Page 10 - Occupational Health & Safety, October 2017

INDUSTRY UPDATE
20 years of experience in the construction industry. “Ralph’s focus on quality, service, and professionalism makes him the per- fect person to continue building the Haz- Tek Team in the Mid-Atlantic Region. His construction and safety experience allow our customers to talk with a peer regard- ing their specific situation and needs,” said HazTek CEO Steve Jones. “We’re thrilled to have Ralph bring his brand of excellence to our customers and projects throughout the Greater Baltimore and Washington, D.C., areas.” The company’s services include pro- fessional on-site safety managers, safety audits and inspections, OSHA compliance consulting, culture and leadership pro- grams, and safety training.
Report Recommends Standardized Sustainability Reporting
A new report from ASSE’s Center for Safety and Health Sustainability covers its second analysis of how recognized “sustainable” companies report occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities. Titled “The Need for Standardized Sustainability Reporting Practices,” it recommends global initiatives that index corporate sustainability should include companies’ commitment to safe and healthy workers. The center’s member organizations represent more than 100,000 workplace safety and health professionals worldwide.
“We’ve learned through our two studies that voluntary sustainability reporting lacks rigor and fails to yield the meaningful data needed to effectively evaluate corporate safety and health performance,” said Kathy A. Seabrook, chair of the CSHS board of directors. “The disclosure of data needs to be standardized to help put companies on a truly holistic path to sustainability that recognizes the well-being of workers along with the environment.”
CSHS’s goal is for organizations to in- corporate worker safety and health as part of their sustainable business practices. “Similar to how environmental data is re- ported in sustainability efforts, a core set of safety and health metrics would help busi- nesses measure achievements in managing human capital,” Seabrook explained. The prior report was released in 2013; they fo- cus on the Corporate Knights’ Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations, which ana- lyzed publicly reported data between June and December of 2016, identifying changes in reporting practices in the past four years
related to occupational safety and health sustainability. This second study showed sustainable corporations made little im- provement in complying with common safety and health performance indicators.
The report calls for adopting two key in- dicators on occupational safety and health management systems: tracking how many of a company’s work locations implement such systems and how many are audited by an independent third party. CSHS also wants businesses to measure workplace safety and health in their supply chains, reporting that one sustainability leader re- ported no employee fatalities but reported 27 deaths in its supply chain. “A high sus- tainability performance rating rings hollow if the business fails to keep its workers safe and healthy,” said Seabrook. “New levels of collaboration and compromise are needed among sustainability reporting groups if we are to significantly reduce workplace inju- ries, illnesses and deaths.”
California Taking Comments on Up- dated Chlorpyrifos Risk Assessment The California Department of Pesticide Regulation and the Office of Environmen- tal Health Hazard Assessment are pursuing health protections on chlorpyrifos, which is one of the most widely used agricultural pesticides in the United States, according to California EPA. The Department of Pesti- cide Regulation (DPR) recently released an updated draft risk assessment for a 45-day public comment period and on Sept. 15 hosted a public workshop on the risk assess- ment at the Pesticide Registration and Eval- uation Committee meeting in Sacramento.
The release of the risk assessment starts a public and scientific review of the docu- ment, which could lead to increased re- strictions on chlorpyrifos statewide. DPR announced it is currently developing in- terim restrictions on use of the pesticide and planned to submit recommendations to county agricultural commissioners in September 2017, including:
■ Increasing distances between sites where the chemical is applied and sensi- tive locations, such as homes and schools. These would be specific to each type of ap- plication method.
■ New restrictions on methods used to apply chlorpyrifos.
In addition, the Office of Environmen- tal Health Hazard Assessment is referring chlorpyrifos for potential listing as a de-
velopmental toxicant under Proposition 65 and has posted an announcement that the state’s Developmental and Reproduc- tive Toxicant Identification Committee will consider the listing of chlorpyrifos at its next public meeting.
“While chlorpyrifos has been protect- ing crops for more than 50 years, new information in the scientific community leads us to believe the level of risk it pos- es is greater than previously known,” said CalEPA Secretary Matthew Rodriquez. “We need to better understand the science to ensure our actions protect public health. The actions we are taking today reflect our commitment to the health and safety of all Californians, and the environment.”
DPR scientists believe chlorpyrifos may pose a public health risk as a toxic air con- taminant based on its assessment of the latest studies in the scientific community. That finding as indicated in the updated draft risk assessment has not been peer re- viewed, however, and it must go through a public comment period and be indepen- dently evaluated by other scientists. After the 45-day written public comment period, the draft assessment will go before an inde- pendent panel of nine scientists known as the Scientific Review Panel. Its review may conclude in December 2018.
The Developmental and Reproductive Toxicant Identification Committee, an in- dependent panel of 10 scientific experts that determines whether chemicals are added to the Proposition 65 list for caus- ing birth defects and other reproductive harm, also will consider public comments presented at its Nov. 29 meeting. If the committee adds chlorpyrifos to the Propo- sition 65 list as a developmental toxicant, businesses that knowingly cause exposures above minimum levels must provide a Proposition 65 warning.
DPR’s updated draft risk assessment and other documents about chlorpyrifos are available at http://www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/ whs/active_ingredient/chlorpyrifos.htm.
Occunomix Announces
New Distribution Center
OccuNomix International LLC, which de- signs and manufactures high-visibility safe- ty gear and apparel, announced the grand opening of its new, fully-stocked distribu- tion center in Sparks, Nevada. The facility, located at 555 Vista Boulevard in Sparks, will enable OccuNomix to provide:
10 Occupational Health & Safety | OCTOBER 2017
www.ohsonline.com