A refrigeration system was being installed in a new wing of an ice cream plant in 1984. A leak test was being performed by employee #1 on a “low-pressure tank” which was filled with a mixture of ammonia and air under a pressure of 150 psi. As he squirted a soap bubble solution onto a […]
At 11:30 a.m. on September 04, 2018, a group of employees was working on a beef processing station. Employee #1 was REPLACING A DEFECTIVE AMMONIA PRESSURE GAUGE FOR A HOT-GAS AMMONIA LINE when he broke off the gauge and associated valve, releasing ammonia into the area and cut/fab floor below. The plant was evacuated and
My March 16th article about the hand sanitizers being a CAT 3 Flammable Liquid caused quite the ruckus. Many did not want to accept the fact until they went and found out on their own that these alcohol-based hand sanitizers are indeed flammable liquids. And once they came to this realization the questions started to
A gas cylinder was found in the parking lot of an event facility by staff arriving at work. The cylinder had launched from the concessions area the night before.
This is the new mantra being spewed by the none believers now that the infection rate has destroyed their earlier argument that the virus is not a problem in the USA. Here is the full story as to why our mortality rate is trending so low right now… EARLY in the spread, relatively few need
On July 12, 2017, authorized EPA representatives conducted a compliance inspection of the facility to determine its compliance with the Risk Management Program (“RMP”) regulations promulgated at 40 C.F.R. Part 68 under Section 112(r) of the Act. Following the inspection, EPA requested certain documents and information and reviewed the provided information with support from outside
Since the 1970’s Purdue University’s Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department has been documenting and investigating incidents involving grain storage and handling facilities at both commercial and on-farm locations. Beginning in 2013, the effort was expanded, with support from a U.S. Department of LaborSusan Harwood Training Grant, to include incidents involving grain transport vehicles (trucks, wagons,
NOTE: Under our Pandemic, my bet OSHA is not going to enforce a lot of this, but I thought it would be a timely reminder as I have received numerous questions about working from home. The OSH Act applies to work performed by an employee in any workplace within the United States, including a workplace
Section 112 (r)(1) of the Act, commonly referred to as the General Duty Clause addresses the prevention of releases of substances listed pursuant to Section 112(r)(3) ofthe Act, or any other extremely hazardous substance. The purpose of this section is to prevent the accidental release of extremely hazardous substances and to minimize the consequences of
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has approved a consent decree between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Environmental Justice Health Alliance for Chemical Policy Reform, Clean Water Action, and Natural Resources Defense Council. The consent decree requires EPA to issue long-overdue rules requiring robust hazardous substance spill-prevention and
When your hand sanitizer has 50% more Alcohol it will be at least a Category 3 Flammable Liquid – just review the SDS for your product of choice if you doubt me. In fact, some hand sanitizers with higher Alcohol percentages may be a Category 2 Flammable Liquid. In the light of COVID-19 virus pandemic,
Earlier this year I wrote an article about the International Fire Code (IFC) and its practice of limiting flammable liquids outside of proper storage means, such as cabinets and rooms. In that article I posted the OSHA requirements but did not explain how the OSHA requirements applied to workplaces, rather I chose to use the
