HYDRAULIC FRACTURING: OSHA official acknowledges silica dust hazard (Wednesday, May 2, 2012)
A landmark study on workers' exposure to hazardous amounts of silica at natural gas drilling sites got positive feedback yesterday from federal officials, scientists and green groups. The study found that workers are exposed to silica, or sand dust, at sometimes more than 10 times the recommended limit, during hydraulic fracturing (Energywire, May 1). The process uses large quantities of sand, which contains microscopic particles of silica that can be easily inhaled. Exposure can lead to the deadly disease silicosis and to lung cancer. Eric Esswein, senior industrial hygienist at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and his colleagues did the research.David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor and head of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, acknowledged that occupations in the oil and gas industry were among the most hazardous in the United States, even before the advent of hydraulic fracturing. And the dangers are not unique with shale gas, he said. "As in many of these situations where we look at new technologies and new productions, what we see are old hazards," Michaels said. "Silica is not a new hazard."The problem with enforcement in hydraulic fracturing is that OSHA typically hears about drilling sites only after fatalities occur, and then inspectors go in and issue citations, he said. "But that's not the way we want to work," he said. The agency would prefer to be involved at the beginning when the high-risk drilling activity occurs, but it does not get notice before drilling begins. OSHA plans to get that information from agencies that know earlier -- through permitting and other processes -- that drilling is about to occur, he said.Christopher Portier, director of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) at CDC, called Esswein a sentinel, amid applause from other scientists. "I hadn't thought about looking at silica, and your presentation makes it clear to me that accidents with trucks that carry silica are a major concern here, as are covering those trucks effectively to keep the dust from coming out into the environment," Portier said. Esswein urged federal officials from CDC, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. EPA to keep occupational safety in mind when studying public health. There are some 435,000 workers involved in upstream oil and gas, and they may be the canaries in the coal mine with respect to public health, he said. "It is very important to remember these workers, they are part of public health. They go home every night to their families," he said.Please read more by Gayathri Vaidyanathan, E&E reporter at Energywire
A landmark study on workers' exposure to hazardous amounts of silica at natural gas drilling sites got positive feedback yesterday from federal officials, scientists and green groups. The study found that workers are exposed to silica, or sand dust, at sometimes more than 10 times the recommended limit, during hydraulic fracturing (Energywire, May 1). The process uses large quantities of sand, which contains microscopic particles of silica that can be easily inhaled. Exposure can lead to the deadly disease silicosis and to lung cancer. Eric Esswein, senior industrial hygienist at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and his colleagues did the research.David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor and head of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, acknowledged that occupations in the oil and gas industry were among the most hazardous in the United States, even before the advent of hydraulic fracturing. And the dangers are not unique with shale gas, he said. "As in many of these situations where we look at new technologies and new productions, what we see are old hazards," Michaels said. "Silica is not a new hazard."The problem with enforcement in hydraulic fracturing is that OSHA typically hears about drilling sites only after fatalities occur, and then inspectors go in and issue citations, he said. "But that's not the way we want to work," he said. The agency would prefer to be involved at the beginning when the high-risk drilling activity occurs, but it does not get notice before drilling begins. OSHA plans to get that information from agencies that know earlier -- through permitting and other processes -- that drilling is about to occur, he said.Christopher Portier, director of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) at CDC, called Esswein a sentinel, amid applause from other scientists. "I hadn't thought about looking at silica, and your presentation makes it clear to me that accidents with trucks that carry silica are a major concern here, as are covering those trucks effectively to keep the dust from coming out into the environment," Portier said. Esswein urged federal officials from CDC, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. EPA to keep occupational safety in mind when studying public health. There are some 435,000 workers involved in upstream oil and gas, and they may be the canaries in the coal mine with respect to public health, he said. "It is very important to remember these workers, they are part of public health. They go home every night to their families," he said.Please read more by Gayathri Vaidyanathan, E&E reporter at Energywire