Practical EHS Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Today’s workplace uses thousands of chemicals, many of which are hazardous. The resources in this section will help guide you in the safe and legal identification, storage, transport, and use of these chemicals, and in making sure that your employees right to know how to be safe around such substances is provided, as required by law.
GHS is on the way. It’s been called a “sea change” in the way we communicate chemical hazards. Are you prepared? A plan to bring the United States into alignment with other countries in its approach to hazard communication, the Globally Harmonized System (GHS), could become part of the OSHA Hazard Communication standard within the […]
The problem is so prevalent at colleges and universities that EPA developed a regulatory option (new RCRA Subpart K), intended to encourage officials in charge of thousands of academic labs to periodically collect old, unneeded, or expired chemicals (legacy chemicals), determine whether these chemicals are hazardous, and properly manage their disposal. If you are an […]
While EPA has yet to issue formal definitions for terms such as nanotechnology or nanoscale materials under any statute, the Agency understands those terms in the context of three conditions or elements: The material’s particle size measures typically between approximately 1 and 100 nanometers in at least one dimension. The material exhibits unique or novel […]
Get to know your ATGS. Get clear instructions from the installer on how to use your ATGS. Check that your ATGS is always on and plugged in to a power source. The ATGS cannot monitor leaks if it’s off. Believe it or not, EPA says, plenty of citations have been handed out after inspectors found […]
How do I calculate tonnage for substances under REACH? Each registrant has to calculate the yearly tonnage for the registration dossier. The yearly tonnage is calculated as the volume per manufacturer/importer per calendar year, unless stated otherwise. For phase-in substances that have been imported or manufactured for at the least 3 consecutive years, quantities are […]
If no one in your supply chain purchases materials from EU suppliers or exports to the EU, there is no REACH impact on your business–yet. But, don’t think other countries or U.S. states won’t adopt copycat legislation as has been done with other laws. China is already developing China REACH. Be prepared. Roles Under REACH […]
1. Water-reactive, pyrophoric, self-reactive—such as lithium aluminum hydride, butyl lithium, potassium cyanide, and sodium azide. Does not include acidic water-reactive chemicals. Store in secure, sealed secondary container in a dry location, e.g., a dry box or desiccator. Isolate from other groups. Separate from aqueous solutions and protect from water. In refrigerator: Double-contain in bins or […]
Here is an overview of some important aspects of REACH that may affect YOU. What is REACH? Fundamentally, REACH shifts the burden-responsibility and costs-to the private sector, your business, to demonstrate that the chemicals you produce, use, and place on the market in large quantities are safe for humans and the environment. This is referred […]
Note that the rule is not regarded by EPA as more stringent than existing regulations. This means that states authorized to run the federal RCRA program are not required to adopt the rule. In fact, while some states have adopted it since promulgation, others have expressed their opposition to it, and the rule may not […]
Many times it’s because workers in areas with many chemicals are tempted to store chemicals alphabetically by common name to make them easy to find—but this is very dangerous practice. Here are a few tips for safe chemical storage: Always store minimum quantities, as specified by OSHA. Purchase chemicals in smallest quantities needed. Inventory chemicals […]