The United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, in
conjunction with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, recently released a
new hazard alert which emphasizes the dangers to workers who manually gauge or sample fluids
on production and flowback tanks in the oil and gas industry. This practice is common,
specifically in the oil and gas extraction industry, however this has led to a series of deaths
recently.
“It has been known for years that oil and gas extraction is extremely dangerous work, with high
rates of workplace fatalities. We also know that every incident is preventable,” said Assistant
Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “It’s critically
important that we all work together to make sure that oil and gas extraction workers are aware of
life-threatening exposure to hydrocarbon gases and vapors and low oxygen atmospheres, and that
they are protected.”
“The expansion of the oil and gas extraction industry has led to new opportunities, but also new
risks for workers,” said NIOSH Director John Howard, M.D. “This joint alert highlights the
importance of remaining vigilant about the safety and health of our nation’s workers as our
nation changes and adapts to these new opportunities.”
This alert could impact any business in the oil and gas extraction industry, and as such needs to
be taken very seriously by these companies. This is a new focus area for OSHA and NIOSH, and
now that this alert has been issued with expected corrections and resolutions, it is imperative that
any business in this industry review their occupational safety and health standards to ensure they
are following all recommendations and requirements.
If you have any questions about this alert and how it might impact your company, please contact
us. If you have anything to add about the importance of following the guidelines of this alert,
please leave a comment.
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