Practical EHS Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
1. Set up appropriate recycling programs in administrative offices, food service areas, and public areas. It is best to concentrate on areas that produce significant amounts of particular materials. 2. Walk through the facility noting what type of waste is discarded in each area. A walk-through will help determine which types of bins are needed. […]
In fact a great number of actions are taken against small businesses. Given the immense population of regulated small businesses, EPA and many state agencies have adopted self-audit policies intended to encourage these entities to voluntarily discover, disclose, and correct violations, thereby partly lessening the workload of overextended inspectors. EPA introduced its Policy on Compliance […]
EMS Document Control You have to keep all your EMS-related documents controlled and up to date. Here’s what’s required: All EMS documents must be carefully controlled and be easily accessible to persons who need them. They must be periodically reviewed, revised, and approved by management. Obsolete documents must be promptly removed. For example, there is […]
The ISO focus is more on adopting a set of universally accepted procedures than being in compliance with local or national environmental laws. So, you don’t have to be in full compliance with environmental laws at the time you seek certification, but you must have a set of documented procedures in place that are designed […]
She points out that mandated by a 2009 court decision, EPA’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Pesticide General Permit (PGP) went into effect for point source discharges from pesticide application to U.S. waters. The PGP is believed to be the first permitting requirement of its type many small farmers will face in 2012. State-issued […]
According to Ana, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) says industry should start preparing for the next big REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and restriction of Chemicals) registration deadline. Companies manufacturing or importing chemicals in Europe—in quantities at or above 100 tons per year—are required to register such substances with ECHA by May 31, 2013. Enhance the […]
The GHS amendments will: Modify the criteria for classifying chemical hazards. Standardize signal words, pictograms, hazard statements, and precautionary statements for chemical labeling. Prescribe a specified format for material safety data sheets (MSDS) and call them “safety data sheets,” or SDSs Revise the requirements for employee training on chemical labels and safety data sheets to […]
EPA’s Criminal Enforcement Division (CID) has changed priorities in recent years and has been seeking prosecution of individual defendants as high up the corporate hierarchy as there is evidence. For this the Agency offers one simple reason–corporate managers will think twice about deliberately breaking the law if they understand that they face jail time and […]
Got a new iPhone or Blackberry for Christmas and wondering what to do with your old model? Don’t stick it in a drawer, and definitely don’t throw it in the trash. You’d be surprised at how easy it is to recycle your old cell phone. Cell phones and PDAs are made of precious metals, copper, […]
Recycling = US Jobs More than 56,000 recycling and reuse establishments in the United States employ approximately 1.1 million people, and generate an annual payroll of $37 billion, and gross $236 billion in annual revenues. The number of workers in the recycling industry is comparable to the automobile and truck manufacturing industry and is significantly […]