National Clearinghouse for Worker Safety and Health Training,

for Hazardous Materials, Waste Operations,

and Emergency Response

1997/98 YEAR END REPORT

May 1998

Supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

Division of Extramural Research and Training

Worker Education and Training Program

1997/98 YEAR END REPORT

During the 1997/98 contract year, orders and inquiries were made by industry, awardees, academic institutions, and government/state agencies.  In dealing with inquiries, people were always asked if they had access to the Internet.  If they did, they were given the web address.  Through this process, at least 22 people were formally referred to the Internet for general information on the Clearinghouse.  Two others were referred to the Internet for information on curricula. Many more were referred informally during meetings and conferences.  The following table summarizes sales and requests the Clearinghouse handled during the 1997/98 contract year.  Note that the category that ordered the greatest number of curricula was Industry/Private.

Documents Ordered

SERVICES PROVIDED

Bulk orders were placed so that awardees could get a lower price on NIOSH Pocket Guides and  North American Emergency Response Guidebooks.  A total of 2035 Pocket Guides were ordered at $7.00 each plus shipping and handling.  Eight awardees and subawardees participated in this order.  Ten awardees ordered a total of 2840 1996 North American Emergency Response Guidebooks  at $1.21 each, plus shipping.   Additional orders have come in at various times and have been filled as long as payment was provided with the order.

NEWSBRIEF

The Newsbrief has a mailing list of 266, with 5 paid subscriptions.  The Newsbrief is also available on-line through the Clearinghouse web page.  It is available in PDF format, HTML format, and as a Word document.

RESEARCH

Minimum Criteria for Train-the-Trainer - was contracted out to OCAW consultant Mike Merrill and The Labor Institute.  The first draft was delivered at the NIEHS awardee meeting in North Carolina.  The second version was used at the workshop in December 1997.  A third version, which compiled information collected during the technical workshop on Minimum Criteria for Train-the-Trainer Programs was provided to all workshop attendants for comment.  Comments were due back April 30, 1998.  The comments have been reviewed via conference call and are being incorporated into a final document, as appropriate, by the contractor. 

Brownfields Labor Market Assessment - Initially intended to emulate the Labor Market Study of Hazardous Waste Workers and Associated Emergency Responders, the vision for the project has taken many turns.  During the year, staff of the Clearinghouse met with Myra Blakely and Jim Maas of EPA and NIEHS staff concerning this project.  The result of these meetings was a determined need for a model of how to successfully complete a Brownfields remediation from start to finish, including the training and placement of workers.  RRA staff also spoke with staff at ATEC in order to coordinate efforts with their project, which will provide detailed information on employment at each stage in a Brownfield cleanup.  Since data have been difficult, at best, to collect, a report describing where Brownfields fit into the hazardous waste world was compiled.  The report describes the similarities and differences between Brownfields and other hazardous waste sites and also describes the training needed in order to help communities with Brownfields create sustainable futures for themselves. Copies of the report have been sent to each awardees' Principal Investigator, and the report is available to the public on the Clearinghouse web page.

Impact Evaluation Assessment of Hazardous Waste Training - has been contracted out to Tom McQuiston at the University of North Carolina.  All deliverables were received; the final deliverable on April 15, 1998.

Evaluation Resource Guide - A late draft of The Resource Guide for Evaluating Worker Training: A Focus on Safety and Health was put on the Clearinghouse web page in PDF format several months ago. The final version, along with the instruments will be available on the web page after June 1.  The manuscript was given to the George Meany Center prior to October.  The Center was responsible for cover design and publication.  RRA had to take back the Guide to complete formatting.  The Meany Center has printed 100 copies that are now available.  Copies are being sent to PIs, and to the Guide's contributors.

CLEARINGHOUSE WEB PAGE - Virtual Help Desk

The web page has been redesigned and now includes a help desk section designed to provide information on the Internet for both the computer novice and expert.  Links exist for the following topics: Brownfields, Regulations, Hazard Communication, Hazardous Materials Libraries, Lead and Asbestos, Material Safety Data Sheets, NIEHS Grantees, Pollution Prevention, Radiation, and State Resources.  Still to come are links to Emergency Response sites, Environmental Justice, Government sites, as well as constant updating and additions to existing links.

Documents produced by the Clearinghouse, including the Resource Guide for Evaluating Worker Training: A Focus on Safety, and the Draft Minimum Criteria Document for Worker-Trainer Programs are available on the Clearinghouse Resources page.  Interested parties are now able to register for workshops and meetings on-line via the Clearinghouse web page.

CURRICULA

During the 1997/98 contract year, ten awardees sent in new curricula.  Below is a table of awardees that submitted curricula during this contract year.

EXHIBITS

Exhibits have been used for the following purposes.

During the year, members of the Clearinghouse staff have attended the Environmental Clean Up Technologies Conference: Midwest Marketplace; Brownfields '97; and the HAMMER Dedication.  Poster sessions on the NIEHS Partnership Workshop (held in January 1997) were presented at the APHA Annual Conference and at Superfund  XVIII.

The table top exhibit is being redesigned.  A new table top exhibit will be available as soon as suitable pictures are received from awardees.

WORKSHOPS

The first workshop of the 1997/98 contract year was held December 11-12, 1997 at the George Meany Center for Labor Studies in Silver Spring, MD.  The workshop was entitled "Minimum Criteria for Hazardous Materials Train-the-Trainer Programs."  Sixty-five people attended this workshop.  Of issue during this workshop was the difference between train-the-trainer programs and worker trainer programs. Issues are discussed in the Minimum Criteria Document being written by Mike Merrill and the Labor Institute.

The second workshop was the Environmental Job Training Summit.  It was held in New Orleans, LA at the Doubletree Hotel March 15-17, 1998.  Staff from Xavier University, along with a planning committee, were responsible for programmatic issues.  The Clearinghouse handled administrative tasks, as requested by Xavier and NIEHS.  This was the largest workshop yet, with more than 160 people, representing more than 80 organizations, in attendance. A draft workshop summary has been written.  We are waiting for comments and or additions from NIEHS before finalizing the summary.

COMPENDIUM

This year's compendium had more contributions than it has in the past two years.  Contributions came from: University of Alabama at Birmingham (2), the Community College Consortium (2), The New England Consortium, New Jersey / New York Consortium (2), and Ruth Ruttenberg and Associates, Inc. (2).  We were also fortunate to have transcripts from two panels that took place during the NIEHS 10-Year Anniversary Meeting in October 1997.   Transcripts were circulated to panel participants for editing. Complimentary copies of the Compendium are being sent to all PIs.  Additional copies are available through the Clearinghouse at a cost of $10.  The Table of Contents for the Compendium will be available on the web page after June 1.