Weekly E-Newsbrief
December 17, 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. This is the last eNewsbrief of 2021. We wish you all safe and happy holidays. Subscribing to the National Clearinghouse Newsbrief is the best way to stay on top of the worker health and safety news.
- 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
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WTP Fall Workshop Presentations Available
Presentations from the WTP Fall Workshop, titled “Advancing Partnerships to Improve Worker Health and Safety,” held virtually on Oct. 19-21 are now available. Recordings of the various sessions will be added to the website as soon as possible.
Lexington Fire Department Sending Collapse Specialists to Tornado Ravaged Western KY
The Lexington Fire Department is sending people and equipment to Western Kentucky to aid in search and rescue efforts following deadly tornadoes that barreled through the region overnight. According to Battalion Chief Jordan Saas, the fire department is sending 10 people and four vehicles to Western Kentucky. Eight of the people are collapse specialists while the other two will serve on the incident management team.
Lexington Herald Leader [Author: Christopher Leach]
FEMA Chief Says Powerful Storms 'New Normal' In Era of Climate Change
Powerful storms like the ones that tore through parts of the central United States are the "new normal" in an era of climate change, the top federal emergency management official said. Deanne Criswell, the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) administrator, said her agency was prepared to bolster resilience in the face of more severe weather.
Amazon Faces Scrutiny Over Worker Safety After Tornado Strikes Warehouse
Questions over worker safety at Amazon are intensifying once again after a tornado struck an Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, Illinois, leaving six people dead and another hospitalized. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration said it had opened a workplace safety investigation into the warehouse collapse.
The Guardian [Author: Kari Paul]
There Aren't Enough Skilled Workers for Biden's Big Infrastructure Plan
Biden's big infrastructure plan, which was passed last month, promises to create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, many of which won't require a college degree. But it's going to be an uphill battle trying to fill those roles. The $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes $550 billion in new funding for roads, bridges, water, and climate change mitigation.
Supreme Court Rejects Bid to Block COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate for NY Health Workers
The U.S. Supreme Court denied an emergency bid to block enforcement of New York’s coronavirus vaccine mandate for health care workers. The legal challenge was filed by a group of 20 doctors and nurses who argued that the state’s vaccine mandate violates the First Amendment to the Constitution because it fails to include a religious exemption.
CNBC [Author: Kevin Breuninger]
| Calendar Features | Back to Top |
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 ETS on COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing
The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has extended the comment period for the COVID-19 vaccination and testing emergency temporary standard (ETS) to Jan. 19, 2022. OSHA extended the comment period by 45 days to allow stakeholders additional time to review the ETS and collect information and data necessary for comment.
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.
Brownfields Conference Dates Announced
Brownfields 2022 will be held Aug. 16-19, 2022, In Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The Brownfields Conference features a dynamic educational program of speakers, discussions, mobile workshops, films and other learning formats that are calibrated to provide attendees with case study examples, program updates, and useful strategies for meeting brownfield challenges head on.
| On The Web This Week | Back to Top |
Report Says Virginia Has Thousands of Unregulated Aboveground Chemical Storage Tanks
A new report says Virginia has an estimated 2,700 to 5,400 aboveground chemical storage tanks that are neither tracked nor closely regulated by the state. Inventorying those facilities is one of the recommendations of the Center for Progressive Reform’s “Tanks for Nothing” report released, which urges Virginia to “enact a comprehensive program that tracks tanks, prevents spills and makes information available to emergency planners and the public.”
Virginia Mercury [Author: Sarah Vogelsong]
Nuclear Waste Excavation Plan in Armstrong County Promises to Add Jobs
In Armstrong County, 30 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, a nuclear waste dump has sat for decades, waiting to be removed from underground trenches. According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, excavating it will do more than make the area safer — it will bring jobs to the county.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette [Author: Jesse Bunch]
EPA Stops Posting ‘Critically Important’ Chemical Risk Data
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has all but stopped posting online data about new types of problems commercial chemicals may cause, frustrating public interest groups and businesses that use the information to make health and safety decisions. EPA says it went from posting substantial risk notices for hundreds of chemicals every year in its ChemView database to posting just two notices since 2019.
Bloomberg Law [Author: Pat Rizzuto]
The Labor Shortage Is a Health Problem
Almost half of unemployed Americans say health issues are the primary reason they're not working, according to new survey data from McKinsey, shared exclusively with Axios. Mental health problems have reached epidemic proportions. McKinsey's American Opportunity Survey polled 5,000 Americans and found that 37% of them had been diagnosed with mental health issues, or sought treatment for their mental health.
Axios [Author: Felix Salmon]
Coal Powered the Industrial Revolution. It Left Behind An ‘Absolutely Massive’ Environmental Catastrophe
By law, mining companies are supposed to ameliorate the damage they cause, a process known as contemporaneous reclamation. Slopes are supposed to be stabilized and returned to their approximate original contour; rainfall needs to be managed; grasses or trees must be planted. None of that happened in Harold, Kentucky.
Mountain State Spotlight [Author: James Bruggers, InsideClimate News]
One in Six Americans Live Within Three Miles of Toxic Waste Site, According to New Report
Millions of Americans live near toxic waste sites across the country and may not even know it. A new report from the U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) explores the funding to cleanup these areas known as Superfund sites. A Superfund is a contaminated site with hazardous waste that has been flagged by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be cleaned up.
KIRO7 [Author: Samantha Manning]
| Federal Agency Update | Back to Top |
Senate Confirmation of CSB Board Members
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) is pleased to acknowledge the U.S. Senate confirmation of two new CSB Board Members, Stephen Owens and Sylvia Johnson. Chairperson Lemos looks forward to working with them to build a strong and diverse Board, adding to the skilled technical resources and community advocacy voices as we perform our valuable work.
New NOAA Tool Pinpoints Natural Disaster Risk Down to County Level
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Centers for Environmental Information has released an innovative mapping tool that provides county-level information on natural disaster hazards across the United States. This new feature provides significant enhancements to the state-level data on NOAA’s Billion-Dollar Disasters website.
| Awardee Highlights/Online Learning | Back to Top |
AIHA Launches New Pandemic Risk Mitigation Resources for Employers and Employees
AIHA has partnered with the Integrated Bioscience and Built Environment Consortium (IBEC) to develop a new public health awareness initiative called Commit to C.A.R.E. This effort asks employers and their employees to pledge to reduce the risk of COVID-19 in the workplace and surrounding communities.
M.A.D.+ Policy Guide
The M.A.D.+ policy guide is intended to help essential workers and their communities advocate for workplace safety at the local and national levels. Co-created by the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health and Last Mile's COVID Straight Talk Lab, it outlines standards for masking, air quality, distancing, and worker rights.
Climate-Integrated Disaster Preparedness Needed to Protect Most Vulnerable Workers
Unprecedented tornados ripped through large swaths of the Midwest, killing dozens including many workers across multiple states. In Kentucky, eight people died at work at a candle factory that was destroyed by a tornado; in Illinois, six Amazon warehouse workers died when the roof of the building collapsed. Over 100 remain unaccounted for. This terrible tragedy has shone a spotlight on the inadequacies of worker protections as the climate crisis ramps up.
| 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.
NEA Seeks Health and Safety Positions
The National Education Association (NEA), representing public education professionals, is adding health and safety positions to their national staff—one for an industrial hygienist (or other technical expert) and one for a school health policy expert.
UW DEOHS Faculty Positions and Fellowships Are Available
Three new tenure-track faculty positions, and two full-time, teaching faculty positions are available in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences (DEOHS) at the University of Washington (UW) for faculty with environmental and occupational health expertise. The positions seek the following areas of expertise: Occupational Health and Safety; Environmental Epidemiology; and Toxicology.
Massachusetts Department of Health Seeks Industrial Hygienist
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health is seeking an experienced public health professional to the join the Occupational Health Surveillance Program (OHSP) within the Bureau of Community Health and Prevention to provide industrial hygiene expertise, site investigation work, and related data analytic support. In this position, the Industrial Safety and Health Inspector will bring to OHSP their knowledge and experience in recognizing and evaluating workplace safety and health hazards to multiple topic areas within the program.
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