Environmental, Health and Safety News
For my job I read 1000's of pages of EHS regulations and news a month... This is a hub of that critical EHS information posted for colleagues, students and public consumers.
Jun 19, 2013
EPA FINAL RULE: NATIONAL EMISSION STANDARDS FOR HAZARDOUS AIR POLLUTANTS (NESHAPS) FROM PETROLEUM REFINERIES
COMMUNITY RIGHT-TO-KNOW TOXIC CHEMICAL RELEASE TRI REPORTING: ADDITION OF NONYLPHENOL CATEGORY
Job Opening for Safety Analyst #OHS #JOBS# #OSHA #SAFETY
With an Eye Toward Disaster, NYC Debuts Solar Charging Stations to help in emergencies
Read on at: http://hardware.slashdot.org/story/13/06/18/1832251/with-an-eye-toward-disaster-nyc-debuts-solar-charging-stations
Sign up by August 1 to join Safer Chemistry Challenge Program at no cost! via @NPPRoundtable #saferchemistry
PCB's still used today. Webinar offers green chemistry principles to become PCB free in pigments, inks, dyes, and other products.
Research finds link between air pollution & autism via @bloomberg
Effects of Alzheimer's disease can be partially reversed in mice
The researchers found an increased level of a receptor known as bradykinin B1 receptor (B1R) in the brain of mice with AD, a receptor involved in inflammation. "By administering a molecule that selectively blocks the action of this receptor, we observed important improvements in both cognitive and cerebrovascular function," says Dr. Baptiste Lacoste, research fellow who conducted the study at The Neuro and now pursuing his training at Harvard Medical School in Boston. "Alzheimer's disease destroys nerve cells and also compromises the function of blood vessels in the brain. Not only were there improvements in learning and memory, but also marked recovery in blood flow and vascular reactivity, i.e. the ability of cerebral vessels to dilate or constrict when necessary." Proper functioning of blood vessels in the brain is vital to providing nutrients and oxygen to nerve cells, and vascular diseases represent important risk factors for developing AD at an advanced age.
Another interesting result that has not been seen before in our mouse model is a reduction by over 50% of toxic amyloid-beta peptide.
Journal of Neuroinflammation - Cognitive and cerebrovascular improvements following kinin B1 receptor blockade in Alzheimer's disease mice
Read more at NBF
Sagita's hot air-powered Sherpa claims 85 percent efficient

SolSource uses the heat of the sun to cook your food

Jun 18, 2013
Survey underway to create comprehensive list of plastic recycling in Wisconsin
Via @AirResources California and Shenzhen, China, sign agreement to cooperate on fighting climate change
nergy Department Honors California and Washington Utilities with 2013 Public Power Wind Award
Speeches on REGULATORY REFORM AND REGULATORY RELIEF
S.1016 Massachusetts "Green Cleaning Act" concerning environmentally preferable cleaning supplies in schools #education #nontoxic #safety
TODAY Free Live Broadcast to discuss the development of a “green” chemical supply chain #Safe #Green #Chemistry
Another free webinar supporting EPA’s Sustainable Materials Management for Green Challenge #Green #Sustainable #Energy #CSR
Consumer Price Index for May - Spoiler Alert, more bad new, all increased 1.4% in year #Economy #News
OSHA finds no violations for chemicals in Butler County warehouse via @triblive #OHS #OSHA #Chemical #Safety
Crane safety is focus of OSHA's New program in the Northwest that aims to curb maritime and construction fatalities
Louisiana Explosion: OSHA Joins Investigation, Safety Debate Raised and Explosions a Deadly Reminder of Plant Safety
As I reported yesterday, a longtime employee of 34 years was killed instantly in the blast. Seven other people were injured — four plant employees and three contractors.
For more details about the Donaldsonville explosion, including a video report, please click right here.
Coming back-to-back with Thursday's massive explosion at the nearby Williams-Olefins chemical plant in Geismar, the Donaldsonville explosion has rattled some nerves.
Ascension Parish sheriff Jeff Wiley objected to the media reports that the eruptive release of the nitrogen was an explosion. He compared it more to something like a tire or a balloon leaking gas.
However, locals don't underestimate the potential damage of the events.
Jun 17, 2013
NIOSH Free Mobile Phone App on Ladder Safety aimed at improving extension ladder safety.
Philly Closes 23 Public Schools, Generously Builds $400 Million Prison Where Kids Can Hang Instead #politics #education #fail
Jun 16, 2013
Report on 12 technologies with potential economic impact between $14 trillion & $33 trillion
Population Could Reach 11 Billion By End of the Century, UN Report Says
EPA Makes Available Information Collection Request for Revised Second List of Chemicals for Endocrine Disruptor Screening
Jun 15, 2013
Halo combines canister stove and fuel cell charger

Are first class passengers to blame for global warming? Maybe says @MailOnline
All those free drinks, lie-back seats and extra perks have an unexpected cost that can't be charged to the company expenses account.
First class air passengers are much more damaging to the environment than the average traveler, according to new research.
The paper (PDF), published in May, explains that those who enjoy first class service have a carbon footprint that is over nine times larger than the humble passenger crunched up in coach class.
First class seats are bigger than the standard berth, meaning less people can get on a plane. This results in more fuel being burnt per person to get the aircraft to its destination.
Moreover, passengers flying in luxury are likely to carry more bags, adding more weight to the plane and consuming more fuel.
Holy Crap!! Disease Outbreak Threatens the Future of Good Coffee
A disease called coffee rust has reached epidemic proportions in Central America, threatening the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of farmers and the morning pick-me-up of millions of coffee drinkers.
Caused by a leaf-blighting fungus, possibly exacerbated by growing practices and climate change, the disease leaves coffee plants spindly and barren, their precious fruits unripened.
"Where people have been using heirloom varietals for a century, you just have trees without leaves," said David Griswold, president of Sustainable Harvest Coffee Importers. "We're already into the flowering cycle now, then it takes nine months to incubate the beans. You can see from the flowering what the losses will be. It's just twigs. It's as though you're walking through a forest of twigs."
Please read full and follow at: http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/06/coffee-rust-epidemic/all/
Rail Traffic Continues To Stagnate... Very bad economic sign
More signs of muddle through here as weekly rail traffic comes in pretty stagnant again. This week's intermodal reading was 2.5% year over year which brings the 12 week moving average to 1.64%. That's the lowest level since the first week of January and clearly not a sign of a robust economy.
Read more: http://pragcap.com/rail-traffic-continues-to-stagnate
CDC report: 50% of U.S. adults will develop at least One Mental Illness
CDC: 'Nearly 50% of U.S. Adults Will Develop at Least One Mental Illness'
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention says that at any given moment about a quarter of American adults are mentally ill and that over the course of their lifetimes about half of all Americans will develop at least one mental illness.
A CDC mental-health fact sheet–Mental Illness Surveillance Among U.S. Adults–says that "published studies report that about 25% of all U.S. adults have a mental illness and that nearly 50% of U.S. adults will develop at least one mental illness during their lifetime."
Please continue reading at: http://cnsnews.com/news/article/cdc-nearly-50-us-adults-will-develop-least-one-mental-illness
Half of US Adults Due for Mental Illness, Study Says
The report said mental illnesses are associated with numerous other chronic health disorders, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity, and that treating mental illnesses can reduce their effects.
"People with mental disorders should seek help with the same urgency as any other health condition. Treatment and support services are effective and people do recover," Hyde said.
Please read full and follow at: http://www.livescience.com/15876-mental-illness-strikes-adults.html
#BPA Level Tied to Higher Weight in Girls "twofold increase" #SafeChemicalsAct
...In girls ages 9 to 12, a higher urine concentration of the plastic component bisphenol-A (BPA) was more likely to put them in the 90th percentile on weight charts, researchers found.
A urine BPA concentration of 2 mcg/L or greater was tied to more than twofold increased odds (adjusted OR 2.32, 95% CI 1.15-4.65) of having weight higher than the 90th percentile for age, according to De-Kun Li, MD, PhD, of Kaiser Foundation Research Institute in Oakland, Calif., and colleagues.
The relationship between urine BPA concentration and overweight was significantly linear (P=0.006), they wrote online in PLOS ONE.
The authors noted that "the rapid increase in the prevalence of obesity/overweight in countries with differing dietary styles and patterns of physical activity suggests the possible existence of other environmental risk factors," which they labeled "environmental obesogens." BPA has been identified as one such environmental obesogen due to animal studies that have linked exposure with obesity, they wrote.
The study analyzed the relationship between urine BPA concentration and obesity among 1,326 school-age children as part of a larger national Chinese study of adolescent pubertal development and health.
In addition to anthropometric measures and questions about development, the researchers added questions about obesity risks and collected additional urine samples, which were used to measure BPA concentrations. The authors also gathered data on weight, height, hip circumference, waist circumference, and skinfold thickness.
Overweight was defined as 90th percentile for age- and gender-specific weight distributions, but the authors also looked at the other physiologic measures and body mass index as indicators of overweight and obesity.
Participants also answered a 24-question food questionnaire and submitted information on physical activity, parental overweight, and depression inventory status.
....In a comparison between those with and without high concentrations of BPA in urine, high BPA concentration was significantly associated with larger hip circumference, though there were no other significant associations for size measures with BPA concentration.
Please read full By Cole Petrochko, Staff Writer, MedPage Today
Urine Bisphenol-A Level in Relation to Obesity and Overweight in School-Age Children
Abstract
Bisphenol-A (BPA) is a potential endocrine disruptor impacting metabolic processes and increasing the risk of obesity. To determine whether urine BPA level is associated with overweight/obesity in school-age children, we examined 1,326 students in grades 4â€"12 from three schools (one elementary, one middle, and one high school) in Shanghai. More than 98% of eligible students participated. Total urine BPA concentration was measured and anthropometric measures were taken by trained research staff. Information on risk factors for childhood obesity was collected for potential confounders. Age- and gender-specific weight greater than 90th percentile of the underlying population was the outcome measure. After adjustment for potential confounders, a higher urine BPA level (≥2 µg/L), at the level corresponding to the median urine BPA level in the U.S. population, was associated with more than two-fold increased risk of having weight >90th percentile among girls aged 9â€"12 (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 2.32, 95% confidence interval: 1.15â€"4.65). The association showed a dose-response relationship with increasing urine BPA level associated with further increased risk of overweight (p = 0.006 for trend test). Other anthropometric measures of obesity showed similar results. The same association was not observed among boys. This gender difference of BPA effect was consistent with findings from experimental studies and previous epidemiological studies. Our study suggests that BPA could be a potential new environmental obesogen. Widespread exposure to BPA in the human population may also be contributing to the worldwide obesity epidemic.
Citation:Â Li D-K, Miao M, Zhou Z, Wu C, Shi H, et al. (2013) Urine Bisphenol-A Level in Relation to Obesity and Overweight in School-Age Children. PLoS ONE 8(6): e65399. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0065399
Editor:Â Susanne Breuer Votruba, NIDDK/NIH, United States of America
Free Webinar - Green Chemistry Solutions to PCBs in Pigments, June 27
Webinar Title: Advancing Green Chemistry: PCBs in Pigments
Date: Thursday, June 27, 2013, noon eastern
Presenters: Dr. Lisa Rodenburg, Rutgers University
Adriane Borgias, Washington State Department of Ecology Dr. Robert Christie, Heriot-Watt University, Galashields, Scotland
Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3838278894993253632
Description: The purpose of this session is to provide historical and regulatory context to the issue, describe the changes, challenges, and solutions needed for effective source control of PCB. The goal is to provide insight into the design of PCB free pigments that meet green chemistry principles, and to outline a transition path from research to development to market: the mechanisms, barriers, and implementation.The challenge of reducing Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) at the source is a national, even global issue as PCBs are globally transported, do not easily degrade, and bioaccumulate in the food chain. PCBs are ubiquitous in the environment, not only as the result of legacy uses of Aroclors but, significantly, from residual PCBs that are still being legally produced as "inadvertent contaminants" in industrial processes. A specific example is PCBs in pigments used in inks, dyes, and other products.
Background information: http://scienceblogs.com/thepumphandle/2013/03/27/are-manufacturing-by-product-pcbs-an-occupational-health-hazard
Jun 14, 2013
Dodgy wind? Why "innovative" turbines are often anything but

