Synergist - October 2009

IH/EHS NewsWatch

NIOSH Publishes Control Banding Guidance

In August, NIOSH published a new document on control banding, an approach to managing risk in situations where little guidance is available. Qualitative Risk Characterization and Management of Occupational Hazards: Control Banding

reviews relevant literature, discusses the origins of control banding, and analyzes control banding strategies.

Proponents of control banding have argued that it is an effective method for managing risk, particularly regarding substances that do not have occupational exposure limits or for which little toxicological data exists. More information about control banding appears in the article beginning on page 43 of this issue.

The NIOSH control banding publication is available at www.cdc.gov/niosh.

EPA Makes Preliminary Toxics Release Data Available to
the Public

In August, the EPA published preliminary data on the release of toxic chemicals occurring in the United States between Jan.1 and Dec. 31, 2008. The publication marked the first time that EPA has released raw data prior to completion of its analysis.

The Toxics Release Inventory is a database that contains detailed information on nearly 650 chemicals and chemical categories that more than 23,000 industrial and other facilities manage through disposal or other releases, recycling, energy recovery, or treatment. The data are collected from industries including manufacturing, metal and coal mining, electric utilities, commercial hazardous waste treatment, and other industrial sectors.

The preliminary data account for approximately 80 to 85 percent of the data to be collected. The agency will update the data in September and October. More information is available at www.epa.gov/tri.

EPA Issues Proposed Rule on Airport Deicing Operations
A new rule proposed by the EPA would require airports to collect
spent deicing fluids and implement other measures to protect the
environment. An agency press release states that “discharges
from deicing operations at air-
ports can have major impacts on
water quality, causing reductions
in wildlife, contamination of
drinking water sources, and im-
pacts in residential areas and
parkland.”
The agency developed the rule
with the Federal Aviation Admin-
istration, which determined that implementation of the rule
would not affect the safety of airline workers or passengers, ac-
cording to EPA. The new rule would affect approximately 200
airports in the U.S.

Statistics Available from First European
Work Force Survey

Eurostat, the European Union agency for statistics, has released results from the EU’s 2007 Labour Force Survey on workplace accidents, work-related health problems and exposures to risk. The survey was the first of its kind for the European work force and focused on workers aged 15 to 64 years in the EU’s 27 member states.

Survey findings include:
• Approximately 7 million workers had an accident at work
in 2007.

• 41 percent of workers (approximately 81 million) in the EU are exposed to factors that can adversely affect physical health.

• 28 of workers (approximately 56 million) are exposed to factors that can adversely affect mental well-being.

For more information, visit the Eurostat website at http:// epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/eurostat/home.

University Program Specifies Measures to Promote
Emotional Health at Work

Researchers from Michigan State University (MSU) and Portland State University have been awarded a $4 million federal grant to further develop a training program that specifies behaviors supervisors can use to support employees’ work and family demands, according to a July 27 press release from MSU.