Hazardous Substances & Materials


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Hazardous Substances & Materials

Subtopics:

Air Contaminants
Combustibles and Flammables
Hazard Communication
Hazardous Materials

Complete Topic List

Trainer's Handbook: It's a Gas! Protect Workers from Fumigation Hazards
September 2010
Fumigation is a method of controlling pests by using airborne pesticides. The pests can include insects on crops, termites and bedbugs inside buildings, and pests in other enclosed spaces such as ships and railcars. . . . more »

Air Contaminants: Controlling Crystalline Silica Hazards in Mining; How to Reduce the Risk of Incurable Lung Disease
September 2010
The total amount of mineral aggregates--sand, gravel, and crushed stone--used in the state each year works out to as much as seven tons for every Californian, according to the California Construction and Industrial Minerals Association. . . . more »

Hazardous Chemicals: Cal/OSHA Updates Permissible Exposure Limits; Part II: Previously Unregulated Chemicals
September 2010
In December, the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board completed the most recent update of Cal/OSHA's permissible exposure limits (PELs)--something it does approximately once every three years (the last revision took effect in 2006). In last month's issue of COCA, we covered the eight revised PELs that went into effect on Aug. 3, 2010. . . . more »

Hazardous Chemicals: Cal/OSHA Updates Permissible Exposure Limits; Part I: Revised Limits
August 2010
In December, the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board completed the most recent update of Cal/OSHA's Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs), something it does approximately once every three years (the last revision took effect in 2006). New or revised PELs for 13 chemicals go into effect on Aug. 3, 2010. . . . more »

Trainer's Handbook: 'Green' Dry Cleaning Comes with Risks to Workers; How to Avoid Ergonomic, Chemical, and Burn Hazards
August 2010
It has been a tough summer for dry cleaners. In July, the next stage of California's environmentally motivated phase-out of perchloroethylene (PERC), a chemical used extensively by dry cleaners, went into effect. Dry cleaners must retire PERC-based machines once they reach the age of 15 years, and PERC use must be entirely phased out by 2023. . . . more »

Hazard Identification: Food for Thought; Food Production Facilities Find Themselves on High Hazard Industries List
August 2010
Although both working conditions and sanitation have improved since the days when Upton Sinclair detailed the horrors of Chicago's meatpacking industry in his 1906 novel The Jungle, food processing and manufacturing facilities still pose serious hazards to workers . . . more »

Featured Resource: Improve Indoor Air Quality by Inspecting Your HVAC: A Checklist
August 2010
Is the air in your workplace making workers sick? If so, one easy fix is to make sure that your HVAC system is clean and properly maintained. . . . more »

Bulletin: Dry cleaners face phase-out of equipment
July 2010
In 2007, the California Air Resources Board approved amendments to the Dry Cleaning Operations Airborne Toxic Control Measure for Emissions of Perchloroethylene (PERC), and the changes are finally taking effect. The amendments require all dry cleaning operations with PERC solvent equipment manufactured after July 1, 1995, to either . . . more »

Appeals Board Decisions: Wastewater Treatment Facility's Pool Tablet 'Bump Test' Fails Good Engineering Practice Test; Manufacturer's Recommendations Matter
July 2010
The Padre Dam Municipal Water District operates a wastewater treatment plant in the San Diego County city of Santee that is equipped with a one-ton chlorine tank and a one-ton sulfur dioxide tank. In January 2009, a Cal/OSHA compliance officer (CO) inspected the plant and cited the employer for not complying with requirements of the process safety management standard. . . . more »

Hazardous Chemicals: Federal OSHA Changes Notification Requirements in Hexavalent Chromium Rule; Cal/OSHA Prepares to Follow Suit
July 2010
On June 15, 2010, revisions to federal OSHA's hexavalent chromium standard took effect. The changes are to the notification portion of the rule. . . . more »

Hazardous Chemicals: Those Pesky Pesticides; OHB Recommendations for Prioritizing Safer Pest Control Methods
April 2010
After 27 vineyard workers and six emergency responders were struck ill by pesticides drifting from an adjacent orange field in 2005, California's Occupational Health Branch (OHB), a program of the California Department of Public Health, conducted an evaluation of factors that contribute to pesticide exposure in an attempt to identify safer alternatives. . . . more »

Hazardous Chemicals: Prevent Pool Chemical Injuries with These Safe Storage Tips
March 2010
These chemically treated pools, water parks, and interactive fountains may be safer for swimmers, but the chemicals are dangerous to the workers who handle them. They can cause injuries by igniting fires, releasing hazardous vapors, or coming into direct contact with a worker's tissues, including skin, eyes, and the inside of the nose and mouth. One way to protect workers is by storing pool chemicals safely. . . . more »

Bulletin: OSHA schedules HCS hearings
February 2010
Federal OSHA has scheduled three informal public hearings for this March and April on the proposed rule to align the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) with . . . more »

Hazard Identification: Preventing Catastrophic Pressure Vessel Failures; Beware of These Dangerous Situations
February 2010
On June 11, 2008, an operator at the Goodyear rubber manufacturing plant in southeast Houston, Texas, was running steam through the process tubes of a heat exchanger unit as part of a cleaning operation. The steam heated residual anhydrous ammonia that was present in the exchanger's shell, but . . . more »

Combustible Dust: Federal OSHA Takes First Step Toward Combustible Dust Rule
January 2010
Since 1980, more than 130 American workers have been killed and more than 780 have been injured in combustible dust explosions, federal OSHA has found. The agency considered the problem serious enough that, since October 2007 . . . more »

Hazardous Chemicals: Controlling Airborne Contaminants with Local Exhaust Ventilation; Tips for Selection, Maintenance, and Inspection
January 2010
Nearly four million adult Californians suffer from asthma, and many of them encounter respiratory stressors daily in the workplace. Other California workers are at risk of a variety of lung diseases caused by exposure to chemical dusts, mists, fumes, gases, and vapors. California already regulates worker exposure to many respiratory hazards, such as asbestos and secondhand smoke, and the state periodically considers regulations for newly discovered hazards, such as diacetyl. . . . more »

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