OSHA's National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health (NACOSH) met Sept. 14-15, 2010, in Washington, D.C., to discuss updates on Gulf of Mexico oil spill response activities and other OSHA initiatives, including Injury and Illness Prevention Programs. We will summarize any pertinent information from the meeting as soon as it’s available. The solutions aren’t simple! Reducing health risks and encouraging healthier behaviors are complex issues and require complex solutions that include company policies, work organization, social support, organizational support and individual change initiatives.

The advisory committee established under the OSH Act of 1970 has advised the Secretaries of Labor, and Health and Human Services for nearly 40 years on occupational safety and health issues such as emergency preparedness, site-specific targeting, hexavalent chromium, whistleblower protection, and continuing outreach to Latino workers. Individuals may submit comments and requests at http://www.regulations.gov, the Federal eRulemaking Portal. If submitting comments by mail, send three copies to the OSHA Docket Office, Room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210.

Earlier this month The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced that BP Products North America Inc. will pay a full penalty of $50.6 million stemming from the 2005 explosion at its Texas City, Texas, refinery that killed 15 workers and injured 170 others. The agreement resolves failure-to-abate citations issued after a 2009 follow-up investigation. In addition to paying the record fine, BP has agreed to take immediate steps to protect those now working at the refinery, allocating a minimum of $500 million to that effort. In September 2005, OSHA cited BP for a then-record $21 million as a result of the fatal explosion at its Texas City refinery in March of that year. Upon issuance of the citations, the parties entered into an agreement that required the company to identify and to correct deficiencies. In a follow-up investigation in 2009, OSHA found that although the company made many changes related to safety, it failed to live up to several extremely important terms of that agreement. During that same 2009 investigation at the Texas City refinery, OSHA also identified 439 new willful violations and assessed the penalties. It’s amazing that some companies just don’t get it. This isn’t just lack of compliance, it’s a direct reflection of the corporate culture and lack of respect for the employees that work hard to help make the company successful. For more on the story, refer to the News Release: http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb.

Setting and enforcing Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs) have been fundamental components of OSHA's approach to preventing occupational illnesses and injuries since the Agency was established in 1970 by the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Unfortunately, most of OSHA's PELs that were adopted when the Agency was first created have remained unchanged. Meanwhile, science has moved forward and health data indicate hazards below the levels permitted by many OSHA PELs. Like the occupational health community at large, OSHA realizes the inadequacy of many of its PELs and is seeking creative solutions, both long term and short term, to address this inadequacy.

As an initial step, OSHA is looking for input to help the Agency identify the chemicals of concern on which to focus initial efforts beyond those which OSHA is already addressing. OSHA would like to hear from interested parties regarding chemicals for which the existing PEL is particularly inadequate or for which OSHA has no standard at all, and that are putting workers at risk for occupational illness. For additional information or to submit comments, refer to; http://www.osha.gov/pelforum.html.

• Injury and Illness Prevention Programs !
• More BP Fines for PAST Issues
• OSHA Seeks Your Input on Identifying the Top Chemicals of Concern