Weekly E-Newsbrief
December 10, 2021
The E-Newsbrief of the National Clearinghouse is a free weekly newsletter focusing on new developments in the world of worker health and safety. Each issue provides summaries of the latest worker health and safety news from newspapers, magazines, journals, government reports, and the Web, along with links to the original documents. Also featured each week are updates from government agencies that handle hazmat and worker safety issues such as DOE, EPA, OSHA and others. Subscribing to the National Clearinghouse Newsbrief is the best way to stay on top of the worker health and safety news. The last eNewsbrief of 2021 will be published on Dec. 17, 2021. We wish you all safe and happy holidays.
- Top Stories
- Calendar Features
- On The Web This Week
- Federal Agency Update
- Awardee Highlights/Online Learning
- Job Openings
- We Want Your Feedback
- Newsbriefs Past Issues
| Top Stories | Back to Top |
Calif. Rules to Protect Outdoor Workers from Smoke Are Rarely Enforced, Probe Finds
California has strict protections for farm workers who labor outside when air quality is poor. But the state's worker safety agency rarely cites employers not in compliance with those regulations. NPR’s Farida Jhabvala Romero spoke with farmworkers in Fresno who say they've continued to work in heavy smoke with no protections.
NPR KQED [Author: Farida Jhabvala Romero]
A Toxic Neighbor: Grand Prairie Latinos Want Answers About Hazardous Waste Site
Numerous residents in the predominantly Latino Burbank Gardens neighborhood said they’ve been told little or nothing about air, soil and groundwater poisoned by TCE, a known human carcinogen. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency added the Superfund site, once occupied by a company called Delfasco Forge, to the National Priorities List in 2018.
Employers, Unions Want Answers on OSHA Healthcare COVID-19 Rule
Time is running out for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) original COVID-19 health-care emergency temporary standard. The standard is set to expire Dec. 21, six months after it was enacted June 21. While OSHA issued the rule saying the mandate would be replaced with a permanent one within six months, OSHA hasn’t said when that permanent standard will be issued or how the measure will differ from the temporary version.
Bloomberg Law [Author: Bruce Rolfsen]
Multiple Early Studies Find Notable Omicron Vaccine Evasion
In quickly moving scientific developments over the past 24 hours, three separate labs that tested the Omicron (B.1.1.529) COVID-19 variant against vaccines reported significant immune escape based on reduced antibody titers, which were followed by similar findings from Pfizer that also suggest a third dose shores up antibody titers.
BP Oil Spill Fund: $103M to Projects in Three Gulf States
Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi are receiving more than $103 million in BP oil spill settlement money for new and continued coastal projects. The 11 new projects and two extensions from the foundation’s Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund bring its total allocations across the five Gulf states to $1.6 billion, a news release said.
Overdose Epidemic Plagues California: Fentanyl Is Driving Uptick in Deaths
As concern over the omicron variant mounts in California another public health crisis is lurking in plain sight: the drug epidemic. A jaw-dropping report released by the University of California Los Angeles Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy found that nearly 1,500 people, the vast majority believed to be homeless, died on the streets of Los Angeles during the pandemic — 40% because of a drug or alcohol overdose.
Santa Cruz Sentinel [Author: Emily Hoeven, CalMatters]
| Calendar Features | Back to Top |
Funding Available for Occupational Safety and Health Training Project Grants
The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recently published a funding announcement for the Occupational Safety and Health Training Project Grants (TPGs). NIOSH supports training in occupational safety and health through the TPGs, which include academic training programs that support undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate training, along with programs that respond to the unique training needs of specialty groups. The deadline to apply is Dec. 17.
Webinar: National PFAS Roadmap – Update for Tribes and Indigenous Peoples
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is hosting a webinar on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) impact on tribes and indigenous peoples on Jan. 16, 2022, at 2:30-4:00 p.m. The webinar is part of the Environmental Justice Webinar Series for Tribes and Indigenous Peoples that builds capacity of tribal governments, indigenous peoples and other environmental justice practitioners, and discusses priority environmental justice issues of interest.
U.S. Department of Labor Extends Comment Period for Rulemaking to Protect Indoor and Outdoor Workers from Heat Hazards
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is extending the period for submitting comments on the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) for Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings. Comments on the ANPRM must now be submitted by Jan. 26, 2022.
U.S. Department of Labor Extends Deadline for Nominations to Serve on Federal Advisory Council on Occupational Safety and Health
The U.S. Department of Labor has extended the deadline for submitting nominations to serve on the Federal Advisory Council on Occupational Safety and Health. Nominations must now be submitted by Jan. 31, 2022.
Call for Papers: International Conference on Occupational Radiation Protection
Interested contributors have until 15 February 2022 to submit abstracts for the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) International Conference on Occupational Radiation Protection – Strengthening Radiation Protection of Workers – Twenty Years of Progress and the Way Forward, to be held from 5 to 9 September 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland.
2022 National Environmental Justice Conference and Training Program
Leaders from various sectors will engage in an exchange of ideas and approaches to achieving environmental justice on March 9-11, 2022, in Washington, D.C. These interactive training sessions will feature voices of experience, research, discussions, and thought-provoking dialogue. The program format will feature the needs and challenges of communities, governments, municipalities, tribes, faith-based organizations, and others with an interest in environmental justice.
| On The Web This Week | Back to Top |
City Council Adopts Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan
The City of Boston established an Executive Steering Committee to prepare the 2021 Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan in accordance with the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000. The 2021 Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan contains recommendations for several potential projects to mitigate impacts from future hazards and disasters as well as climate change.
A Cal/OSHA Preview of Federal OSHA
Doug Parker, the new assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health, previously headed the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA). How might the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) begin to resemble Cal/OSHA? Federal OSHA already has three rulemakings in the works that delve into issues already regulated in California: heat illness prevention, infectious disease exposures, and workplace violence.
EHS Daily Advisor [Author: Guy Burdick]
We’ll Know More Soon About Omicron. Here’s How to Interpret the Coming Flood of Data
At some point in the next few weeks, scientists will start releasing data from lab experiments that can help illuminate just how much of a threat the Omicron variant poses to existing COVID-19 vaccines and our immunity. But there won’t be one clear conclusion reported at one time.
Stat News [Author: Andrew Joseph]
Growing Use of Home COVID-19 Tests Leaves Health Agencies in the Dark About Unreported Cases
People who test positive are almost never counted by public health agencies charged with bringing the pandemic to heel. While home tests have distinct advantages — they’re convenient and quickly inform people of their infection status so they can take steps to avoid spread the virus — most who test positive don’t come to the attention of health officials unless they are sick enough to see a doctor.
Stat News [Author: Kathleen McLaughlin]
U.S. Department of Labor Cites one of the Nation’s Largest Pork Processors for Exposing Workers to Repetitive Motion Injuries and Placing Essential Workers at Risk
A Guymon processing and packaging facility, operated by one of the nation’s largest pork processors, failed to prevent workers from being exposed to repetitive motion injuries and did not record injuries that needed more than basic first-aid. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Seaboard Food LLC for one serious health violation for exposing workers to ergonomic hazards associated with repetitive motion and lifting.
Occupational Health and Safety Online [Author: Shereen Hashem]
| Federal Agency Update | Back to Top |
DOE Restarts Consent-Based Siting Program for Spent Nuclear Fuel, Requests Input on Interim Storage Process
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued a request for information on a consent-based siting process that would be used to identify sites to store the nation’s spent nuclear fuel. The information will be used to further develop DOE’s consent-based siting process and overall waste management strategy in an equitable way.
EPA Advisers Favor Stronger Soot Standards
An influential U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) advisory panel appears poised to recommend tightening both the agency’s long-term and daily exposure standards for airborne soot, a step that could ultimately save thousands of lives but also pose added compliance costs and tougher permitting requirements for industry. EPA Administrator Michael Regan plans to make a final decision on any changes by spring 2023.
| Awardee Highlights/Online Learning | Back to Top |
Report Links Construction Unions to Safer Worksites
Unionized construction worksites may be nearly one-fifth less likely to incur Occupational Safety and Health Administration health and safety violations than their nonunionized counterparts, with positive effects on safety even more prevalent in the Midwest, a recent report shows. Researchers from the Illinois Economic Policy Institute and the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign authored the report.
The Impact of Unions on Construction Worksite Health and Safety Report
Wildfire Training Tool Update Now Available
The latest version of the Wildfires Training Tool is now available. This new version updates references in the trainers’ notes, provides more clarity to some of the slides, and separates out slides on incident command structure into a separate module. In addition, the links on the Wildfires webpage have been updated.
Saliva Samples Show Better Sensitivity for Early Stages of COVID-19 Detection
Researchers from the University of Maryland StopCOVID Research Group have conducted a study comparing saliva and mid-turbinate nasal swabs (MTS) for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) detection and found saliva more sensitive early in the course of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection.
News-Medical [Author: Namita Mitra]
| Job Openings | Back to Top |
NIEHS Seeks Associate Director for Management
NIEHS is seeking exceptional candidates for the position of Associate Director for Management. This is a career Federal position in the Senior Executive Service. This position serves as Division Director for the Office of Management which is organized into seven branches and has a budget of approximately $29 million, 92 Federal, and approximately 83 contractor employees.
Johns Hopkins University Seeks Occupational Safety Officer
The Department of Health, Safety and Environment at Johns Hopkins University is seeking an Occupational Safety Officer who assists and reports to the Associate Director of Health, Safety, and Environment in the development and implementation of an occupational safety program for Johns Hopkins Medicine on the East Baltimore campus.
Georgetown University Seeks Senior Occupational Health and Biosafety Manager
The Senior Occupational Health and Biosafety Manager is responsible for the development, implementation, monitoring, and review of Georgetown University's safety programs, to ensure the safety of staff, students, visitors and contractors. This position provides occupational health, and biological and chemical safety support services for research laboratories campus-wide, and is responsible to ensure compliance with current safety and health regulations, guidelines, and University policy.
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