Book Report: "World War C - Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic and How To Prepare for the Next One" by Sanjay Gupta, MD

As an industrial hygienist, we found this book a fascinating read.  So you can understand why we say "as an industrial hygienist" let's discuss what industrial hygiene is.  "Industrial Hygiene (IH) is a science and art devoted to the anticipation, recognition, evaluation, control, and confirmation of protection from those environmental factors or stresses arising in or from the workplace which may cause sickness, impaired health, and well-being, or significant discomfort among workers or among citizens of the community."  To learn more about IH click here.

 

Air Quality Sampling tools for the IH

Since the COVID-19 pandemic has been the most significant environmental factor of modern times it was interesting to read the number of meetings and the decisions made.  The book goes through discussions with many of the people making the decisions during COVID and was interesting how then Vice President Mike Pence understood the need to let the scientists do their job.  The section of the book covering how vaccinations work especially these newer mRNA vaccines and how they help the immune system repel invaders was informational and understandable.

Part 2 of the book, gives common sense recommendations for becoming pandemic-proof.  Becoming pandemic P.R.O.O.F. is actually an acronym for:

• P - Plan ahead.
• R - Rethink and rewire risk in your brain.
• O - Optimize health.
• O - Organize Family
• F - Fight for the future of us.  

Obviously, part 2 goes into each of these giving recommendations.  These recommendations came from the "hundreds of hours of the writer's conversations with experts from all disciplines of our society."  Some of these recommendations are for our country but others are recommendations many of us could put into place for ourselves.   One of our favorite chapters was the chapter on "Rethink and Rewire Risk in Your Brain."  Obviously, at the beginning of this pandemic, very few of us had the knowledge of how to evaluate the risk involved.  But now we do.  The section specifically on avoiding traps was very interesting because of how many of us have these traps and how many friends and clients when discussing COVID had these traps.

If you're into reading readable scientific books we recommend reading this one.

Governor Cuomo Announces Schools Can Open. Can They or Should They?

New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that public schools can decide to open as long as they are in a region where the average rate of positive coronavirus tests is below 5 percent over a two-week period.  To read Governor Cuomo's announcement click here.  It is interesting to note that still means School Districts will have to figure out how to open, handle busing, and all the other parts of the schooling process.  There is plenty of information that indicates that children are very efficient spreaders of viruses.  Forbes magazine recently published an article "New Evidence Suggests Young Children Spread Covid-19 More Efficiently Than Adults", which is about two studies, one published in  The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and the other is a pre-print manuscript awaiting peer-review.  The JAMA study shows young children who have mild to moderate Covid-19 symptoms have 10 to 100 times as much SARS-CoV-2 in the nasopharynx as older children and adults.  The other study showed that children age 14 and younger risk of transmitting Covid-19 was 22.4 percent—more than twice that of adults aged 30 to 49, whose rate of contagiousness was about 11 percent.  As an industrial hygienist and a certified indoor environmental consultant, we believe school administration/boards of education need to use some basic industrial hygiene and indoor air quality principles to open safely.  It will mean that quite a few things need to change to be able to keep students, teachers, and staff safe.  Like any basic industrial hygiene problem, we should use the hierarchy of controls to protect workers by reducing the potential exposure to SARS-CoV-2.

Hierarchy of Control Methods

The first hierarchy of control is the elimination or the substitution of the hazard.  This control is about prevention if we can eliminate the exposure then we eliminate the hazard.  So if we can make sure individuals with Covid-19 do not attend school we can eliminate the exposure.  To accomplish this most facilities are doing a combination of questionnaires and temperature taking to ensure people who are sick stay home and out of the workplace.  However, this does not capture asymptomatic individuals who can also spread SARS-CoV-2.   A recent study discussed in STAT's article "Fever checks are a flawed way to flag Covid-19 cases", indicated that Covid-19 patients were 27 times more likely than others to have lost their sense of smell.  But they were only 2.6 times more likely to have fever or chills, suggesting that anosmia (the loss of sense of smell) produces a clearer signal and may, therefore, be a better Covid-19 catching net than fever.  The idea of using a smell test is supported by a USA Today article "Why do so many COVID-19 patients lose their sense of smell? Scientists now know."  Testing to determine if an individual has lost their sense of smell can be done in several ways (for example, having a person smell a scratch-and-sniff card and pick the correct odor out of four choices) with the gold standard being the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test called UPSIT.  The scents are released by scratching the microencapsulated scents with a pencil.  The test taker has a choice of 4 answers for each and the test takes 10 to 15 minutes.  This would prevent individuals from entering the school and hence eliminate the hazard.  Unfortunately, it doesn't totally eliminate the hazard.  So we must add additional controls to continue to reduce the exposure.   

SARS-CoV-2

The next level of control would be engineering controls.  According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s website "Indoor Air and Coronavirus (COVID-19)" there is growing evidence that the SARS-CoV-2 remains airborne in indoor environments for hours, potentially increasing in concentration over time.  Due to this evidence, we would use the engineering controls ventilation (bringing fresh air from outside) and air filtration (removing the virus from the air inside the building) to reduce the potential exposure to SARS-CoV-2.  The purpose of the heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system of a building is to bring fresh air from outside the building to dilute the contaminants that may build-up in a building.  Humans produce CO2 and body odor plus other contaminants (i.e., moisture, if we're sick viruses & bacteria) and other processes in the building produce other contaminants (i.e., cleaning chemicals, copiers, uncontrolled moisture can produce mold, etc.).  The HVAC system should be designed to reduce these contaminants and provide a certain amount of fresh air per person in the building.  When we are concerned about the indoor air quality (IAQ) of a space we use carbon dioxide (CO2) as an indicator of how well the ventilation system is ventilating a space.  In other words how well the ventilation system, is reducing the contaminants in the space.  The American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) publishes a standard 62.1-2010 "Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality" as a guideline for determining acceptable IAQ (for the purposes of comfort).  This guideline recommends maintaining CO2 levels in a space no greater than 700 parts per million (ppm) above outdoor air levels.  However, a recent article in The Conversation titled "How to use ventilation and air filtration to prevent the spread of coronavirus indoors" discusses research that showed the effects of ventilation on a tuberculosis outbreak at Taipei University.  The study showed when engineers improved air circulation in the rooms and got the CO2 levels in the rooms reduced to under 600 ppm (from above 3,000 ppm) the outbreak stopped.  This shows that if we use CO2 detectors in rooms to ensure the rooms are properly ventilated and we can keep CO2 levels below 600 ppm we have a better chance of reducing transmission of the virus in these rooms.  The same article also discusses using air cleaners for air filtration there are several items to understand when using air cleaners.  First, you want an air cleaner that has a high-efficiency particulate air filter (HEPA) that is capable of filtering the particles at 99.97% of all particles at 5 microns and greater. The next thing to consider is how powerful it is and finally how reliable are its claims.  The Conversation article provides some excellent links for the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) that certifies air cleaners and a Harvard-Colorado University Boulder Air Cleaner Calculator for Schools tool for helping to decide the best air cleaner for a particular classroom.  This too may not completely eliminate the hazard so we will have to go to the next control - Administrative and work practice controls.

According to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s website  "How COVID-19 Spreads" the virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person:

• Between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet).
• Through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks.
• These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly inhaled into the lungs.
• COVID-19 may be spread by people who are not showing symptoms.
• It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes.  This is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.

Administrative controls to reduce this exposure would include social distancing, surface cleaning and disinfecting, and handwashing (we discussed handwashing in our blog post regarding Future Environment Design's Pandemic Policy).  The CDC website "Strategies for Protecting K-12 School Staff from COVID-19" has a lot of information and resources on handling social distancing, and surface cleaning and disinfecting for schools for everything including sports, music, and busing.  Another idea some schools are considering is holding in-person classes outdoors.  An article in the magazine Fast Company titled "Inside the Quest to Reopen Schools-By Moving Classes Outside" discusses the work of the nonprofit organization called Green Schoolyards America.  Green Schoolyards America with other organizations has created the National COVID-19 Outdoor Learning Initiative which has been working with schools to create outdoor learning spaces.  This is an outgrowth from a webinar held on June 4, 2020, entitled "Outdoor Spaces as Essential Assets for School Districts's COVID-19 Response".

The final level of control would be personal protective equipment (PPE).  Though face coverings are not truly considered PPE but for the purposes of public health and the fact we want the person to wear something, we will take the liberty to consider it this level of control which is the last and least effective control.

Face Covering, not a surgical mask

If you have read our previous blog post "Filtering Facepiece Respirator or a Dust Mask or N95 Respirator versus a Surgical Mask" on the difference between N95 respirators/filtering facepieces/dust masks vs surgical masks.  You know there is a big difference between surgical masks and N95 respirators.  In our blog post, we mentioned face coverings but there still seems to be some confusion.  We blame the media for not using consistent wording or terminology.  They go back and forth utilizing the wording face coverings and masks.  A face covering is not a mask (though they are now making things that look like a surgical mask but specifically say not for medical use (see picture above), which tells you that it is not a surgical mask but just a face covering).  The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has a website devoted to "COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions".  This website has some basic points regarding cloth face coverings:

• May be commercially produced or improvised (i.e., homemade) garments, scarves, bandanas, or items made from t-shirts or other fabrics.
• Are worn in public over the nose and mouth to contain the wearer's potentially infectious respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks and to limit the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), to others.
• Are not considered personal protective equipment (PPE).
• Will not protect the wearer against airborne transmissible infectious agents due to loose fit and lack of seal or inadequate filtration.
• Are not appropriate substitutes for PPE such as respirators (e.g., N95 respirators) or medical face masks (e.g., surgical masks) in workplaces where respirators or face masks are recommended or required to protect the wearer.
• May be used by almost any worker, although those who have trouble breathing or are otherwise unable to put on or remove a mask without assistance should not wear one.
• May be disposable or reusable after proper washing.

More and more data continues to come in proving the value of wearing face coverings.  The CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report published a study "Absence of Apparent Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from Two Stylists After Exposure at a Hair Salon with a Universal Face Covering Policy-Springfield, Missouri, May 2020".  The results of that study are pictured above.    Another article that discusses the benefits of face-coverings for protecting people from SARS-CoV2 is at the Fast Company website titled "Countries where everyone wore masks saw COVID death rates 100 times lower than projected".  The CDC has a website called "Use of Cloth Face Coverings to Help Slow the Spread of COVID-19".  This website provides information regarding cloth face coverings; how to wear cloth face coverings, considerations for wearing cloth face coverings, making cloth face coverings, and washing cloth face coverings.

By using the hierarchy of controls we discussed above, schools could open to in-person schooling.  But these are significant changes to the way schools have been run for years.  The question really is does the school have the resources to change and can it adapt to these changes.  Very tough questions for administrators, teachers, and parents, and students.     

OSHA's Silica Standard - What's All The Fuss About? Part Two

In our previous post, we discussed that as long as you were performing tasks that were listed in Table 1 of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Respirable Crystalline Silica 1926.1153 standard we didn't see what all the fuss was about.  Even if some tasks required a respirator some of those tasks would allow you to use an administrative control (have the worker do the task for 4 hours or less) to eliminate the respirator requirement.  The fuss is all about those tasks that do not eliminate respirator usage (i.e, Task (x) Jackhammers and handheld powered chipping tools with a water delivery system at the point of impact, used indoors or in an enclosed area) in Table 1 or a task not listed in Table 1.  We already discussed the requirements, if Table 1 requires a respirator in Part One of this blog.  So the question is what is required if your task is not listed in Table 1 or you can't fully & properly implement the engineering controls, work practices, and respiratory protection described in Table 1?  Well that's a long story and that's what all the fuss is all about!

Mr. Peter Delucia's Silica Presentation at the PACNY Conference

Before we get into this long story, we would like to thank Mr. Peter Delucia, of AAC Contracting, for his assistance in helping us write this blog post.  Mr. Delucia's presentation at the Professional Abatement Contractors of New York (PACNY) 22nd Annual Environmental Conference was jam packed with examples, references, and information out in the internet to assist employers wanting to comply with this standard.  Much of that information helped us write this post.

If you can't use Table 1 (the above video would be a Table 1 activity), then you have to use an alternative exposure control method (d).  Which first requires that no employee be exposed to an airborne concentration of respirable crystalline silica ( silica) in excess of 50 micrograms per cubic meter (ug/m3), calculated as an 8-hour Time Weighted Average (TWA).  Second employers must perform an exposure assessment (d)(2)(i) for each employee who is or may reasonably be expected to be exposed to silica at or above the action level (25 ug/m3).  Here you have two choices either the performance option (d)(2)(ii) or scheduled monitoring option (d)(2)(iii).  The performance option allows combination of air monitoring or objective data that is sufficient to accurately characterize employee exposures to silica. The performance option can be almost like Table 1 in that the employer can use objective data that is created by others to determine employee exposures to silica.  Some manufacturers are creating objective data for their tools (i.e., Milwaukee Tool, which has some objective data information for some of their tools and shrouds).  You can use these by just following the instructions on the objective data and making sure you meet the conditions listed in objective data.  The second choice is to perform initial monitoring (scheduled monitoring) to assess the 8-hour TWA exposures for each employee on the basis of one or more personal breathing zone air samples that reflect the exposures of employees on each shift, for each job classification, in each work area.  Which means you need to have the personal air sampling equipment and a laboratory for analysis of your air samples.  This is a little complicated and because most people are unfamiliar with how to do personal air sampling, this can be quite intimidating!

However, with the proper training (we do a respirable crystalline silica competent person course) and a good laboratory to support your efforts the competent person could perform the sampling necessary to meet the OSHA requirements.  There is some basic equipment that is needed to do sampling (as you can see from the video above).  One of the most important pieces is the personal air sampling pump.  These pumps are portable and are usually worn on the waist of the person you want to determine their exposure.  There are quite a few manufacturers of these pumps (Sensidyne, maker of Gillian sample pumps & SKC, maker of Universal sample pumps, etc.).  You want these pumps to be durable and be able to handle a drop here and there.  Purchasing these pumps is not a bad idea but before you consider doing that we need to remind you that these pumps need to be calibrated against a primary standard at least every three months.  Primary standards are not cheap (Buck Calibrator & Gilibrator, etc).  So unfortunately, its not that easy to buy the pumps and use them.  If you don't intend on using these pumps regularly a better choice would be to rent the pumps from a laboratory.  Then have the laboratory maintain and calibrate the pumps when they send them to you.  This also allows for billing the equipment to specific projects.  There are quite a few labs that can help you in that way (SGS Galson & EMSL, etc.).  This way you can tell them what you are sampling and they will send you the equipment and sampling media you need for doing the sampling and incorporate the analysis price for the whole exposure assessment.  They will also send you instructions on using the equipment properly, sample & chain of custody forms for doing the sampling, as needed. The samplers for silica are pictured below and you will want to use either one of these samplers.  The standard then goes into how often you will need to do scheduled monitoring based on the results, employee notification of results, and observation of monitoring results.

Personal Pump with PPI sampler for silica

Breathing zone sampling with aluminum cyclone sampler for silica

Once you have determined which method you are using (Exposure Assessments, or Scheduled monitoring), the employer must have a written exposure control plan.  The plan must cover the tasks in the workplace; a description of engineering controls, work practices, and respiratory protection used to limit exposure; housekeeping measures used to limit exposure; and procedures to restrict access.  The employer must update the plan at least annually and designate a competent person to make frequent and regular inspections of job sites, materials, & equipment to implement the plan.   The final step is to train the workers and the competent person on the exposure control plan so everyone understands and knows what is required under the plan.  Again, we have added a number of courses to our schedule or contact us here if you need us to work with you in developing your exposure control plan or exposure monitoring plan to help you keep your employees safe!

Related articles

• OSHA's Silica Standard - What's All The Fuss About? Part One(futureenv.blogspot.com)

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• Hierarchy of Control podcast(safetyatworkblog.com)

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• OSHA Fines Increase By 78%, Will That Lead To An Increase in Safety Consulting & Training?(futureenv.blogspot.com)

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OSHA Issues Hazard Alert for Hair Salon Owners & Workers?

Image via Wikipedia

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a hazard alert regarding hair smoothing products.  You can find this alert at OSHA's website titled "Hair Smoothing Products That Can Release Formaldehyde".  During Federal OSHA investigations, air tests showed formaldehyde at levels above OSHA's limits (of 0.5 ppm during an 8-hour work shift or 2 ppm during any 15-minute period) for formaldehyde in salons using Brazilian Blowout Acai Professional Smoothing Solution, labeled "formaldehyde free," and Brasil Cacau Cadiveu, resulting in violations and citations to the manufacturers and distributors of the products.  The violations included failing to list formaldehyde as a hazardous ingredient on the Material Safety Data Sheet (the hazard warning sheet) provided to downstream users (e.g., salon owners, stylists), failing to include proper hazard warnings on product labels, and failing to list the health effects of formaldehyde exposure on the MSDS.
Formaldehyde is a colorless, strong-smelling gas that presents a health hazard if workers are exposed.  You can be exposed to formaldehyde if you breathe it into your lungs, if it gets into your eyes, or if it is contained in a product that gets onto your skin.  You can also be exposed accidentally if you touch your face, eat food, or drink after using a product containing formaldehyde without first washing your hands.  It can irritate the eyes and nose, and cause coughing and wheezing.  Formaldehyde is a "sensitizer," which means that it can cause allergic reactions of the skin, eyes, and lungs such as asthma-like breathing problems and skin rashes and itching.  When formaldehyde is in a product that gets sprayed into the eyes, it can damage the eyes and cause blindness.  It is also a carcinogen.
It is important to realize that though the product may be labeled as formaldehyde free, formaldehyde might be listed as methylene glycol, formalin, methylene oxide, paraform, formic aldehyde, methanal, oxomethane, oxymethylene, or CAS Number 50-00-0.  All of these are names for formaldehyde under OSHA's formaldehyde standard.  There are also chemicals, such as timonacic acid (also called thiazolidinecarboxylic acid) that can release formaldehyde under certain conditions, such as those present during the hair smoothing treatment process.  Formaldehyde can be released from hair smoothing products that list any of these names on the label and workers can breathe it in or absorb it through their skin.  Workers can be exposed to formaldehyde during the entire hair straightening process, especially when heat is applied (e.g. blow-drying, flat ironing).

As a salon owners, you must follow the OSHA formaldehyde standard if a product contains formaldehyde or any of the chemicals mentioned above, this would include:

• Give employees appropriate gloves and other personal protective equipment (e.g., face shield, chemical splash goggles, chemical-resistant aprons) and train them on how to use this equipment while mixing and applying the products;
• Explain to workers how to read and understand the information on a product's label and MSDS;
• Make sure the workplace has eye and skin washing equipment if products that contain formaldehyde could be splashed onto the workers’ skin or into their eyes;
• Train workers how to safely clean up spills and properly throw products out; and
• Get workers the right medical attention (e.g., doctor exams) if they develop signs and symptoms of an exposure to formaldehyde or are exposed to large amounts of formaldehyde during an emergency (e.g., a large spill).

Contact Future Environment Designs and we can help you with any of the above items.  Give us a call, if you think workers may be exposed to above the OSHA formaldehyde standard and you need air testing to ensure compliance with the air quality standards.  We are here to help.

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2011 Northeast Regional Industrial Hygiene Conference & Exposition is Friday

This Friday is the 2011 Northeast Regional Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition held annually at Hyatt Regency Hotel in New Brunswick, New Jersey.  The title of this year's conference is "Emergency Preparedness - 10 Years Beyond & GHS - New Horizons".  According to the published program interesting topics include the "Fukushima Accident in Japan" by Dennis Quinn, CHP, DAQ, Inc. and the "Making a Difference: Sustainable Construction Practices at MTA & NYCT" by Thomas Abdallah, P.E. LEED AP, Chief Environmental Engineer, MTA New York City Transit.  We are looking forward to attending the Conference, and the Exposition Hall with the vendors is always like going to a class reunion for us.  We hope you get a chance to attend this event and hope to see you there. 

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AIHA Survey Indicates Issues That Concern Industrial Hygiene Profession

Image via WikipediaThe American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) conducts a biennial public policy survey of its members to determine concerns for the industrial hygiene profession in 2011-2012.  The survey was conducted on-line in October, 2010.  The AIHA uses the survey to list the top public policy issues of concern to AIHA members and the occupational and environmental health and safety (OEHS) profession over the next two years.  AIHA will review existing white papers and position statements, as well as draft new position statements, to determine the appropriate response to each of the issues.

Overall the Top Issues for 2011-2012 are:

• Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs) – Updating The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) PELs are consensus-based limits that indicate how long an individual can be exposed to a particular substance without experiencing harmful effects. The occupational health and safety profession considers PELs to be one of the most basic tools needed to protect workers. However, many PELs have not been updated since the 1960s and 1970s. Science in this area has matured, but the PELs have not. AIHA continues to work with OSHA, Congress and others to reach a consensus on the best way to update the PELs.
• Injury and Illness Prevention Program (I2P2) - OSHA is developing a rule to require employers to establish and maintain an Injury and Illness Prevention Program. It involves identifying and controlling hazards as well as planning, implementing, evaluating and improving processes and activities that protect employee safety and health. AIHA has been providing leadership in the development of OHS management science and practice since its inception. AIHA supports the need and importance in defining effective occupational health and safety programs and the acceptance in the IH and safety community that hazard assessment and implementation of a written safety and health program are parts of minimum acceptable professional practice on any work site.
• Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) / Globally Harmonized System (GHS) AIHA supports efforts to improve the accuracy of MSDS and supports efforts to improve hazard communication for employers and employees. Such efforts are also a crucial element in protecting workers and others in case of national emergencies. A major part of improving hazard communication is adoption of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). AIHA supports adoption of the GHS.
• Professional Recognition/Title Protection - This issue continues to appear in the top public policy issues for AIHA, as it has since 1993. Professional recognition/title protection allows industrial hygienists and others who have met minimum educational and experience requirements (such as certified industrial hygienists and certified safety professionals) to be legally defined and recognized as competent to perform certain work without the need for additional requirements. One area of concern is the continued influx of specific occupational health and safety titles that are awarded by non-accredited bodies and the attempt to recognize these titles in various policy making activities. AIHA continues to educate federal and state policymakers about the importance of recognizing those professionals who have received education and certification from nationally recognized and accredited organizations.
• OSHA Reform and NIOSH Recognition - Each year Congress introduces and considers legislation to amend the Occupational Safety and Health Act. This legislation addresses many parts of the OSH Act, including criminal penalties, whistleblower protections, expansion of coverage, and the Voluntary Protection Program. AIHA supports efforts to review and amend the OSH Act if changes provide added protection for workers. AIHA also supports efforts to protect the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) from attempts to diminish the importance of the Institute and its research. AIHA supports appropriations to adequately fund both OSHA and NIOSH.
• Laboratory Accreditation  - Accredited laboratories are the best way to ensure that test samples of potential workplace hazards are analyzed correctly. AIHA continues working to see that the AIHA laboratory accreditation program is internationally recognized and noted in federal and state legislation and regulation as one of the programs with recognition and acceptance.

For further information regarding AIHA's top policy issues for 2011–2012, please contact Aaron Trippler at atrippler@aiha.org.

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EMLab P&K Products Division Blog Features - Proper Maintenance of Sampling Equipment



Anderson N-6 Bioaerosol Sampler.



If you use or own indoor air quality equipment we recommend that you read EMLab P&K Products Division Blog.  Click on the title of this blog post to read EMLAB P&K's blog post on the proper maintenance of air sampling equipment, such as the Anderson or A6 impact bioaerosol samplers, rotary vane high volume pumps, and Wallchek adapters.  In addition, it discusses the importance of proper maintenance to sustain consistent sample collection. The blog reminds us that the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) recommends calibrating pumps before and after sample collection with variances not to exceed 5 to 10%.  This calibration should be performed using a primary standard such as a bubble meter (1000 cubic centimeter bubble buret) or an electronic device such as the Dry Cal® DC-Lite Calibrator, Gilian^® Gilibrator-2, and Bios Defender™.  These primary standard must be traced to a National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standard.  It will keep your equipment running at peak condition.

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Long Overdue Increase in OSHA Inspections

Construction Sign Postings in Rome, Italy.  Workers are required to  wear gloves, hard hat, work boots, and a full body harness on this work site.

14 deaths per day is the statistics of the day.  How can the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) consider itself successful with a statistic like that?  It is long overdue for OSHA to increase the number of inspections and the number of violations it issues.  There are companies who have never seen an OSHA inspection and they have been in business for over 50 years.  We did a training class where one worker had caustic burns on his hands and three workers were diagnosed with silicosis.  The company had never been inspected by OSHA.  Until OSHA actually gets serious about performing the number of inspections necessary to  prevent injuries, statistics such as 14 deaths per day will continue to be common place.  The link shows a video of a worker for Cintas, handling the clearing of a blockage the way he was taught to clear blockage.  Though the company says it didn't know this was going on, the question is how did they think the blockage was being cleared considering they did not teach the workers a different procedure to clear the blockage.  Again another situation where the accident could have been prevented and the life of a worker saved.

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EPA Calls Formaldehyde a Carcinogen

Image via WikipediaIn the July 2010 issue of Indoor Environment Connections, Mr. Tom Scarlett writes about the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issuing a draft report that concludes that inhaling formaldehyde is definitely a human carcinogen.  Formaldehyde is widely used in products and can be found in many indoor environments, like the temporary trailers that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) bought.  It has been widely published that those temporary trailers had such significant levels of formaldehyde in the indoor air they could not use them as temporary housing for the Hurricane Katrina victims.  In addition, the new study also linked increased incidence of asthma to formaldehyde exposure.  Needless to say EPA's determination will cause increased regulation of formaldehyde in air.  The next steps for this report is for it to be reviewed by an expert panel convened by the National Academy of Sciences.  EPA will then use the review and any comments from the public to complete the Health Assessment for Formaldehyde.

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Excellant Article by Will Spates on Being an Expert Witness

I recently read Mr. Will Spate's article in Indoor Environment Connection's November issue (yes, I know, it takes me a month to catch up on my reading) on "Do You Qualify To Be An Expert Witness".  Mr. Spates is the President of Indoor Environmental Technologies, Clearwater, Florida and the article provided several pieces of information that I did not know.  Such as the difference between an expert witness and a percipient witness and the need for your reports to comply with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26.  I strongly recommend that if you are an environmental consultant that you read this article, because it applies even if you are not an expert witness.  You never know when you may end up in court to defend your reports and advice you gave.

Results of Northeast Regional Industrial Hygiene Conference

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On December 4, 2009, we attended the Northeast Regional Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition of the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) sponsored the Philadelphia Section of the AIHA. The title of the conference was "The Business of EHS – A New Team Dynamic" for the list of speakers and their biographies visit http://www.philaaiha.com/Newsletters/2009NEIHCBrochure.pdf. The program was professional and interesting, though the focus of the presenters was on manufacturing and industrial applications. This left very little for someone focused in construction safety or indoor environmental issues. The presentations on the environmental health and safety (EHS) perspectives on the impact of the global supply chain, and business metrics (building EHS value and cost-benefit analysis for EHS) were advanced level presentations. Our favorite presentation was the first one on “Staying Safe While Making Money” by Ms. Maureen Modica, CIH, CSP of the United States Mint.
Mr. Aaron Trippler’s “Washington Buzz” presentation during lunch reinforced what we heard from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) representative at the PDC (see our Wednesday, November 25, 2009 blog). OSHA’s current budget is up 10% leading to hiring of 200 new inspectors for enforcement. Other interesting news was NIOSH’s focus on nanotech, risk management, and aerosol transmissible diseases indicates new research information will be available on these issues in the future.
The vendor exposition hall was very good and we thank 3M for providing us with two pair of safety glasses for our safety classes(one called Lightvision 2-LED Plano Eyewear (debating using this for work around the house) and the other called Nitrous CCS with hearing protection providing a noise reduction rating of 25 decibels, both excellent ideas). We also thank Nilfisk-Advance America Inc. for providing us with a new vacuum cleaner catalog for our asbestos classes.
Though the regional this year was interesting, the lack of a balanced program left individuals with our background in construction safety and indoor air quality with very little to bring back home. Some of you would ask why attend a meeting that had so little to offer, the topics were publicized ahead of time. Well first, Mr. Trippler’s presentation always gives us an idea on the pulse of what is happening in Washington, DC on the environmental safety and health front. Second the vendor exposition hall is always interesting to see what services and products the various companies in the area are offering. Saving the best for last, the most important reason is to network and meet with old friends and acquaintances and meet new people who are in different areas/regions of the industrial hygiene field. It is a lot of fun catching up with people you may only see at this event. It was a pleasure seeing and discussing different issues with Mr. Jack Springsteen, Dr. Jack Caravanos, Ms. Amy Gordon, Mrs. Debra Gul Haffner, and many others. The special treat this year was talking with Mr. Dave Robbins, who was in town from Alaska. Though the regional, this year, did not provide much information for the construction and indoor environment people, the networking opportunities are probably the best reasons to attend the Regional each year.

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