222
READINESS REVIEW: A COMPREHENSIVE ES&H REVIEW FOR EXPERIMENTAL AND OPERATIONAL
ACTIVITIES.
J. Withers, Ames Laboratory, Ames, IA.
Organizations that conduct laboratory research have unique ES&H management challenges. Laboratory research is dynamic in nature and can involve introduction of new hazards on a regular basis. In 1993, our Safety Review Committee (SRC) established a comprehensive ES&H review mechanism for research activities called Readiness Review (RR). The process begins with submission of several documents including an ES&H hazard identification checklist and associated hazard management statements. The checklist consists of seven main categories of concerns including chemical and biological, radiation, electrical, environmental, physical and mechanical, workplace, and miscellaneous. Hazard management statements are brief summaries describing how the identified hazard will be controlled through engineering, administrative, or personal protective equipment controls. This information is reviewed by ES&H, occupational medicine, engineering, and facilities personnel. A “developmental approval” meeting is held and action items are identified that need to be completed prior to requesting “operational approval” from the SRC. Action items commonly identified include completion of training and development of standard operating procedures. Upon completion of these action items, operational approval is granted and the activity is reviewed again in 5 years unless significant changes occur. To date, 400 activities have been reviewed and approved via this mechanism. Implementation of RR has resulted in a more effective safety management system at Ames Laboratory. On-going challenges associated with this process include educating researchers on what constitutes a new activity and maintaining flexibility in the process to manage new hazards that result from changes in research focus. Our RR process can serve as a template for other organizations searching for a comprehensive ES&H activity review mechanism.
223
SAFETY MESSAGES FOR YOUNG WORKERS MAY FALL ON DEAF EARS.
S. Grady, U.S. DOL/OSHA, Washington, DC.
Young workers, although short on experience, can be long on enthusiasm and eagerness to fit in with co-workers. Not knowing the ropes, they are likely to follow the actions and attitudes they find in the work site. The workplace culture they encounter in their first job can set their attitude toward safety and personal protective equipment for their entire working life.
The use of personal protective equipment should not be considered either a personal choice or an encumbrance. This is true for the whole gamut of PPE from hard hats to safety shoes and everything in between, including hearing protection.
The value of hearing protection may be particularly difficult to promote. Workplace noise may be quieter than the last dance club a young worker attended and no louder than the car radio. To youth, with a mindset of invincibility, add the slow, insidious nature of noise-induced hearing loss; the consequences of not using hearing protection can get lost to the drama of an amputation, or even, a bleeding cut. Negative messages such as “you will lose your hearing” can fall on the deaf ears of the invincible young worker.
Good attention to safety and health is of particular importance for the young worker. The population of youth (ages 16–24) is expected to increase their share of the work force, while that of more experienced workers (ages 25–54) is expected to decline. Couple this with normal psychological development and low workplace experience and you have a formula for increasing on-the-job injuries and illness.
This presentation will expand your understanding of this employee segment, provide you the means to reach the young worker, and supply youth-reviewed, positive safety messages appropriate to their frame of reference.
224
FATAL ACCIDENT RATES ACROSS NATIONS AND THE CULTURAL DIMENSION OF UNCERTAINTY
AVOIDANCE.
F. Infortunio, Dr. Fred A. Infortunio Loss Control Management Servcies, Marlton, NJ; L. Narayanan, P. Bernard, S. Menon, Argosy University, Sarasota, FL.
This study investigates the relationship between Hofstede’s cultural dimensions of uncertainty avoidance (a stress correlate) to the rates of fatal accidents across nations for the 30-year period between 1969 and 1998. The fatality rate data was collected and provided by the International Labor Office (ILO), an office of the United Nations. The ILO provided a vast amount of data but unfortunately, this data could not be immediately studied in one large data set. Seven categories of data were studied. The data sets were provided for the construction industries, the manufacturing industries, the mining industries, the utility industries, transportation industries, the agricultural industries, and trade industries. The largest single data set included 30 countries and overall the data for 43 countries were used. The analysis is based upon chi-square tests of the direction of the average fatality rates relative to a high-low uncertainty avoidance ranking.
The study showed that fatal accident rates were significantly related to uncertainty avoidance. The outcomes of the tests showed that the Hofstede dimension provided a viable underlying schema for the analyzing of accident rates across nations. It appears that national cultures, regional, industrial, organizational anxiety ratings may turn out to be a grounding point for the study of upper level organizational culture dimensions as they relate to safety cultures or climates.
225
GRANITE COUNTERTOPS: THE BEAUTY, THE SILICA, THE CITATIONS.
R. Senchy, Cal/OSHA, Sacramento, CA.
The demand and affordability for granite countertops is increasing. As a result of the various colors, shapes, edges, and profit margins, many new shops have started-up to meet the demand, investing tens of thousands of dollars in machinery. In the Sacramento area alone, there are over 40 known granite fabricating shops. Granite has many attractive qualities like natural beauty, durability, and heat and scratch resistance. However, customizing a slab of granite has some health problems, especially when generating dust during dry cutting and grinding. Granite contains crystalline silica in the form of quartz, cristobalite, and tridymite. The Cal/OSHA permissible exposure limits (PEL) for the respirable fraction of these dusts are very low (0.1, 0.05, and 0.05 mg/m3, respectively) compared to respirable general particulates (5 mg/m3). Many employers are not aware of the employees’ likely silica overexposures and possible future silicosis. Cal/OSHA Northern California sampling has found levels from six to over 40 times the PEL in small and large shops. Employers have been cited for: not monitoring the silica exposure to their employees; not using engineering controls such as enclosures and dust collectors; not implementing a respiratory protection program; not using tools with high velocity, low volume dust hoods, cross ventilation, or wet methods; silica exposures above the PEL; and other items such as no written injury and illness prevention program, no hearing conservation program, and no hazard communication program. The monetary penalties shown for the citations for noncompliance do not include the costs the employer will have to spend to abate the hazards.
226
SOIL IS NOT A BUILDING MATERIAL: AN OVERVIEW OF CURRENT ANALYTICAL TECHNIQUES
FOR ASBESTOS IN SOIL.
S. Siegel, R. DeMalo, P. Frasca, EMSL Analytical Inc., Westmont, NJ.
Commercial asbestos analysis has been conducted since the early 1980s. A large portion of laboratory analysis performed is for asbestos content determination of building materials using polarized light microscopy (PLM) by the EPA Test Method (EPA 600/R-93/116). This method works well for regulatory purposes and is an industry standard. This method also contains additional analytical techniques that include PLM point counting, X-ray Diffraction, PLM gravimetric reduction, and Analytical Electron Microscopy (TEM).
Accurate analysis of soil samples has been problematic for labs using the standard PLM method due to its inherent heterogeneity and particulate size variability. This method can be used as a tool for qualitative analysis (presence/absence) of samples where asbestos is readily seen under a stereoscope. A more comprehensive test method is the one used by the EPA Region 1 Laboratory. This procedure incorporates the use of a sieve to create a fine and coarse sample fraction of a soil sample and provides a semiquantitative PLM analysis. Additional EMSL method development and modification can allow for a quantitative analysis down to < 1%, while preserving fiber sizes. The California Air Resource Board has promulgated Method 435 for soil analysis, which incorporates industrial milling of the soil to a fine powder. Subsequent PLM, and conditional Point Count analysis down to < 0.25% is performed on this powder. While fiber sizes are altered, the sample is in a homogenous state and can also be investigated further with TEM techniques down to approximately < 0.1%.
In the absence of definitive asbestos soil analytical techniques, industry research into Scanning Electron Microscopy, infrared analysis, dust generation (elutriator), and soil settling/sedimentation techniques has been and is currently being performed. The health hazards of asbestos exposure from contaminated soil merit the need for the development of a consistent and mandated analytical approach from industry research and government legislation.
227
INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE SUPPORT FOR HIGH EXPLOSIVE EXPERIMENTS.
K. Karns, E. Baylosis, D. Trujillo, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM.
Los Alamos National Laboratory performed a unique series of safety engineering experiments to assess the dynamic response of two, 40-year-old high explosive (HE) operating buildings scheduled for demolition by conducting full-scale explosive tests. This project presented a rare opportunity to acquire valuable pressure, structural, and industrial hygiene (IH) data at low cost for a multitude of purposes. The experiments were part of a decommissioning and demolition project that provided data to assist HE engineers to test computer modeling used in the design of new HE facilities and the establishment of a safe operating envelope. Explosive charges ranging from 5 grams up to 300 pounds of PBX-9501 were detonated within the buildings. IH and safety support was integrated throughout the entire project to ensure the health and safety of the experimentalists. An aggressive test schedule was in place and approval from IH and safety personnel was needed for entry after each HE test to allow equipment recovery and subsequent preparation for following test shots. Challenges of reentering a facility with unknown atmospheric conditions were faced and a variety of remote, direct reading instruments were used to facilitate evaluation of air concentrations before reentry. The IH concerns during and following the tests included: impact noise, dust potentially containing lead paint particles, and HE combustion products. As the amount of HE used for the experiments increased, the designed blowout walls in the operational bays were destroyed allowing for rapid air dilution that removed toxic HE combustion products and airborne dust to below the action level. Reentry immediately after these tests posed no hazard to workers. Real time noise data was collected to allow a graded approach for hearing protection use in the bunker and at access barricades. Full impact of these explosions was captured on video and will be presented with this paper.
228
POTENTIAL DERMAL AND OCULAR ISOCYANATE EXPOSURES IN MOBILE TOUCH-UP SPRAY
PAINTERS.
D. Pisaniello, S. Lee, M. Tkaczuk, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia; J. Edwards, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia.
Recent investigations of auto body shops have addressed dermal exposure to aliphatic isocyanates and the effectiveness of personal protective equipment (PPE). However, there appears to be a lack of data for the increasingly common mobile touch-up spray painters. The purpose of this preliminary study was to evaluate dermal exposures arising from these outdoor spraying situations, and also to estimate the potential for ocular exposure.
Skin and surface wiping of PPE were carried out using Ghost Wipes moistened with isopropyl alcohol. Air sampling was conducted using glass fiber filters impregnated with 1-(2-methoxyphenyl) piperazine (MPP). Qualitative ocular exposure assessment entailed the addition of sterile eye drops and absorption of excess liquid from the corner of each eye with a sterile cotton swab. Wipes and swabs were immediately placed in vials containing MPP derivatising solution. Analysis of media was by HPLC with UV and electrochemical detection.
Airborne isocyanate (as functional group NCO) was not detected (< 1 µg/m3) during the brief periods (up to several minutes) of outdoor touch-up spraying. However, eye contamination (0.05 µg NCO) was detected where no eye protection was worn. Skin exposures (mean µg NCO) were recorded for neck (0.30), forehead (0.25), back of hands (0.35), palms (0.76), and wrist (0.03). Up to 2.6 µg NCO was recorded for unprotected palms. Contamination was detected on the inside of eye (0.11) and respiratory (0.57) protection.
Outdoor touch-up spraying painting services are not easily regulated, and the results suggest that painters may experience dermal and ocular exposure if appropriate PPE is not selected, worn, and handled properly. Contamination on PPE may be a result of poor work practice and storage. There is a need to educate the small business operators about isocyanate hazards and controls, as well as techniques for the avoidance of dermal exposure.
229
AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SEAWAY: A NIOSH INVESTIGATION AT AN UNUSUAL WORK SITE.
L. Ewers, J. Nemhauser, NIOSH, Cincinnati, OH.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducted a health hazard evaluation at the Eisenhower and Snell Locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway, near Massena, N.Y. “Flu-like symptoms” and “general ill health” were primary concerns among workers exposed to stagnant water and decaying marine life during the annual winter inspection, cleaning, and repairs of these locks. The year prior to the request, a worker had collapsed from unknown causes at the bottom of the lock. During two site visits, NIOSH researchers collected environmental air samples and personal breathing zone samples for endotoxins, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and silica. Sampling results revealed intermittently elevated concentrations of H2S (maximum recorded peak = 87 ppm, NIOSH recommended ceiling value = 10 ppm), associated with chipping cement from lock walls and elevated concentrations of endotoxins in environmental samples in some areas (Range = Not Detectable–20.3 endotoxin units/m3). No VOCs, CO, or silica air concentrations exceeded NIOSH or OSHA criteria. Issues regarding confined space entry were encountered. Existing medical information from interviews and records was not sufficient to allow us to draw conclusions concerning work-relatedness of symptoms or trends in annual recurrence of illness. Investigators concluded that exposures to high concentrations of H2S, and endotoxins are possible at the St. Lawrence Seaway during repairs and maintenance work. Recommendations included increasing ventilation, use of H2S continuous-reading gas monitors, development of a confined-space entry plan, and institution of a symptom surveillance program.
230
PREPARING FOR A LARGE-SCALE NATURAL HISTORY COLLECTIONS RELOCATION—EVALUATING
POTENTIAL EXPOSURES.
C. King, P. Labbie, Yale University, New Haven, CT.
Yale University’s Peabody Museum is home to one of the largest university-based natural history collections. Specimens from these collections have been gathered since the early 1800s and include birds, mammals, insects, and plants. The preservation methods for each of these collections have varied throughout the years, often with poor or non-existent documentation. These collections had been housed in storage areas within the museum and nearby buildings until 2000, when Yale embarked on the construction of the Environmental Sciences Center designed to house laboratories, classrooms, and the entire natural history collection. Moving these collections safely presented many challenges. Curators, collections managers, and museum assistants needed to ensure that each specimen was individually handled, its condition evaluated, and carefully catalogued. This would be the first time in decades that many of these specimens would be handled and there was concern about exposures to chemicals that may have been used for preservation and pest control, especially arsenic, DDT, naphthalene, paradichlorobenzene, dichlorvos, mercury, and cyanide. We embarked on an extensive evaluation of chemical contamination in and around the collection storage areas to evaluate potential exposures that may occur during specimen handling. This included air, wipe, and bulk sampling. Results showed a surprising amount of contamination in some areas and less than expected levels in others. Using the data collected, we developed specific procedures for safely handling each collection. These procedures included personal protective equipment, work practices, HEPA vacuuming, and in some instances, hands-on removal of the preservation material under controlled conditions. Most of these collections have now been moved to their new location, but the move won’t fully be completed for years. All new specimens are now preserved using safer non-toxic methods and are carefully catalogued to ensure future generations have complete and accurate information.
Posted May 30, 2005