Review of Northeast Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition

This Friday, December 3, 2010, we went to the 64th Annual Northeast Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel New Brunswick, NJ.  The conference was presented by the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), New Jersey Section, Inc. and co-sponsored by the Metro New York and Philadelphia Sections AIHA.  The title of the conference was "Welcome to the Future! Evolving Industrial Hygiene Opportunities."  The conference agenda included presentations in Nanotechnology by Dr. Chuck Geraci from the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH); Prevention through Design by Ms. Donna Heidel from NIOSH; Managing Risk in the Face of Change by Mr. T.J. Lentz from NIOSH; Industrial Forensics by Mr. Ryan Hall from RJ Lee Group; Bioterrorism Response by Dr. Nancy Connell from University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ); Before and After Measurements of Ergonomic Successes from Mr. Dan MacLeod of Dan McLeod LLC; and then the Bedbugs Invasion Panel that included Mr. Jay Taylor from Chubb and Son, Mr. Roy Viola, Esq. from McGiveny & Kluger, Mr. Rick Cooper of Cooper Pest Solutions, and Dr. Howard Sandler of Sandler Occupational Medical Associates.  The exhibition included AJ Abrams Co.; Analytics Corp., Belfor USA, Bomark Instruments,  EMSL, Environmental Reports, Nilfisk, Sandler Occupational Medicine Assoc., Unitech Services Group, and Zefon International to name a few.

The event like usual is great day for networking and catching up with people you haven't seen in a while.  It was great to see you folks, Mrs. Deborah Gul Haffner, Mr. Ed Olmstead, Mr. Stu Mirowitz, Mr. Jack Springston, Mr. Ed Gertz, Mr. Paul DeBiase, Mr. Ken Burns, Mr. Ron Smith, and Mr. Ken Shaw, to name a few.  As with most conferences, we go in hopes of learning something new or possibly meet someone who will help your business.  Well this conference was duo win on that front for us.  The Bedbug Panel provided alot of information that we will discuss in our next newsletter.  The Prevention Through Design presentation was our favorite.  It discussed "Building Industrial Hygiene into the Plan for Safer and Greener Economy."  Discussing the role of industrial hygiene in the green economy, and the need for industrial hygienist to be at the beginning of the design project.  Interesting statistic, from this presentation, was from an Australian Study that determined that design continues to be a significant contibutor to work-related serious injury.  37% of workplace fatalities involved design-related issues and another 14% of fatalities, design-related issues may have played a role.  If that statistic was not enough for us, the case studies presented emphasized how industrial hygienists involved at different stages of the project affected or prevented risk shifting.  The presentation also discussed whether worker safety and health should be included in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system?  A building could be rated platinum but were their any fatalities during construction, are the occupants happy with indoor air quality, or what are costs involved with operations and maintenance? 

Kudos to the New Jersey section for an excellant conference.

Related articles

• Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: "Nanomaterial safety a ... (nanotech-now.com)
• Free Tool Now Available to Conduct OSHA-Required PPE Assessment (prweb.com)
• OSHA Quick Takes - November 1, 2010 (ehssafetynews.wordpress.com)
• Hearing Conservation Clinic to Be Held in Chicago April 13, 2010 (eon.businesswire.com)

Floorings Affect on Indoor Air Quality

Mold growing on wood tacking under carpeting.

When Future Environment Designs performs an indoor air quality assessment we typically look at what's on the floor to see if that is hindering or contributing to the air quality problems.  Carpeting is a problem because the average person cannot clean it properly and if it gets wet you have to make sure you dry it completely to ensure mold (fungi) won't grow on it or in it.  We have seen mold grow even on the wood used for the tacking down the carpet as seen in the photo.  My preference is non-porous materials on the floor.  Researchers are now concerned about certain non-porous floors containing vinyl.  As the above linked article at Rodale.com "Caution: Floor May Be Toxic" discusses vinyl (PVC) and why it should be avoided.  The article says that researchers found that "PVC building materials, namely, vinyl flooring and coated wallpaper, were seven times more likely to contain hazardous additives when compared to nonplastic flooring options."  Vinyl flooring was also found to contain asbestos, cadmium, lead, and flame retardants.  "These substances are linked to asthma, fertility problems, learning disability, hormone-related diseases, and cancer."  It seems we will have to change our typical recommendation of vinyl floor tiles to linoleum, cork, bamboo and/or hardwood floors.  These floors are also approved for points under the Leadership Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) system.  The next time you are having problems with your flooring or considering remodeling look at linoleum, cork, bamboo and hardwood as better alternatives to vinyl floors or carpeting.

Related articles

• Study Finds Flooring & Wallpaper Contain Hazardous Additives (healthychild.org)
• Is Your Floor Making You Sick? (blisstree.com)
• Has Indoor Air Quality Been Getting Better or Worse? (planetsave.com)
• Kitchens & Baths: Clean & Easy Flooring (floortalk.wfca.org)
• Recycled Flooring Recognized by Industry Leading Publication & Highlights the Rise of Green Building in America (prnewswire.com)
• Tests Uncover Hidden Chemicals in Wallpaper, Flooring (greenbiz.com)
• Study of Home Improvement Products Finds Lead, Phthalates, Cadmium, Organotins, Other Harmful Ingredients (yubanet.com)
• Best Way to Improve Indoor Air Quality (planetsave.com)

Keeping Your Family Safe Program - Sustainable Homes

Monday, February 9, 2009, we had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Marilyn Black, founder of the Greenguard Environmental Institute (GEI) for our internet radio program “Keeping Your Family Safe” (find it at http://www.voiceamerica.com/ on the Green Talk Network). The Greenguard Environmental Institute (visit there website at http://www.greenguard.org/) is an industry-independent, non-profit organization that oversees the Greenguard Certification Program. Dr. Black discussed Greenguard Certification Program and its impact on building materials and furnishings. In our program, we also covered the following points:

• The Greenguard Certification Program allows manufacturers to voluntarily certify their products, with a third party organization, as emitting low levels of various contaminants. Some contaminants cannot be present at all, while others have to meet recognized federal, state, local, or in some cases industry standards.
• There are no regulations requiring products to be tested, or for that matter what contaminants to test for or for the levels to test at.
• In developing an environmental footprint, you can find the best calculators on the internet.
• We discussed the impact that energy efficiency can have on indoor air quality.
• We discussed indoor air quality concerns with phthalates, formaldehyde, volatile organic compounds, mercury, and multi-chemical exposures.
• Concerns in sustainable homes with bamboo products and compact fluorescents.

This Monday, February 23, 2009, we will be discussing “Home Safety – Not Just Ramps and Grab Bars” with Fritzi Gros-Daillon founder of Transitions USA.

IAQA NYC Metro Chapter Meeting

As an Advisory Board Member of the New York Metro Chapter of the Indoor Air Quality Association, I would like to invite you to a workshop on Wednesday, December 5, 2007. The workshop is titled:

“LEADERSHIP IN ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN”

The goal of the workshop is to familiarize the attendees with the US Green Building Council and how to attain the various LEED Professional Accreditations. The workshop will be held at the Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, & Airmen’s Club at 283 Lexington Avenue (between 36th and 37th streets) in New York City from 8AM to 12 Noon. A continental breakfast will be served and there will be plenty of time for networking and talking with speakers. The cost for IAQA members is $40.00 and $60.00 for non-members. Attendees will be awarded 4 RC’s from the AIAQC.