours per day, the area is home to classified military weaponry, ammunition research and engineering. The arsenal's portfolio "comprises nearly 90% of the Army's lethality and all conventional ammunition for joint warfighters," according to its website.
It is America's test kitchen for weaponry. It is also one of the most polluted sites in North Jersey.
Inevitable mistakes in a quest for progression have made an ecological impact. The U.S. Army's newly released sixth Five-Year Review for the Picatinny Arsenal Superfund site analyzed 22 remedial actions underway to clean up pollution among its 156 documented areas of concern, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency records.
---------------------------------------------
PROBE FINDS CHEMICAL RESPONSIBLE
https://www.newagebd.net/article/175293/probe-finds-chemical-responsible
Tags: Bangladesh, industrial, follow-up, death, hydrogen_peroxide
A probe body formed by the Chattogram divisional commissioner over fire and explosions at the privately-run BM Container Depot at Sitakunda submitted its report on Wednesday a month after the incident.
At least 51 people, including 10 firefighters, were killed and over 200 injured in the fire and massive explosion at the depot on the outskirts of the country's port city Chattogram on June 4. The fire was doused on June 8.
The report submitted to Chattogram divisional commissioner Md Ashraf Uddin by committee chief Mizanur Rahman, also the additional divisional commissioner (development), found that the fire originated from the unauthorised chemical hydrogen peroxide stored in some containers at the depot.
Al Razi Chemical Complex Limited, a sister concern of the depot owner Smart Group of Industries, owned the hydrogen peroxide-laden containers.
A member of the committee said that they had made 20 specific suggestions in their report regarding fire control at inland container depots.
The divisional commissioner told reporters that they would send the report to the ministry and the ministry would take further decisions.
---------------------------------------------
US EPA FINDS NEW RISKS FOR 3 SOLVENTS: METHYLENE CHLORIDE, N-METHYLPYRROLIDONE (NMP), AND PERCHLOROETHYLENE
https://cen.acs.org/policy/chemical-regulation/US-EPA-finds-new-risks/100/web/2022/07
Tags: public, discovery, environmental, methylene_chloride, pce, solvent
Three common solvents'methylene chloride, N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP), and perchloroethylene'pose unreasonable risks to human health under multiple use scenarios, the US Environmental Protection Agency concludes in separate draft risk evaluations released within days of each other.
The assessments replace previous ones finalized under the Donald J. Trump administration. They incorporate changes announced a year ago to the way the EPA evaluates the risks of high-priority chemicals in the US marketplace. The EPA says it made the changes to ensure its risk assessments are science-based and legally defensible.
The three solvents are among the first 10 chemicals the EPA is evaluating under the 2016 revisions to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The agency is updating assessments for all 10 chemicals to reflect the policy changes.
The changes include no longer assuming workers wear personal protective equipment. For each of the three solvents, eliminating that assumption resulted in a slight increase in the number of uses with unreasonable risks. The EPA found five additional uses with unreasonable risks for methylene chloride, three for NMP, and one for perchloroethylene. The agency will address those and dozens of other uses that have unreasonable risks as it considers risk management options for the three solvents over the next few years.
---------------------------------------------
---
For more information about the DCHAS-L e-mail list, contact the Divisional membership chair at membership**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Follow us on Twitter **At_Symbol_Here**acsdchas
Previous post | Top of Page | Next post