Last Update  08/25/07 07:48 AM

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NEWS ARCHIVE 2003    Last updated on 08/25/07 07:48 AM

12/2/03
Yakima County, WA -- This week, the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries is expected to adopt rules requiring blood samples from workers who handle certain pesticides. [Click For More]

12/1/03
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- An office furniture manufacturer's failure to provide adequate safeguards for employees working with the chemical methylene chloride (MC) has resulted in $49,200 in fines from OSHA. [Click For More]

11/25/03
The judge at the IBM toxics trial denied Monday a motion by the company to strike from the record the testimony of a nurse who said Big Blue had a policy to ignore worker injuries possibly caused by chemical exposure. [Click For More]

11/24/03
We were surprised the day 3M walked into a meeting with senior EPA officials and said, ''We've decided to stop making perfluorooctyl chemicals (known as C-8), not only here in the U.S. but also worldwide.'' [Click For More]

11/21/03
Findings, presented last week in Austin, Texas, add to the growing realization that the most common flame retardant chemicals used in plastics, foams and textiles are toxic to humans. [Click For More]

11/20/03
Teflon and the chemicals used in its production including ammonium perfluorooctanoate, known as C-8, have been linked to cancer, organ damage and other health effects in tests on laboratory animals. [Click For More]

11/19/03
Business, the public and local regulators can expect to see more of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Louisville, KY over the next year, as officials from its regional office work to help reduce risks from toxic air. [Click For More]

11/18/03
Arizona -- A chlorine leak at a recycling plant Monday forced the evacuation of parts of Phoenix and Glendale, and prompted at least four schools to keep students inside classrooms. [Click For More]

11/17/03
Maine -- Arsenic rarely makes headlines, as it did last spring when 16 people suffered acute poisoning, and one man died, from drinking spiked coffee at a church in northern Maine. [Click For More]

11/14/03
Richmond, VA -- A chemical spill forced 500 workers to evacuate the Tyson Processing Plant in Hanover Wednesday afternoon. Plant officials say ammonia leaked from a refrigeration unit in the pet food processing section. [Click For More]

11/13/03
New Jersey - Honeywell International, PPG Industries, and Tiera Solutions, Inc. will pay $17 million as compensation for cleaning up chromium contaminated sites. [Click For More]

11/12/03
LONDON, (IPS) - The consequences of the war in Iraq on people's health may be felt for generations, says a report by the medical charity Medact. [Click For More]

11/11/03
Vietnamese officials have said they want the United States to help ease Vietnamese suffering from exposure to Agent Orange, which has been linked to cancer, diabetes, spina bifida, birth defects and other illnesses. [Click For More]

11/10/03
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- Wyman Gordon Company has been cited for a total of 25 alleged violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act including excess levels of nickel and nuisance dust. [Click For More]

11/7/03
TEXAS CITY, TX — Employees and emergency crews were evacuated, and efforts to right a capsized barge carrying 235,000 gallons of sulfuric acid were aborted Thursday afternoon. [Click For More]

11/6/03
Federal regulators have decided against banning arsenic-treated lumber for playground equipment, saying most manufacturers no longer use the wood-protecting chemical that is believed to increase the risk of cancer. [Click For More]

11/5/03
Doubts About The Safety Of Plastic -- In two separate labs at Case Western Reserve University, researchers noticed a sudden mini-epidemic of defective chromosomes in August 1998, and no one could say why. [Click For More]

11/4/03
NEW BRUNSWICK CANADA -- A major toxic chemical spill in Moncton, New Brunswick has landed a construction company in trouble with the federal environment department. [Click For More]

11/3/03
WASHINGTON - American industries are bracing for new European chemical-safety rules that companies say could snarl exports of U.S.-made chemicals. [Click For More]

10/30/03
Cold War-era nuclear workers at Mallinckrodt Chemical Co. in St. Louis received doses of radiation up to 2,400 times those considered acceptable today, according to an unprecedented government report. [Click For More]

10/29/03
ST. LOUIS -- The federal government's 17-year effort to warn backyard and professional mechanics of the dangers of cancer-causing asbestos in brakes is under attack. [Click For More]

10/28/03
Several months ago I was invited along with 150 other people to have my blood tested for three groups of pretty nasty chemicals - organochlorines, PCBs and flame retardants. [Click For More]

10/27/03
The State of Delaware has fined Motiva Enterprises $120,000 for pollution and safety violations that led to a major spill of acid and gasoline compounds. [Click For More]

10/23/03
Working with small businesses to provide information and education on chemical safety is the foundation of OSHA's newest national Alliance with The Society for Chemical Hazard Communication (SCHC). [Click For More]

10/22/03
WASHINGTON -- A new resource to help companies reduce injuries, illnesses and fatalities during chemical manufacturing and operations goes online as OSHA unveils its newest webpage, ''Chemical Reactivity Safety''. [Click For More]

10/21/03
PORTLAND, Maine — Ten public health and environmental organizations joined more than 200 groups nationwide in launching Be Safe, a campaign to protect children's health from toxic chemical exposure. [Click For More]

10/20/03
LOS ANGELES (UPI) -- For many Americans and their lawyers nothing says ''deep pockets'' like ''big oil'' which is why a furious war of words over the gasoline additive MTBE is being waged in Washington. [Click For More]

10/17/03
SAVANNAH, GA -- OSHA has cited AmeriCold Logistics, LLC, for failure to plan properly for emergencies such as accidental release of ammonia and sodium hydroxide at a frozen food warehouse. [Click For More]

10/16/03
Large amounts of banned pesticides have been found in storage in Russian Karelia near the border with Finland. [Click For More]

10/15/03
ELLINGTON, Conn. (AP)--A leak at the Natural Country Farms juice company sent a cloud of ammonia over a surrounding neighborhood leading to the evacuation of about 1,000 people. [Click For More]

10/14/03
With the recent metallic mercury contamination at a Washington, D.C. high school, the EPA is reminding the public that it provides extensive mercury spill prevention and cleanup information. [Click For More]

10/13/03
Jury selection is scheduled to begin Tuesday in the first major case to put the electronics manufacturing industry on trial for concealing knowledge of harmful working conditions in its early clean rooms. [Click For More]

10/10/03
MARION, OH -- Federal health investigators report workers at a microwave-popcorn plant have symptoms of lung disease and the company should protect employees from chemicals used in butter flavorings. [Click For More]

10/9/03
The EPA is testing the homes of 80 students whose clothing tested positive for mercury exposure when the chemical was intentionally spilled at their school by students who had stolen it from a lab. [Click For More]

10/8/03
One of the worst things about antifreeze is that it is so common that people fail to realize how deadly it is. Even the warning labels on the containers fail to stress the extreme toxicity or why it kills so many pets. [Click For More]

10/7/03
AUSTRALIA -- Twelve people were evacuated and three treated for eye irritation when paracetic acid leaked from sterilization equipment in an operating theatre at St Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne. [Click For More]

10/6/03
WASHINGTON, DC -- Ballou High School could remain closed for as long as 30 days as workers continue to clean up mercury that was intentionally spilled by students who had stolen the chemical from a lab. [Click For More]

10/3/03
BECKLEY, WV -- An indoor chemical spill at a Sophia coal-testing laboratory sent 19 employees to area hospitals. [Click For More]

10/2/03
FAIRFAX, VA - Search and rescue teams in 28 cities now have the equipment and training to respond to chemical, biological or nuclear attacks as the government takes steps to prepare for potential terrorist strikes. [Click For More]

10/1/03
PASCAGOULA, MS -- After an eight-month investigation, First Chemical Corp. has released findings that a chemical decomposition reaction overheated and overpressurized, causing a 36-year-old column to explode. [Click For More]

9/30/03
Fort Myers, FL -- Nine employees of Krehling Industries were taken to Cape Coral Hospital after becoming ill when exposed to a chemical reaction when calcium nitrate and phosphoric acid were being mixed in a cylinder. [Click For More]

9/29/03
The European Commission has softened plans for new environmental rules on chemicals which industry and big EU governments have slammed as costly and unworkable. [Click For More]

9/26/03
BRAINTREE, MA -- Oldcastle APG N.E., Inc., doing business as Foster-Southeastern faces $63,000 in fines for violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act including employee overexposure to crystalline silica. [Click For More]

9/25/03
CROSSVILLE, TN — Authorities have upgraded their response to a chemical spill that led to the evacuation to more than 100 homes due to a leaning 2,000-pound cylinder of chlorine gas. [Click For More]

9/24/03
''Inherently Safer Design'' course will be held at the Institute of Biosciences & Technology in Houston, Texas on October 7-8. The course focuses on the elimination of chemical hazards from a manufacturing process. [Click For More]

9/23/03
When a friend suggested Katrina Friedman sign up for a study testing for traces of a chemical flame retardant in breast milk, the Oakland mom thought nothing of it. Then she got the results. [Click For More]

9/22/03
SAN ONOFRE, CA – Some southbound lanes of Interstate 5 were closed for more than eight hours after a tanker truck was hit from behind and spilled a small amount of hazardous material. [Click For More]

9/19/03
DES MOINES (AP) -- Koch Pipeline Co., blamed for a fertilizer spill that killed more than 1 million fish in tributaries of the Des Moines River in north central Iowa, has agreed to pay $1.45 million to state and federal officials. [Click For More]

9/18/03
When we think of National Farm Safety Week, our minds tend to flash images of roll-over protection bars and slow moving vehicle signs. But it is also a time to take precautions with dangerous chemicals and other poisons. [Click For More]

9/17/03
GENEVA -- The hole in the protective ozone layer over the Antarctic, one of the world's major environmental challenges, has expanded more rapidly than in recent years, reaching the record level set three years ago. [Click For More]

9/16/03
Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York have sued the Environmental Protection Agency, contending that it is allowing unacceptably high levels of pesticide residues in some foods favored by children. [Click For More]

9/15/03
UK - One manager in the chemical industry said that so much of his time was being taken up by health and safety inspectors and filling out forms that he was ''diverted from managing the operation safely''. [Click For More]

9/12/03
Ethylene glycol ethers (EGE's) are a group of organic solvents that were the key ingredients in a solution used in the fabrication of computer chips but were linked to testicular damage, miscarriages and birth defects. [Click For More]

9/11/03
ANNISTON, AL - OSHA and M&H Valve Company have agreed to a settlement of $103,500 for violations of its lead standard, inadequate lead sampling, and insufficient hazard communication with employees. [Click For More]

9/10/03
ELMIRA, NY - OSHA has cited Kennedy Valve for $137,900 for uncovered containers of flammable liquids, inadequate respiratory protection, unlabeled hazardous chemicals and, employee overexposure to silica. [Click For More]

9/9/03
ORLANDO, FL - More than 50 workers at an manufacturing plant west of Sanford were treated for sodium hydroxide exposure when a ventilation system malfunctioned. [Click For More]

9/8/03
The EPA issued a final rule to reduce hazardous air emissions from miscellaneous organic chemical manufacturing facilities. [Click For More]

9/5/03
While IBM officials deny it, evidence is being offered by stricken employees that large numbers of men and women who worked for the corporation over the past few decades have been dying prematurely. [Click For More]

9/4/03
CHICAGO - Lockformer and its parent company will pay at least $18.5 million to settle two pollution lawsuits filed by homeowners with contaminated wells and a woman with cancer linked to drinking tainted water. [Click For More]

9/3/03
ANNISTON, AL - Two sarin leaks were detected within the incinerator complex at Anniston Army Depot when a furnace was fired up for the first time. [Click For More]

9/2/03
The EPA has ordered Clean Control Corp to immediately stop selling Odo-Ban Ready-to-Use Disinfectant/Cleaner because of the potential for bacterial contamination from use in hospital, health care, and other settings. [Click For More]

8/29/03
Ariel Research Corporation has launched a new module designed to enable companies manufacturing, using, or transporting chemicals across Central and Eastern Europe to mitigate their EH&S risk. [Click For More]

8/28/03
LAKEWOOD, CO - A hazardous material spill at the Denver Federal Center forced the closure of a portion of heavily traveled Kipling Street for more than two hours, but caused no serious injuries. [Click For More]

8/27/03
DETROIT, MI - Summer residents on an island in the St. Clair River complained of rashes and other illnesses following a spill of the cancer-causing chemical vinyl chloride. [Click For More]

8/26/03
The National Library of Medicine this summer launched a Web site that lets consumers look beyond the marketing hype to find factual information on household products. [Click For More]

8/25/03
LOUISVILLE, KY, - About 40 people were evacuated from a building at the Rohm and Haas Co. plant after a low-level hazardous material leaked from a ruptured line. [Click For More]

8/22/03
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India set up a parliamentary committee to investigate pesticide levels in soft drinks made by Coca-Cola Co and PepsiCo Inc, a day after the government declared them safe. [Click For More]

8/21/03
BIRMINGHAM, AL — Solutia Inc. and Monsanto Co. have agreed to pay $700 million to settle claims by more than 20,000 Anniston residents over PCB contamination. [Click For More]

8/20/03
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The ideal legacy of the war in Iraq is a free and democratic society, but a sinister legacy of another kind is possible as well -- cancers and birth defects. [Click For More]

8/19/03
Scientific experts have completed a report to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding potential developmental effects of the widely-used herbicide atrazine on amphibians. [Click For More]

8/18/03
Inside the lab, giant blenders grind foods into mush so scientists can test for more than 300 pesticides, cancer-causing dioxins and industrial chemicals. [Click For More]

8/15/03
PIKEVILLE, KY. - A punctured truck tank spilled more than 6,000 gallons of xylene onto U.S. 23, closing Eastern Kentucky's busiest highway for more than 18 hours. [Click For More]

8/14/03
WASHINGTON, DC -- The critical role played by OSHA in ensuring the safety and health of workers at the World Trade Center site and the lessons learned in the process are chronicled a new publication, ''Inside the Green Line''. [Click For More]

8/13/03
Buried at Hanford are 177 tanks containing 53 million gallons of A-bomb waste. The tanks hold a complex mix of chemicals and radioactive materials that keep chemically reacting. [Click For More]

8/12/03
BEIJING (AP) -- Tokyo has sent experts to investigate drums of poison gas thought to have been left by the Japanese army after World War II that sickened dozens of people in northeastern China last week. [Click For More]

8/11/03
Covington, KY -- Two local police officers were recovering Sunday after they were overcome by fumes at the scene of a chemical spill. [Click For More]

8/8/03
Palmyra, NY-AP -- A sulfuric acid leak from a storage vat at Garlock Industries forced dozens of people to be evacuated from their homes in a western New York village. [Click For More]

8/7/03
Working teens have two new resources to help keep them safe on the job -- Teen Worker Safety in Restaurants and -- Youth in Agriculture -- the latest interactive web-based training tools unveiled today by OSHA. [Click For More]

8/6/03
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- A Lowville, N.Y., dairy plant's failure to address a wide range of safety hazards, including hazard communication training, has resulted in $141,100 in fines from OSHA. [Click For More]

8/5/03
Solutia, a manufacturer of chemical products, has been accused in state and federal courts of chemical contamination from polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs in four more class-action cases. [Click For More]

8/4/03
There isn't a single law or regulation on the books to ensure that even minimal security features are in place to keep terrorists – or the average teenage vandal – out of chemical plants. [Click For More]

8/1/03
BATON ROUGE (AP) — A Honeywell International worker has died after being injured during a antimony pentachloride leak at the plant, prompting another investigation by local, state and federal officials. [Click For More]

7/31/03
Piedmont Hawthorne Aviation's failure to correct previously cited workplace violations including hazard communication training for employees has resulted in an additional $157,500 in fines from OSHA. [Click For More]

7/30/03
CHICAGO -- Information on OSHA safety and health issues will be available at the 15th Annual Chicagoland Safety and Health Conference on Northern Illinois University's campus in Naperville, Ill., August 11-15. [Click For More]

7/29/03
A Saugerties, N.Y., candle manufacturer's failure to address workplace safety hazards including failure to implement a written hazard communication program has resulted in $45,000 in fines from OSHA. [Click For More]

7/28/03
Armed with $4.1 million in federal grant money, two University of Georgia scientists hope to develop a new model for chemical ''risk assessment''. [Click For More]

7/25/03
SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- Fish in the San Francisco Bay still routinely exceed health guidelines for a slew of chemical pollutants, including PCBs, mercury, dioxin and pesticides, according to a study released by the EPA. [Click For More]

7/24/03
TACOMA, WA — Seven people were sickened by a hazardous material spill aboard the Axel Maersk, one of the largest container ships in the world, after it docked at the Port of Tacoma. [Click For More]

7/23/03
Recently, actions taken by the US House of Representatives and Senate have shown that the two legislative arms are split on the subject of methyl tertiary butyl ether, the gasoline additive known as MTBE. [Click For More]

7/22/03
WASHINGTON -- OSHA has announced two additions to their website which will provide information on workplace emergency preparedness and information on how OSHA helps small businesses. [Click For More]

7/21/03
BATON ROUGE (AP) — Eight chemical plant workers were hospitalized, and hundreds of residents ordered to stay indoors following a chlorine gas leak. [Click For More]

7/18/03
SACRAMENTO - California would become the first state to phase out two chemical fire retardants known to accumulate in the blood of mothers and their newborn children under a bill passed by the state Senate. [Click For More]

7/17/03
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Tenney Laundry Service Inc. faces $40,500 in fines for alleged violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, including failure to inform employees about hazardous chemicals. [Click For More]

7/16/03
The European Union's controversial proposal on chemical testing will be the 21st-century equivalent of the clean air laws of the last century, yielding health benefits that far exceed its costs. [Click For More]

7/15/03
Washington - The heavy metal cadmium, widely used in batteries and alloys, can affect rats in ways that mimic the female hormone estrogen, a new study has found. [Click For More]

7/14/03
CONCORD, N.H. -- A Franklin, N.H., foundry's failure to adequately protect workers against lead and other occupational health and safety hazards has resulted in a total of $49,560 in fines from OSHA. [Click For More]

7/11/03
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Failure to adequately protect their workers against asbestos has resulted in a total of $99,300 in fines against three contractors involved in a construction project at Grover Cleveland High School. [Click For More]

7/10/03
MATSUYAMA, JAPAN -- One worker at a chemical factory died and one of his colleagues was seriously injured after apparently inhaling carbon monoxide. [Click For More]

7/9/03
EPA has completed a thorough assessment of the pesticide carbaryl (Sevin), and is requiring new measures to ensure protection for homeowners, agricultural workers and the environment. [Click For More]

7/8/03
California resident Davis Baltz has learned that he has low levels of 106 toxic chemicals in his body. He wasn't completely surprised by the finding, but he was angry. [Click For More]

7/4/03
The U.S. Supreme Court has denied a Wisner, Neb., man's request to restore a $2.2 million judgment in his pesticide exposure case. [Click For More]

7/3/03
BISMARCK, N.D. -- North Dakota's Health Department has fined the Canadian Pacific railway $925,000 for environmental violations from an anhydrous ammonia spill that killed one and injured hundreds. [Click For More]

7/2/03
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- U.S. Chemical & Plastics, Inc. is facing $105,500 in fines by the OSHA following a benzoyl peroxide explosion at the plant located approximately 30 miles south of Canton, Ohio. [Click For More]

7/1/03
SALT LAKE CITY - The EPA's latest Toxic Release Inventory, with tighter company reporting standards, indicates more lead has been released into Utah's environment than indicated in previous reports. [Click For More]

6/30/03
SAN MARTIN, CA - Federal legislation passed by Congress could provide funding for studies into perchlorate’s effects on health. [Click For More]

6/27/03
UK -- The government is experimenting with people's lives by failing to test man-made chemicals, according to a leading biochemist who chairs the royal commission on environmental pollution. [Click For More]

6/26/03
Farmers outside Augusta, Ga., say the hay had a musty chemical odor, but they fed it to the cows. Then the cows started to waste away, and died by the hundreds. [Click For More]

6/25/03
SAVANNAH, Ga. -- OSHA has cited Triple A Modular Buildings, Inc., and proposed penalties totaling $45,250 for failing to protect workers from safety and health hazards. [Click For More]

6/24/03
Holley, NY -- The Diaz Chemical Company plant that leaked a pungent chemical (2-chloro-6-fluorophenol) early last year in a western New York neighborhood has closed its doors for good. [Click For More]

6/23/03
POMPTON LAKES, N.J. — DuPont settled a chemical contamination case with people who said they were sickened by exposure to chemicals from a now-defunct DuPont munitions plant. [Click For More]

6/20/03
There may be a link between infertility and pollution from agricultural herbicides and pesticides, according to a new study. [Click For More]

6/19/03
PITTSFIELD, MA -- In investigation of PCB contamination, the U.S. EPA concluded that eating fish, ducks and geese from the Housatonic river poses an unacceptable risk of cancer and other health effects. [Click For More]

6/18/03
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK -- OSHA has proposed penalties of $427,500 against 3 employers for alleged violations including failure to perform initial lead and cadmium exposure determination. [Click For More]

6/17/03
OSHA has proposed penalties of $431,650 against Pace Industries, Inc. of Harrison, Ark., for almost 50 alleged violations including failure to develop and implement a proper hazard communications program. [Click For More]

6/16/03
Virtually every manufacturer in California would have to contend with new industrial stormwater discharge controls under regulation changes being considered by the State Water Resources Control Board. [Click For More]

6/13/03
Great Britain - The UK Ministry of Defence has lost a test case that could prompt thousands of compensation claims from ex-servicemen after the High Court rejected its insistence that ''Gulf war syndrome'' does not exist. [Click For More]

6/12/03
DES MOINES, IA -- The city and a company it hired to repair sewers are challenging more than $800,000 in fines related to the death of two workers last summer from exposure to hydrogen sulfide. [Click For More]

6/11/03
OSHA has announced the new site-specific targeting (SST) plan that will target approximately 3,200 high-hazard worksites for unannounced comprehensive safety and health inspections over the coming year. [Click For More]

6/10/03
MONROE, Conn. -- About 100 students tested positive for mercury exposure after the toxic chemical spilled from a leaky barometer in a Masuk High School science classroom. [Click For More]

6/9/03
Health Canada scientists have found that most cereal-based baby foods regularly contain multiple mycotoxins, potentially harmful moulds more often associated with sick building syndrome. [Click For More]

6/6/03
TEXARKANA, AR -- Hazardous material work crews cleaned up a toxic chemical spill of a deadly pesticide known as Methyl Parathionin that can be fatal if inhaled or absorbed through a person's skin. [Click For More]

6/5/03
PHILLIPSBURG, N.J. -- Atlantic States Cast Iron Pipe Company is being cited by OSHA for safety and health violations, including lack of training for employees exposed to silica and formaldehyde. [Click For More]

6/4/03
WASHINGTON -- A report released today finds that despite a chemical terrorist attack in the U.S. being a real possibility, state public health laboratories are dangerously unprepared to meet this challenge. [Click For More]

6/3/03
CHICAGO, IL — Chicago has long been known as one of the nation's worst cities for asthma sufferers. Now scientists think they may know why. [Click For More]

6/2/03
There's more than water falling to earth when it rains in Indiana. More than 95 percent of rain samples collected from 2001 to 2002 contained mercury levels that exceeded federal standards. [Click For More]

5/30/03
Japan - People developing chronic arsenic poisoning number about 47 million in India and Bangladesh and about 3 million in China. The problem is also spreading to other parts of Asia, Central and South America. [Click For More]

5/29/03
LOUISVILLE -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is reporting observed environmental impacts as a result of the diazinon spill from a traffic accident on May 20 at exit 9A on Interstate 71 in Louisville. [Click For More]

5/28/03
London - Four British soldiers who were given multiple vaccinations before the Iraq war are now suffering symptoms similar to the Gulf War syndrome. [Click For More]

5/27/03
Researchers from the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory may have found a way to use algae to protect America's water supplies from chemical attack. [Click For More]

5/26/03
WASHINGTON -- A federal investigation launched last year has found the nation's rail system is vulnerable to terrorist attacks and catastrophic accidents, with few protective measures put in place since Sept. 11. [Click For More]

5/23/03
Grand Junction, CO -- Workers in moon suits are cleaning up an estimated 12,000 pounds of hazardous chemicals in Grand Junction, material that contains the chemical made infamous by the movie ''Erin Brockovich''. [Click For More]

5/22/03
San Antonio, TX -- Explosive acid found on the northwest side - fire department's hazardous materials team determined it was an explosive chemical called Picric acid. [Click For More]

5/21/03
Louisville, KY -- A tractor-trailer tipped over on Interstate 71 near the Snyder Freeway in eastern Jefferson County, causing its load of pesticide to leak and backing up southbound traffic for miles. [Click For More]

5/20/03
A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine suggests that any increase in lead blood level, even under the CDC's 10 microgram limit, harms brain development in children and reduces IQ. [Click For More]

5/19/03
WASHINGTON -- More than 1.5 million workers in the U.S. plastics industry stand to benefit from a new web page, ''OSHA Assistance for the Plastics Industry''. [Click For More]

5/16/03
The European Commission is using the Internet for public consultation on the new draft Chemicals Legislation which intends to completely overhaul the European Union's regulatory system for chemicals. [Click For More]

5/15/03
TOKYO, -- A Tokyo court ruled on Thursday that five Chinese had suffered health damage from Japanese chemical weapons left behind after World War Two but rejected their claim for compensation. [Click For More]

5/14/03
OSHA has issued proposed penalties totaling $45,500 to Valley Fresh, Inc., Talmo, Ga., for exposing workers to multiple hazards including failure to provide training for technicians handling hazardous materials. [Click For More]

5/13/03
WASHINGTON -- OSHA is providing information on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that may be useful for employers and employees. [Click For More]

5/12/03
LOUISVILLE - Two Wilkinson County men were killed Friday after a tank exploded in their truck, exposing them to a toxic chemical used to produce methamphetamines. [Click For More]

5/9/03
BOSTON -- A new report states that most cancer in children is not inherited but rather caused by chemicals in air, water and household products. [Click For More]

5/8/03
Protecting Connecticut's hospital workers against on-the-job injuries and illnesses is the subject of free outreach seminar to be held Friday, May 23 at the Yale Office of Environmental Health and Safety in New Haven. [Click For More]

5/7/03
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit directed OSHA to publish a proposed hexavalent chromium rule no later than October 4, 2004 and a final standard no later than January 18, 2006. [Click For More]

5/6/03
Three former executives of Tin Products Inc. were sentenced Monday in federal court for their roles in a toxic spill that contaminated drinking water and killed fish in one of the South Carolina's worst environmental spills. [Click For More]

5/5/03
Now that the major combat portion of the war is over, concerns are mounting that the use of depleted uranium in allied munitions could pose long-term health hazards for Iraqis and coalition troops. [Click For More]

5/2/03
OAK RIDGE, TN - An independent team of experts has joined the investigation of an April 15 explosion that occurred as workers tested a new system for processing uranium at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant. [Click For More]

5/1/03
A study published in a recent issue of ''Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source'' found that women exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls are less likely to give birth to boys. [Click For More]

4/30/03
More than a quarter-century after asbestos-scarred lungs became a legal issue, courts are still glutted with cases related to the material. [Click For More]

4/29/03
RIEGELWOOD, N.C. - Former employees of the defunct HoltraChem plant have sued, claiming they suffered serious health problems after exposure to harmful levels of mercury and other hazardous substances. [Click For More]

4/28/03
GARYVILLE, LA — Shipping traffic on the lower Mississippi River resumed after the Coast Guard determined there was no remaining danger from the spill of 42,000 gallons of Xylene. [Click For More]

4/25/03
DAYTON, OH - Dayton area residents want to stop the Army from using their neighborhood to dispose of hazardous waste. [Click For More]

4/24/03
WASHINGTON -- OSHA has scheduled an informal public hearing July 8-9 to discuss the agency's proposed rule on the second phase of the Standards Improvement Project. [Click For More]

4/23/03
DANBURY, CT - Crews were on the scene of a cyanide spill on I-84 in Danbury trying to clean up the mess. [Click For More]

4/22/03
NORWICH, ND -- A tank spilled several hundred gallons of anhydrous ammonia, forcing the evacuation of this small town and sending six people to the hospital. [Click For More]

4/21/03
HARTFORD, Conn. -- A Southington, Conn., cabinet manufacturer's failure to address a wide range of safety and health hazards has resulted in $112,000 in fines from OSHA. [Click For More]

4/17/03
CALAMUS, Iowa — Co-workers Bob Ryan and Nathan Nissen were standing on a platform, almost finished filling a 1,500-gallon tank with anhydrous ammonia, when it suddenly exploded. [Click For More]

4/16/03
WASHINGTON – Fifteen months ago, Wichita, Kan., rid itself of a chemical time bomb. The menace had existed in the form of highly toxic chlorine gas, kept in one-ton steel cylinders at a city sewage treatment plant. [Click For More]

4/15/03
WASHINGTON -- An unregulated chemical used in furniture, carpet and Teflon could be a serious health risk to the public, prompting the EPA to launch an in-depth assessment to determine its safety. [Click For More]

4/14/03
Louisville, KY -- Federal investigators will try to determine what caused an explosion at a caramel coloring plant that killed one worker and spewed a cloud of ammonia over Louisville's Clifton neighborhood. [Click For More]

4/11/03
The California Department of Toxic Substances and Control announced trichloroethylene, a cancer-causing solvent has saturated the ground water at the Boeing Rocketdyne Santa Susana Field Lab in Simi Valley. [Click For More]

4/10/03
OSHA has cited Shapiro Packing Co., Augusta, Ga., proposing penalties of $165,000 for failing to protect workers from a variety of violations including failure to train employees in the proper use of chemicals. [Click For More]

4/9/03
Brazilian authorities have arrested an administrative director of the paper and pulp company blamed for a chemical spill, considered by some to be the worst environmental catastrophe in the country's history. [Click For More]

4/8/03
San Antonio, TX -- Forty employees of Methodist Hospital required emergency medical care Monday after being exposed to fumes caused by a chlorine leak. [Click For More]

4/7/03
WASHINGTON -- Occupational safety and health officials from the United States, Mexico, and Canada have agreed on criteria to recognize excellence in workplace safety and health programs in all three nations. [Click For More]

4/3/03
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government will soon propose legislation to boost security around chemical plants and other hazardous material facilities seen as vulnerable to attack. [Click For More]

4/2/03
A sudden increase in chromosome abnormalities in a mouse colony has raised questions about the safe level of exposure for bisphenol A, a chemical used to make some common plastics and resins. [Click For More]

4/1/03
OSHA proposes $70,650 in penalties against Reliant Processing Group for failing to implement or maintain a written hazard communication plan and failing to provide training on hazardous chemicals. [Click For More]

3/31/03
EPA is working with other federal agencies, the states, tribes, water suppliers and the public to evaluate perchlorate - a component of rocket fuel - as an environmental contaminant. [Click For More]

3/28/03
EPA finalizes voluntary cancellation of virtually all residential uses of chromated copper arsenate (CCA) treated wood. [Click For More]

3/27/03
Yellow Transportation has been fined $83,500 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for failing to adequately train and equip its workers to respond to hazardous chemical spills. [Click For More]

3/26/03
Lead in body can resurface with bone loss. The new research is the first to suggest thinning bones can release lead from earlier exposure into the bloodstream. [Click For More]

3/25/03
Exposure to some insecticides may cause a cascade of chemical events in the brain that could lead to Parkinson's Disease, researchers have found. [Click For More]

3/24/03
METHUEN, MA -- A freight hauler's failure to adequately train and equip its workers to respond safely to a chemical release has resulted in a total of $83,500 in OSHA fines. [Click For More]

3/20/03
A total of 15,000 chemical plants scattered around the country produce, use or store 140 hazardous substances that could cause deadly harm to local populations if released into the environment. [Click For More]

3/19/03
DELAND,FL -- A container carrying penzoyl peroxide in the back of a parked tractor-trailer spilled and ignited on West International Speedway Boulevard. [Click For More]

3/18/03
BETHESDA, Md. -- Environmental groups asked the government to ban the use of an arsenic-based pesticide on wooden playground equipment because they say it can increase children's risk of cancer. [Click For More]

3/17/03
Although more than 30,000 human cases of organophosphate-related paralysis have been studied, there is no cure other than to avoid exposure. [Click For More]

3/14/03
WASHINGTON -- New OSHA health hazard information cards, ''Crystalline Silica Exposure'', will help workers and employers understand more about how they can protect themselves against exposure to silica dust. [Click For More]

3/13/03
WASHINGTON — Environmental and special interest groups on Tuesday filed a lawsuit asking the U.S. Army to halt its chemical weapons incineration program, including the one at the Pine Bluff Arsenal. [Click For More]

3/12/03
WASHINGTON, DC (OSHA) -- Employers who expose their workers to serious safety and health hazards and continue to defy worker safety and health regulations, will be subject to an enhanced enforcement policy. [Click For More]

3/11/03
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC, -- Polybrominateddiphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are present in alarming concentrations in the tissue of women and women-infant pairs. [Click For More]

3/10/03
YONKERS, NY -- An error in maintenance work is being blamed for a ruptured tank that sent 2,000 gallons of highly corrosive acid flooding out of the Domino Sugar Plant In Yonkers. [Click For More]

3/7/03
The Agriculture Department will issue tighter rules to keep pharmaceuticals grown in plants out of the food supply to be sure people don't wind up eating someone else's drugs in their breakfast cereal. [Click For More]

3/6/03
SPRINGFIELD, MA -- A North Adams, Mass., asbestos removal contractor's failure to maintain accurate records of its workers' exposure to asbestos has resulted in a total of $50,900 in fines from OSHA. [Click For More]

3/5/03
Scientists have long known that relatively large doses of some phthalates can lead to health problems, including cancer. But researchers have begun to suspect that lower levels may also have negative effects. [Click For More]

3/4/03
New EPA guidelines on cancer risk and children would require EPA scientists to take into account the greater vulnerability of the very young in determining how some cancer-causing chemicals are to be regulated. [Click For More]

3/3/03
ST. PAUL, MN -- Thirteen people working at the Marathon Ashland Oil Refinery in St. Paul Park were rushed to the hospital after exposure to a potentially dangerous chemical. [Click For More]

3/2/03
China's first regulation setting required standards for indoor air quality establishes a ceiling for 13 chemical pollutants including formaldehyde, benzene, ammonia and several harmful particulate matters. [Click For More]

2/28/03
OSHA has fined Spruce Plastics Corp. $80,700 after a follow-up investigation revealed that the firm failed to establish a written hazard communications program and train workers on hazard communication. [Click For More]

2/27/03
FRANKLIN, Ohio (AP) — Ten people were taken to a hospital Wednesday to be checked for possible chemical exposure after a fire at a factory that manufactures automobile exhaust systems, authorities said. [Click For More]

2/26/03
GUIYU (China) - In towns such as this one on China's south-eastern coast, vast quantities of obsolete electronics shipped in from the United States, Europe and Japan are piled in mountains of waste. [Click For More]

2/25/03
OSHA is alerting 14,200 employers across the country that their injury and illness rates are higher than average and encouraged them to take steps to reduce hazards and protect their workers. [Click For More]

2/24/03
GULFPORT, Miss. -- Ammonia leaked from a chemical plant forcing hundreds to evacuate several hotels along the Gulf Coast. Authorities said someone had tried to steal the chemical, possibly to make illegal drugs. [Click For More]

2/21/03
CORBIN, KY -- Several workers from a Corbin factory were fighting for their lives after being severely burned in an explosion and fire that roared through the plant. [Click For More]

2/20/03
It's not cool to use your nose to detect chemical spills, said Lt. Cris Aguirre, a hazardous materials technician for the Miami-Dade Fire Department in south Florida. [Click For More]

2/19/03
A defoaming chemical used in the processing of sugar beets at a Western Sugar plant in Scottsbluff, Neb., is the leading suspect for the deaths last month of 470 waterfowl. [Click For More]

2/18/03
TIJUANA, MEXICO -- Andrea Aguilar's monster breathes lead dust and sweats rivers of arsenic, cadmium and antimony into her water and the soil. It squats on a hilltop above her home, horrible and poisonous. [Click For More]

2/17/03
CONCORD, NH -- State dumping lasted years. Regulators found that state workers had dumped about 37,000 gallons of hazardous waste. [Click For More]

2/14/03
CRANSTON, R.I. -- A worker banging on a pipe at a chemical plant caused an explosion that exposed several workers to toxic chemicals including potassium cyanide. [Click For More]

2/13/03
ENDICOTT, NY -- Elevated levels of chemical pollutants suspected of causing cancer were found in buildings just south of the IBM complex. [Click For More]

2/12/03
Franklin Park, IL -- A chemical spill of lead chloride at AEI, an air-freight company in Franklin Park, resulted in 16 people being taken to area hospitals. [Click For More]

2/11/03
Richmond, CA -- In the shadow of a refinery and several chemical plants, Dorothy Reid has watched as six of her children, five grandchildren and a great-grandchild have developed asthma. [Click For More]

2/10/03
TAMAROA, Ill. — A Canadian National train transporting hazardous chemicals derailed spewing toxic vapor into the air and forcing the evacuation of about 800 residents in this small Southern Illinois community. [Click For More]

2/7/03
COLUMBIA, S.C. - The city of Cayce has joined more than 60 homeowners who are suing Tin Products and Cardinal Cos. for a chemical spill that forced the city to switch to other sources for drinking water. [Click For More]

2/6/03
In the late 1970s, male workers at OxyChem noticed they weren't fathering any children. Scientists pinned the cause on exposure to Dibromochloropropane or DBCP, a chemical fumigant used to control nematode worms. [Click For More]

2/5/03
CHICAGO, IL -- A Hydrochloric acid spilled occurred after the driver of a tanker carrying 5,000 gallons created a two-inch hole in the truck when he forgot to remove a hose running from the truck into a building. [Click For More]

2/4/03
ATLANTA -- OSHA has issued cited Reddy Ice of East Point and proposed $57,200 in total penalties following the agency's investigation of a July 24 ammonia release that sent four workers to the hospital. [Click For More]

2/3/03
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Four compounds used on the space shuttle Columbia could pose an immediate hazard to people on the ground, according to a NASA spokeswoman. [Click For More]

1/31/03
LUBBOCK, TX -- A half a million gallon tank holding fertilizer collapsed onto a container of anhydrous ammonia in Slaton, TX. [Click For More]

1/30/03
KINSTON, NC -- At least three people were killed and another was thought to be missing early today after a massive explosion destroyed the West Pharmaceutical Services Inc. factory north of Kinston. [Click For More]

1/29/03
COLUMBIA, SC -- A former Tin Products executive has pleaded guilty to criminal charges in connection with a chemical spill nearly three years ago and faces up to three years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. [Click For More]

1/28/03
FT. LAUDERDALE, FL -- OSHA has cited J.T.S. Woodworking, Inc. for failing to correct safety hazards including exposing employees to paint and lacquer vapors and improperly stored flammable materials. [Click For More]

1/27/03
Birmingham, AL -- Lack of Worker Protection and improper labeling of hazardous chemicals at a United States Steel Corporation Plant Leads to OSHA Citations and $87,500 in Proposed Penalties. [Click For More]

1/24/03
Delaware legislators want corporate officials to face criminal charges for environmental violations, and be required to sign yearly sworn statements that their companies are obeying environmental laws. [Click For More]

1/23/03
Louisiana ranked second nationwide in dioxin pollution, third in pollution linked to neurological disorders, seventh in substances known to cause reproductive problems, and ninth in those known to cause cancer. [Click For More]

1/22/03
TAMPA, FL -- A swimming pool worker died from burns in an explosion caused when a spark from a vacuum cleaner ignited acetone used to clean the pool's fiberglass walls. [Click For More]

1/21/03
As countries pursue economic development, the increased risk of exposure to chemical hazards may worsen other risks to children’s health, such as unsafe water and poor hygiene. [Click For More]

1/20/03
MONTPELIER, VT – Environmentalists in Vermont are applauding a decision by fluorescent lamp manufacturers to extend a mercury labeling law in Vermont to the rest of the country. [Click For More]

1/17/03
LOS ALAMOS, N.M. — A state Environment Department official isn't surprised that ground water from a monitoring well at Los Alamos National Laboratory shows elevated levels of three toxic wastes. [Click For More]

1/16/03
Carbon monoxide is the leading cause of accidental poisoning deaths according to the AMA. In one study, nearly one-fourth of hospital ER patients complaining of flu were actually suffering from CO poisoning. [Click For More]

1/15/03
New Boston, Ohio - People who lived near the New Boston Coke plant during the 1990s are more at risk for cancer than almost anyone else in the world. [Click For More]

1/14/03
OSHA announced it is extending until Jan. 30, 2003, the period for comments on the second phase of its standards improvement project. [Click For More]

1/13/03
WASHINGTON -- Keeping America's working teens safe and healthy while on the job is the goal of a new web site unveiled by OSHA. [Click For More]

NEWS ARCHIVE 2002 - Old News Articles from 2002
NEWS ARCHIVE 2001 - Old News Articles from 2001
NEWS ARCHIVE 2000 - Old News Articles from 2000
NEWS ARCHIVE 1999 - Old News Articles from 1999

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