OMB Extends Review Period for OSHA’s GHS Hazard Communication Revision

January 27, 2012 By in News Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Springfield, MO, January 25, 2012 –(PR.com)– The US Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has officially extended its review period for OSHA‘s revised Hazard Communication Standard (GHS).

The pending final rule for Hazard Communication was submitted to the OMB on October 25, 2011 by OSHA. The OMB then had 90 days to either rule on the revised regulations or to extend the review period. The 90 days was set to expire this week and it now appears that the OMB has officially extend the review period.

This extension of the review period is an extremely common action from the OMB and now allows them to almost indefinitely extend the time frame.

This revised Hazard Communication Standard(HCS) is commonly referred to as GHS. GHS stands for Globally Harmonized System. This revision is OSHA’s method of aligning their Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910.1200) with the United Nations’ (UN) standard for chemical safety. The most significant changes include: New MSDS requirements (new name is SDS), new chemical labeling requirements and new employee training requirements.

Here is an abstract from the OMB:

“OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) requires chemical manufacturers and importers to evaluate the hazards of the chemicals they produce or import, and prepare labels and material safety data sheets to convey the hazards and associated protective measures to users of the chemicals. All employers with hazardous chemicals in their workplaces are required to have a hazard communication program, including labels on containers, material safety data sheets (MSDS), and training for employees. Within the United States (U.S.), there are other Federal agencies that also have requirements for classification and labeling of chemicals at different stages of the life cycle. Internationally, there are a number of countries that have developed similar laws that require information about chemicals to be prepared and transmitted to affected parties. These laws vary with regard to the scope of substances covered, definitions of hazards, the specificity of requirements (e.g., specification of a format for MSDSs), and the use of symbols and pictograms.

The inconsistencies between the various laws are substantial enough that different labels and safety data sheets must often be used for the same product when it is marketed in different nations. The diverse and sometimes conflicting national and international requirements can create confusion among those who seek to use hazard information. Labels and safety data sheets may include symbols and hazard statements that are unfamiliar to readers or not well understood. Containers may be labeled with such a large volume of information that important statements are not easily recognized. Development of multiple sets of labels and safety data sheets is a major compliance burden for chemical manufacturers, distributors, and transporters involved in international trade. Small businesses may have particular difficulty in coping with the complexities and costs involved. As a result of this situation, and in recognition of the extensive international trade in chemicals, there has been a long-standing effort to harmonize these requirements and develop a system that can be used around the world. In 2003, the United Nations adopted the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). Countries are now adopting the GHS into their national regulatory systems.”

EHS-Safety, Fire, Loss Prevention & Risk Professional – Seeking New Opportunity in the Chicago Area.

January 26, 2012 By in EHS / Safety Job Opening, Illinois, Jack Benton, News Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Your friendly Safety Blogger is looking for leads for a full time job, or offers to interview for an opening, in the Chicago area. I wouldn’t normally do this on my Blog, but with twin teen-aged Daughters in high school and my Wife coming home today and letting me know that her job is moving to Indiana from Romeoville, Illinois at the end of June, I need your help! My contract consulting isn’t providing enough hours as a full time job would, and since we just can’t “up and move”, our choices are few.So I truly appreciate your help!

If you are in need of an energetic, hands on, people oriented and money saving safety professional, please contact me. Below is a general synopsis of my background. Please contact me either by leaving a comment to this post or viewing my LinkedIn profile and contacting me there!

THANK YOU for your help!

Jack Benton

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am a dedicated, passionate, results proven, highly successful “hands on” and solutions-oriented EHS & Safety management professional with 10+ years of experience across multiple industries in a single and multiple site setting with an employee base of 500 – 2,000+ employees. I possess a strong background envisioning, implementing, and assessing the efficacy of comprehensive risk, loss prevention, environmental, health and safety programs in full compliance with all applicable local, state, and federal regulations and guidelines.

I have excellent communication and liaison abilities with regulatory agencies and a strong aptitude developing and implementing comprehensive professional development and employee safety education programs. I have exceptional skills in budget administration, staff oversight, resource allocation, and relationship management. I will be an innovative leader adept in leveraging keen strategic vision and solutions orientation to increase staff morale, streamline operations, ensure safety, and perpetuate quality service and support.

I have led and dramatically improved safety performance and reduced employee accident rates in all of my previous endeavors in the manufacturing industry in both a single and a multi-location, union and non-union employee environment. I am extremely successful in collaborating with all levels of organizations to implement safety processes and improve overall performance, providing a positive impact on the overall business success of the company.

I will guarantee success in the development, implementation, use and management of the following programs and others to promote and cultivate a proactive “safety culture”. :

  • CSD – Safety Director Certification. – Graduate 6/30/2008 – Western Iowa Tech College.
  • HACCP FDA Certification – Completed August 2010.
  • Above Average Workers Compensation Cost Reduction.
  • Risk Management & Risk Assessments
  • Highly Successful Employee Injury DART Rate & Injury Reduction.
  • Project Management & Process Safety Management Experience.
  • Accident investigation, management of workers’ compensation cases and OSHA 300 logs management.
  • JHA / JSA conducted on manufacturing processes, equipment, employee job duties to ensure a safe work environment.
  • Work station ergonomic assessment and re-design to minimize or eliminate Repetitive Motion Injuries.
  • Identify, through Labor Metrics, the competencies that are required for each position at each level.  Evaluate employees and design, write and implement the needed training programs.
  • Fleet Safety (100+Vehicles) including DOT, FMCSR, FMCSA, CSA 2010 & HOS Log records retention, drug testing requirements and driver safety program management.
  • Emergency management and employee response team development and implementation.
  • Facility Security Management experience along with use of CCTV, Key Card Access, Fire and Security Alarms.
  • Process Safety, risk management and loss prevention audit and regulatory compliance.
  • Creation, instruction and administration of employee training programs such as MSDS, First Aid /AED, Forklift, DOT, LOTO (lock-out – tag out), Confined Space,  HAZCOM and others as required.
  • Safety Committee creation and administration.
  • Industrial Hygiene Experience Including: Noise and chemical PEL exposure monitoring of employees.
  •  Preparation of yearly safety budgets for departmental programs and PPE.
  • Environmental protection, hazardous waste removal including biohazard materials, Clean Air Act chemical air release reporting (EPCRA) SARA Title 5, storm water (NPDES) permitting program Tier II compliance and SPCC Planning.
  • First aid and AED program implementation, administration and training.
  • Speak fluent English and basic Spanish.
  • Fire protection and prevention plans review, inspections and compliance.
  • Fire, facility security, loss prevention and life safety protection systems, operations and programs.
  • 10 Years of Fire Service Experience as a Lieutenant, Fire Marshal, Public Education Officer, Instructor, Public Information Officer, Fire Investigator and EMT / Firefighter.
  • Familiar with the use and administration of  ISO 9000, 14001, ASQ, SQF, NFPA, BOCA, ICC, ACGIH, OSHA, OSHA VPP, OHSAS 18001, NIOSH, TSCA, NPDES, HACCP, JCAHO, DOT, FMCSA, DOE, CAA, EPA, FDA,NEPA, SARA, Tier II, SPCC, “DuPont Stop Program”, RCRA, State and Local Municipal Government codes, compliance inspections & audits.

I would love to have an opportunity to leverage these and many other competencies as a member of your company’s team. I am available to interview and start a new position immediately.

Please feel free to contact me and I will be happy to send my resume to you. See the “About EHS Safety News” link above for more about me as well!

Sincerely,

Jack Benton

Email: JackBenton1@live.com

OSHA Accuses Illinois Company of Grain Bin Violations in Wisconsin

January 26, 2012 By in Grain Bin & Silo Safety, Grain Bin Safety, News, OSHA News Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

BLOOMINGTON, Ill.— The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has accused an Illinois company of five safety violations at a grain-handling facility in Wisconsin. The agency says in one case the company knowingly disregarded safety laws.

OSHA has proposed fines of $84,000 for Bloomington, Ill.-based Growmark. The company owns the facility in Ixonia, Wis., 25 miles west of Milwaukee.

OSHA says the company knowingly failed to take steps to protect workers before they entered grain bins. Growmark is also accused of failing to provide body harnesses or rescue equipment for work inside bins.

Growmark spokeswoman Amy Bradford told The (Bloomington) Pantagraph that the company is aware of OSHA’s action but otherwise didn’t comment. Growmark operates in 30 states and Canada.

Growmark has 15 days to pay the fines or contest the allegations.

Source: Chicago Tribune

High-Rise Fire Citations Pit City of Chicago Vs. State of Illinois. Should the building where a fatal fire took place have had a sprinkler system? Depends who you ask.

January 25, 2012 By in Fire Hazard, Fire Prevention, Firefighter Training & Safety, Firefighters, High Rise Fire Safety & Evacuation, Jack Benton, Laws, News, NFPA, Personal Safety, Public Safety, Safety Tags: , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

As the state fire marshal cites the owners of a Lake Shore Drive high rise for multiple violations following last week’s fatal fire, a clash is shaping up between the State of Illinois and Chicago over whose fire laws should have applied.

An exploration of the laws shows that confusion reigns, and that in many cases, not everyone agrees on what those laws require.

Illinois Fire Marshall Larry Matkaitis cited the building’s owners, Planned Property Management, for more than a dozen violations, including lack of a sprinkler system, and lack of automatic recall systems on the building’s elevators.

The victim, Shantel McCoy, died when the elevator on which she was riding, opened on the fire floor, hitting her with a blast estimated at 1500 degrees. An automated return system would have locked that elevator down on the building’s first floor when smoke alarms activated, preventing McCoy from ever going upstairs.

Neither sprinklers nor automated return systems are currently required for pre-1975 residential high-rises in Chicago, which claims home rule authority in following its own fire codes, rather than adhering to the more stringent Illinois fire laws. The state contends their law should apply.

“Sprinklers have been required in all high rise residential buildings under State law since 2002,” Matkaitis said in a statement. “The State Fire Code is the minimum fire code that must be met by Illinois municipalities with concurrent jurisdictions, including Chicago.”

It has been an ongoing dispute. When six people died in a fire at County Administration Building at 69 West Washington in 2003, a state report faulted the City of Chicago for failure to follow the stricter state law. That building was not sprinklered, and the report found that the fire likely would have been extinguished in seconds if fire sprinklers had been in use.

“The City of Chicago promulgated a fire code that was less stringent than the requirements of the state fire code,” the report from James Lee Witt and Associates stated. “The City of Chicago should institute an annual review of its Municipal Code, to ensure its compliance with state law and regulations. The City of Chicago should require installation of automatic fire sprinkler systems in high rise buildings.”

But the authors of the report also faulted the state for failure to enforce its own laws.

“The Office of the State Fire Marshal did not effectively inform jurisdictions within the State of Illinois that changes were made to the State Fire Code in January 2002,” the authors wrote. “There is ambiguity within the Office of the State Fire Marshal, regarding the State’s authority to enforce state fire codes within home rule jurisdictions.”

Indeed, on Thursday, when asked about the continuing dispute between Chicago and the State of Illinois, the Chicago Law Department cited Chicago’s home rule powers.

“The city believes that our fire code is as strong, or in a lot of ways, stronger than the state’s code,” said Roderick Drew, a law department spokesman. “Home rule authority gives us the ability to enforce our code.”

Drew added that “both the City of Chicago and State Fire Marshal share the same important goal of ensuring that all buildings have adequate fire safety features.”

Chicago officials insist that in many ways their code is superior to the state’s laws. For example, the Chicago code requires individual apartments to be capable of containing a fire so it doesn’t spread to other units. Plus, they note the state code does not insist on sprinklers in all cases, but rather sprinklers or “an approved engineered life safety system.”

A city official speaking on background, noted that modifications which include either sprinklers or other safety devices is now on the books, and that building owners have been given until 2015 to complete retrofits.

Not all home rule communities share the opinion that following the state code is optional. Peoria, which has both home rule authority and high rises, follows the Illinois Fire Code.

“We don’t soften anything,” said Chief Melanie Anderson, adding that when it comes to sprinklers, “we’re up to snuff on anything that has residential in it.”

Anderson said she was shocked when she learned through news reports that a building resident had ridden an elevator to her death in the Lake Shore Drive high rise.

“When I read that I just cringed,” she said. “That’s not supposed to happen any more.”

Three years ago, Fire Marshal David Foreman wrote a letter to all mayors and managers across Illinois, informing them that they were expected to follow the law.

“The LSC applies to all localities, including home rule units,” Foreman wrote. “It is the responsibility and duty of the local governmental authority to ensure such standards are being followed, or to adopt a code that provides equivalent fire safety.”

High Rise Owner Cited for Fire Code Violations

January 25, 2012 By in Fire Prevention, Jack Benton, News, NFPA, Personal Safety, Safety Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

 

Chicago’s Home Rule status complicates owners’ legal responsibility

Illinois‘ fire marshal on Wednesday cited the owners a high-rise building where a woman died in a fire earlier this month with more than a dozen fire code violations.

But Chicago’s Home Rule status complicates the owners’ legal responsibility.

State Fire Marshall Larry Matkaitis cited Planned Property Management, which owns the building at 3130 N. Lake Shore Drive, for 19 violations. Among them: not having an automatic elevator recall system, which would have grounded the elevators during a fire, or an automatic sprinkler system.

“Sprinklers have been required in all high rise residential buildings under State law since 2002,” Matkaitis said in a statement. “The State Fire Code is the minimum fire code that must be met by Illinois municipalities with concurrent jurisdictions, including Chicago.”

The building had neither system, but according to Chicago’s code, it wasn’t required to due to its age. Additionally, the building was not yet required to update its fire alarm system. An ordinance passed that required older high-rises to be retrofitted with a modern, connected system by this month was recently delayed. The new deadline is in 2015.

“There was neglect in that they were trying to use the Chicago code rather than the state code,” said Jim Schifiliti, a fire protection consultant, explaining the code enforcement system can be very confusing.

Chicago’s Home Rule means the city only enforces its own municipal standards, and those are less stringent than the standards the fire marshal used.

Shantel McCoy, 32, died in the Jan. 8th fire after the elevator in her building carried her right toward the intense heat and smoke from the 12th floor fire. It’s believed McCoy, who moved to Chicago less than a year ago from her native Philadelphia, died instantly when the doors opened.

“Maybe this person and this fire, they’ll finally start to address it and come up with their solutions,” said Schifiliti.

The fire also injured nine other people, including two firefighters.

McCoy’s mother has filed a lawsuit against Planned Property Management
Source: http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/3130-north-lake-shore-drive-fire-code-violations-home-rule-137641813.html#ixzz1kVkJeqpJ

 

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