Do you ever wonder whether auditing of greenhouse gas emissions is working? It may be a bit early in the game to say for sure, given that GHG emission tracking standards are a recent phenomenon. But an annual report compiled by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may be a good gauge of trends in emission reductions, judging by its latest installment.
Tags: Corporate Governance, Business & Legal, Health & Safety, Environmental risks, Environmental, EHS, EPA, Greenhouse Gas, ghg
American workers suffer more than 190,000 illnesses and 50,000 deaths annually as a result of working with and being exposed to tens of thousands of chemicals every day. Workplace chemical exposures have been linked to cancers, and other lung, kidney, skin, heart, stomach, brain, nerve, and reproductive diseases. While many of these chemicals are suspected of being harmful, only a fraction of them are regulated in the workplace.
Tags: Business & Legal, Health & Safety, OSHA, Environmental risks, Environmental, Hazcom
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires employers to prepare and maintain records of occupational injuries and illnesses (I&Is), and to provide employees with annual summaries of I&I statistics for their "establishment." At present, OSHA and/or the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) can demand that selected employers report this information to them. BLS uses this information for statistical analyses of factors that cause workplace injuries and illnesses, and OSHA uses it to set rulemaking and enforcement priorities. In addition, OSHA requires all employers to report work-related accidents that result in one or more serious injuries or deaths (what OSHA calls "catastrophes").
Tags: Corporate Governance, Business & Legal, Employer Best Practices, Health & Safety, Employee Rights, Environmental
Most laws include penalty provisions, for assessment against people who fail to comply with legal responsibilities created by the laws. Back in 1996, Congress noticed that inflation was steadily reducing the deterrent effects of the penalties set forth in statutes, and that Congress itself was not reliably adjusting the maximum penalties assessable by enforcement personnel. Rather than burden itself with a responsibility to amend laws to keep up with inflation, Congress enacted the passed Debt Collection Improvement Act (DCIA) of 1996 to assign that responsibility to administrative agencies. DCIA requires most federal agencies to issue rules at least every 4 years, adjusting most penalties for inflation. In the ensuing 17 years, most agencies have made these periodic adjustments—larger in times of high inflation and lower in times of low inflation.
Tags: Corporate Governance, Business & Legal, Environmental risks, Environmental, EPA
Tags: Corporate Governance, Business & Legal, Health & Safety, Environmental risks, Environmental, Hazcom, Canadian
Advances in field techniques have recently made hydraulic fracturing— “fracking”—a major part of energy production in the United States and Canada. Frackers pump high-pressure fluids into rock formations to expand cracks and create pathways for valuable hydrocarbons to flow out. The stimulant fluids are usually water-based, with additional chemicals (acids, surfactants, biocides, etc.) to improve effectiveness and solid ‘proppants’ to prop open the expanded openings (sand, etc.). Read my earlier blog here
Tags: Health & Safety, California Legislation, Environmental risks, Environmental, EHS, Hazcom, fracking, hydraulic fracking, Oil & Gas
On October 28, British Columbia, California, Oregon and Washington signed the Pacific Coast Action Plan on Climate and Energy, committing themselves to align efforts to control greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions to combat climate change, and to promote clean energy. The Action Plan is adopted under the aegis of the Pacific Coast Collaborative, which encompasses these four jurisdictions plus Alaska.
Tags: California Legislation, Environmental risks, Environmental, EPA, Greenhouse Gas, ghg, climate change, Canadian
A recent case in British Columbia’s Supreme Court illustrates the difficulty of winning damages for loss and injury attributed to mold.
Tags: Business & Legal, Environmental, Insurance, Insurance Claims, mold
In late September 2013, California’s Air Resources Board (ARB) and the government of Quebec signed an agreement to harmonize and integrate their cap-and-trade programs for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. California’s GHG programs under AB 32 will be officially linked with Quebec’s programs beginning January 1, 2014.
Tags: Business & Legal, California Legislation, Environmental risks, Environmental, Greenhouse Gas, ghg, climate change, Canadian
It’s common knowledge now that lead is a systemic poison. Overexposure to it can damage our blood-forming, nervous, urinary and reproductive systems. In the past, lead was commonly added to industrial paints because of its characteristic corrosion resistance and color enhancement. Lead Poisoning Prevention Week takes place from October 20–26. Sponsored by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), this year’s event focuses on protecting children from exposure to lead. EPA and partner agencies such as HUD are helping raise awareness among parents of ways to combat lead poisoning, from monitoring children’s consumption of certain types of imported candy to screening those most liable to be exposed to lead in the home.
Tags: Business & Legal, California Legislation, Environmental risks, Environmental, EPA
