Synergist - November 2009

NEWSWATCH | DEPARTMENT
Obama Administration Reveals
Goals for Chemicals Management
Legislation

existing plants to obtain construction and operating permits that would demonstrate the use of best practices for curtailing emissions. The new rule would apply to facilities that emit 25,000 tons of greenhouse gases per year, such as power plants, refineries, and factories. Small businesses would not be required to obtain the permits.

The agency stated in a September press release that the largest facilities targeted by the rule account for nearly 70

percent of U.S. stationary source greenhouse gas emissions. The rule would affect approximately 14,000 facilities.

For more information, visit
www.epa.gov/ nsr/ actions.html.

OSHA Initiates Emphasis Program on Recordkeeping A new OSHA National Emphasis Program (NEP) will examine the accuracy of

The measure
of excellence in
certification for the
industrial hygiene
profession.

HSE Commemorates 35th
Anniversary

Since the establishment of the British Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in 1974, worker fatalities have dropped 73 percent and worker injuries have fallen 70 percent, the HSE announced in a press release. Statistics from 2006, the most recent available, show that the U.K. rate of 1.3 fatalities per 100,000 workers is the lowest of all European Union member states. In a press release, HSE attributed the decline to new health and safety laws as well as a reduction in heavy industry in the U.K.

A timeline describing key events in the history of health and safety regulation in the U.K. is available on the HSE website at www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/timeline/ index.htm.

EPA Proposes Regulation of Large Facilities A new EPA proposal would require large facilities that plan to construct or modify

The American Board of Industrial Hygiene has provided the measure of excellence in certification for the industrial hygiene profession since 1960. Applicants for the Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) credential offered by the Board are required to meet educational and experience requirements as well as demonstrate their knowledge and skills through examination. The exam is now offered via computer delivery at Prometric testing centers.

Reasons cited for pursuing certification include: For information on how you can become part of a network of specialists in the industrial hygiene profession, contact The American Board of Industrial Hygiene.

® broadening the practitioners’
knowledge base
® increasing both confidence
and credibility
® peer recognition
® securing employment
® career advancement/higher pay
® contracts requiring a specific
certification
® public/governmental recognition