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DTE Energy, one of Michigan’s largest energy providers, recently announced plans to retire all its coal power plants by 2032 and invest $11 billion into its transition to clean energy. On July 25, 2023, the company announced approval of its CleanVision Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) by the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC). “This approval comes […]
Two challenges filed from opposite directions against the EPA’s 2015 primary or health-based National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Ozone were denied by a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. At one end, environmental and health advocacy groups argued that the standard was insufficiently protective of children. At the […]
In April 2010, a 40-year-old heat exchanger at the Tesoro Refinery in Anacortes, Washington, failed catastrophically. The incident resulted in an explosion and fire that killed seven workers. The U.S. Chemical Safety Board’s (CSB) investigation of the incident, completed in 2014, found that the failure was caused by damage to the heat exchanger, a mechanism […]
In this case, a foundry coke manufacturer in northern New York State will pay $2.75 million for alleged CAA, CWA, and EPCRA violations—and that is just the fine. ‘Citizen Scientists’ Complained A critical point in this case is that federal and state inspections came in response to local citizen complaints. The community even did their […]
OSHA maintains that it’s not just a regulatory enforcement agency, but also a promoter of efforts to improve occupational safety and health through programs such as VPP. Working with industry and labor, OSHA created the Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) in 1982 to recognize and partner with worksites that implement what OSHA terms "exemplary" systems to […]
A Quincy, Massachusetts, roofer is facing $137,508 in new Occupational Safety and Health Administration fines after the agency cited The Roof Kings LLC for again knowingly exposing workers to life-threatening fall injuries, OSHA announced February 9. On December 8, OSHA inspected a worksite on Roach Street in Quincy to check if The Roof Kings was […]
Last month, insurance giant Chubb Limited announced it will require evidence-based reduction of methane emissions from companies seeking underwriting for oil and gas extraction projects. It also announced it won’t provide insurance coverage for oil and gas projects in government-protected conservation areas in the World Database on Protected Areas that don’t allow for sustainable use. […]
When you think of RCRA, you think of manifests, “cradle to grave” hazardous waste management, transportation, container management, and endless hours of recordkeeping. However, one important aspect of RCRA for EHS managers is training. There are specific training requirements for personnel at hazardous waste TSDFs and large quantity generators (LQGs). Small quantity generators (SQGs) are […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) urged employers, response crews, and residents in areas affected by Hurricane Ida to recognize the hazards created by fallen trees, flooding, power loss, storm debris, and structural damage in the wake of a hurricane. Both emergency response and cleanup and recovery crews face hazards related to removing […]
But given the difficulty of confirming information about submerged shipwrecks, there are many uncertainties about the estimates. For example, the NOAA says that 47 of the 87 priority vessels have unknown or unconfirmed locations. Unconfirmed locations include vessels where divers have reported finding a shipwreck, but definitive identification of the shipwreck has not been made. […]