US moves to improve safety of chemical storage

EPA, OSHA and ATF provide information and lessons learned about the safe storage, handling and management of Ammonium Nitrate 

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) issued a chemical advisory that provides information on the hazards of ammonium nitrate (AN) storage, handling and management.

This action supports the goals of President Obama’s August 2013 executive order on “Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security.”

Storing chemicals may be a health hazard
for workers and communities.

The advisory provides lessons learned for facility owners and operators, emergency planners and first responders from recent incidents, including the explosion in West, Texas, involving AN in order to prevent similar incidents.

“Understanding and minimizing the hazards posed by solid ammonium nitrate used in fertilizers is a key component of this advisory,” said Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “In addition, the community emergency planning and response information in this document provides a valuable tool that will help protect workers, first responders and communities throughout the country.”

“Ammonium nitrate can be very dangerous, and it’s imperative that employers, workers and first responders all understand the hazards,” said Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health. “With this understanding, together they can control these hazards and save lives and limbs.”

The advisory takes steps to reduce the risks associated with AN to workers, first responders and communities.

It is part of an ongoing coordinated federal government effort to improve chemical safety with regards to AN and includes information on ensuring proper building design, storage containers and fire protection at their locations; learning from other accidents; and knowing and understanding the hazards that exist when developing their emergency response plans.

Click here to view the advisory and more information on EPA’s risk management program.

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Wood dust can explode in dry or wet state: Report

B.C. sawmill study makes surprise finding on using moisture to prevent deadly explosions

Wet wood dust is just as explosive as
dry wood dust, a report shows. 

The smallest-sized wet wood dust is just as explosive as dry wood dust from B.C. Interior sawmills, according to a report prepared by FPInnovations for the provincial sawmill sector.

The finding raises questions about the usefulness of misting at sawmills. It was part of a first-of-its-kind study in British Columbia ordered after a pair of deadly sawmill explosions in the province last year that killed four workers.

“It was assumed moisture would be a bigger factor,” said Darrell Wong, one of the report’s authors. He is a manager of FPInnovations, the non-profit forestry research centre at the University of B.C.

But Wong said more study must be done before sawmills should consider jettisoning misting systems. Misting systems have a secondary function of knocking wood dust out of the air.

Wood dust suspended in the air was confirmed as the fuel source for the two explosions by WorksafeBC, the province’s chief workplace safety agency.

As part of the new study, hundreds of dust samples from 18 sawmills were analyzed, with some samples sent to Chilworth Technologies, a lab in Princeton, N.J. that determines how explosive substances are.

The report has been made widely available through forest industry associations and the United Steelworkers, which helped fund the study. WorkSafeBC is also helping to distribute the report.

The study also found there is not much difference among the explosiveness of various types of wood dust of timber, including type of wood (spruce, pine, fir, Douglas fir or cedar) and timber killed by the mountain pine beetle. That suggests timber killed by the beetle has not had its properties changed to make it more explosive, said the report.

But the report said the milling of beetle-killed pine may create more dust or dust that is easier to raise into a cloud than other woods. Among the factors needed to create a dust explosion is fine particles suspended in the air.

FPInnovations applied two criteria to determine which areas in the sawmills were at greater risk of an explosive hazard: the accumulation of wood dust at a rate of greater than one eighth of an inch in an eight-hour shift and samples that have more than 40 per cent of particles that were 425 micrometres (just under half a millimetre) or less in size.

Just 20 wood dust samples met those criteria, with 14 of those from mills that were processing beetle-killed timber. A majority of these samples were collected from under or near conveyors and in basements.

A sawmill explosion at Babine Forest Products near Burns Lake on Jan. 20, 2012 killed two workers. An explosion at Lakeland Mills in Prince George on April 23, 2013, killed another two workers. Dozens more workers were injured in the two explosions and fires.

This article was edited for length. Source: The Vancouver Sun

Keep wood dust in check

Industrial air cleaners like Electrocorp's Dirty Dog
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Wood dust is not only an explosive hazard, it can also affect the health and well-being of workers, especially over the long term.

Electrocorp offers highly efficient air purifiers for wood shops and sawmills, which help remove airborne wood dust particles and other contaminants.

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Office vapor intrusion spurs lawsuit

Five female office workers say gasoline fumes harmed their unborn children

Exposure to chemical fumes may affect an unborn child.

JACKSON (AP) -- Texaco Inc. has settled a lawsuit with five women who alleged the oil company was responsible for ailments of children born after they were exposed to leaded gasoline fumes.

Both sides informed the Mississippi Supreme Court on Aug. 15 the settlement was reached. Terms were not released.

The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal last week and sent the case to Jefferson County for approval of the settlement.

A jury had returned a $17 million verdict for the women in 2010.

The women said they were pregnant when they worked in an office building in Fayette that had been a gasoline station affiliated with Texaco, and were exposed to fumes from tanks left in the ground.

As result, they claimed, their children were born with disabilities and illnesses.

Wayne Drinkwater of Jackson, an attorney for Texaco, now part of Chevron, argued before the Supreme Court the company didn't own or operate the station and leaks were not its fault.

Eduardo Flechas, representing the families, said the court record showed Texaco had control of the tanks when the leak occurred between 1974 and 1976.

Source: Sun Herald

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Safety awareness program for combustible dust

OHS Canada recently distributed the news that Aurora Pictures has recently released two new safety awareness programs, Combustible Dust Awareness and Ladder Safety.

Combustible dust hazards exist in a wide variety of industries: grain handling, food processing, plastics, wood and paper products, textiles, pharmaceuticals, and metal fabrication, among many others.

In fact, over 130 products or materials have been identified that can present combustible dust hazards. Many facilities that have processes that produce dust or fine particles may be at risk for a dust explosion.

The 8-minute video provides a general awareness of how combustible dust explosions are caused and what you can do to recognize and mitigate the possible hazards before it’s too late.  It includes a detailed explanation of what combustible dust is and what makes dust such a highly combustible fuel source.

The other program concerns ladders, a common fixture both at work and at home. But statistics show that falls from ladders result in 300 deaths and 165,000 injuries yearly and that falls from a short height can result in serious injuries.

A 17-minute video details all of the hazards of working on a ladder. It discusses how to select the right ladder for the job, inspecting the ladder before use, how to transport and set up a ladder, working safely on ladders and ascending and descending ladders safely. For those who work with ladders, this video will give you all the information you need to ensure you and your employees are working safely.

Both of the programs are available in DVD and streaming media formats. Additional information or free preview is available by calling Electrolab Training Systems at 1-800-267-7482 or emailing safety@electrolab.ca.

Source: OHS Canada

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