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Thursday, September 27, 2012

Changes at NYS DOL

English: Headquarters of the Dormitory Authori...
English: Headquarters of the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, located on Broadway in Albany, New York, United States (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
We have just found out, thanks to Christopher Corrado at National Grid and Cornerstone Training Institute, that there are several changes at the New York State Department of Labor.  First we are sad to hear that Mr. Christopher Alonge is leaving the Engineering Services Unit to take a position at the Dormitory Authority.  We are sure sad to see him go and wish him the best of luck at the Dormitory Authority.  According to Mr. Alonge, the proposed revisions to NYS Industrial Code Rule 56 have been submitted to the Governor's office and will be handled by the Unit's Director, going forward.  It is also our understanding that Dr. Eileen Franko formerly of the New York State Department of Health will be taking the place of the retiring Ms. Maureen Cox the Director of Safety and Health at NYS Department of Labor.  It will be interesting to see if this change will have any impact on enforcement of Industrial Code Rule 56 and the PESH regulations.  We wish Mr. Alonge, Dr. Franko and Ms. Cox the best of luck in their new endeavors.

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Monday, September 03, 2012

OSHA Training Blog - oshatraining.com: “Best Practices”? Or Safety Run Amuck?

This blog post is so good, we couldn't resist sharing it with you.  Very funny story and wonder how many others have run into the same thing.  Hope you enjoy this post as much as we have.
OSHA Training Blog - oshatraining.com: “Best Practices”? Or Safety Run Amuck?: On occasion I am hired by attorneys to serve as an expert witness on lawsuits involving workplace injuries and fatalities. One of the more...

Monday, July 09, 2012

NYS Department Of Health Vermiculite Clarification

New York State Department of Health's (NYSDOH) Environmental Laboratory Approval Program (ELAP) has released an update that revises FAQ #10 from the 4/8/11 FAQ document.  This update is posted at:
http://www.wadsworth.org/labcert/elapcert/forms/Vermiculite%20Guidance_Rev062212.pdf.  

The revision separates vermiculite into two types.  Vermiculite material used for thermal systems insulation (TSI), surfacing materials, and other miscellaneous ACM (including but not limited to:  existing or new surfacing material, plaster, pipe lagging, and sprayed-on fireproofing) or vermiculite material used for attic fill, block fill, and other loose bulk vermiculite material.  For the vermiculite material used for attic fill, etc. nothing has changed.  We still cannot analyze it and material must be assumed to contain asbestos and designated an asbestos containing material.

New Evaluation for Surfacing Material Containing Vermiculite
For the vermiculite used for TSI, surfacing material, etc. anaylze by ELAP certification manual item 198.1 (polarized light microscopy [PLM] friable method).  Vermiculite evaluation shall follow these three steps:
  1. If vermiculite is calculated to be less than 10% of the entire material composition and no asbestos fibers are detected, the material may be reported as non-ACM.
  2. If any asbestos fibers are identified, analysis must proceed according to Item 198.1 PLM and reported as ACM according to Section 6.3.
  3. If vermiculite is calculated to be 10% or more of the material, the material must be reported as ACM.
According to NYSDOH ELAP the reason for the difference is that vermiculite used for TSI, etc can be more constrained that loose fill, there is less of a public health concern pertaining to airborne asbestos fibers following disturbance.

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Wednesday, July 04, 2012

Happy 4th of July! Celebrate Our Heros And Our Freedoms!

Happy 4th of July, the day we celebrate the founding of our Great Country!  Much blood, sweat, and tears (great name for a band) have been spilled to get to where we are today (please remember and honor our heros today who have served in the various wars - Revolutionary, War of 1812, Civil War, Spanish-American, WWI, WWII, Korean, Vietnam, Cold, Operation Freedom, Afganistan, and Iraq).  In addition, alot of breath, ink, and paper (not so great name for a band) has documented our ups and downs along the path to greatness.  As an American, I haven't always agreed with our direction (as many others at various times) but I have always been proud of my country.  No where else can you state your opinion without fear of being jailed or killed.  No where else do we have the opportunity to become as great or as little as we want to be.  No where else do we get a choice of who to vote for (kind of?).  Though we may disagree with each other on politics (I'm a Progressive, not a Liberal), sports (Go Mets and Steelers!), and religion (I'm a Taoist), in the end we are all Americans, we are all brothers and sisters, and together we can overcome anything!
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Wednesday, June 06, 2012

Assemblywoman Lupardo Sponsors Bill To Amend Asbestos Notification Fees

Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo is sponsoring Assembly Bill A09928, which will amend the notification fees for non-friable material.  This issue was discussed at Professional Abatement Contractors of New York's (PACNY) 2012 Environmental Conference.  The bill can be accessed at:  http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?default_fld=&bn=A09928&term=&Summary=Y&Actions=Y&Votes=Y&Memo=Y&Text=Y

Asbestos Thermal System Insulation on a Residential Ducts & Furnace
PACNY is supporting this bill, based on their research that many residential projects are not notified and are done illegally because of the steep fee structure.  Placing homeowners and occupants in danger.  In addition, because of recent flooding from natural disasters many homes have been condemned requiring them to pay the maximum asbestos notification fee of $4,000 to demolish the home.  This fee for demolition has been the subject of many articles regarding this cost that cities, towns, and villages are required to pay increasing the cost in doing demolition in the Southern Tier, Catskills, and other regions.  Visit the New York State Asbestos Group on Linked-in, regarding the discussion of this issue.

This is not the first time this issue has been discussed, a previous Senate Bill S748-2011 in the New York State Senate sponsored by State Senator Catherine Young wanted to modify the fees that residential one & two family owner occupied homes paid in doing asbestos abatement work - capping the notification fee at $500.

We agree that the notification fees need to be addressed, especially for residential work.  Though not convinced that the fee should be addressed in this manner.  Senator Young's bill handles it much simply and probably should be expanded to include residential homes/houses slated for demolition (or controlled demolition by a municipality).
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That Time of Year! Conferences, Posting Requirements, and OSHA Violations Increased!

It's that time of year again. We're between conferences.  February 15-16, 2024 was the Professional Abatement Contractors of New Yor...