The United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is
launching a new local emphasis program in Nebraska focusing on highly hazardous chemicals.
These are chemicals like formaldehyde and methylene chloride, which are commonly used at
chemical and product manufacturing plants, printing facilities, funeral homes, and outpatient care
centers.
“This local emphasis program will allow OSHA to use its resources efficiently by focusing on
industries that are known to use these types of highly hazardous chemicals,” said Bonita
Winingham, area director for OSHA in Omaha. “Through this program, OSHA will improve
education for company management and strengthen worker protections.”
There are very strict exposure limits, monitoring requirements, and guidelines for storing,
transporting, and using these highly hazardous chemicals. The guidelines for such chemicals are
called expanded health standards and are chemical specific. This program was introduced after
an examination of violations of these expanded health standards in 2013.
If you are in Nebraska and work in any of these fields, or work with these highly hazardous
chemicals, it is important to ensure your safety and health standards are up to date and include
provisions based upon the updated requirements set forth in the expanded health standards. If
you have not recently reviewed your standards, it is time to do so. It is worth getting it taken care
of now, so that you do not have a problem after an inspection is performed and fines are
assessed.
If you have any questions about this new focus or about the requirements of the expanded health
standards, please contact us. If you have anything to add about this new focus on Nebraska
companies using hazardous chemicals, please leave a comment.
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