To VI HSE Committee,
Per the email below from Greg Clark at Keller and Heckman, Dow Europe has filed the requisite TSCA Section 8e filing with respect to the new health information made available on Ethylene Dichloride. As soon as the document becomes available to circulate, I will provide a copy to this Committee. Please advise if you have any questions.
Thank you,
Rich
To VI HSE Committee,
Please find attached the draft comments that Keller and Heckman have prepared for the VI’s submission to NIOSH on its proposed Occupational Exposure Banding for chemicals that do not already have an OSHA PEL. These comments closely resemble the remarks made by VI at NIOSH’s public meeting on the subject on May 23, 2017, which NIOSH requested be submitted in writing into their docket. Please review the comments and provide any of your suggested revisions or questions to me by noon, Tuesday, June 13 2017. The last day to submit comments is Tuesday, June 13th. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.
Thank you,
Rich
To VI HSE Committee,
The American Chemistry Council has asked for VI’s support on a letter campaign to the heads of railroads to persuade them not to adopt the American Association of Railroads (AAR) Casualty Prevention Circular (CPC) 1325 that was issued on April 7, 2017. This relates to improving the safety of tank cars carrying substances known to be toxic inhalation hazards (TIH), e.g. chlorine, by retiring older but still functionally safe tank cars now in use. In its 2009 final rule on Improving Safety of Tank Cars Transporting Hazardous Materials (attached), the Department of Transportation (DOT) did not take this precautionary measure now being imposed by AAR CPC 1325. The AAR CPC 1325 is not publicly available but a summary by Greenbrier is attached. ACC’s attached letter recommends the heads of railroads withdraw their support of the AAR CPC 1325. A bigger issue could be the extended regulatory reach of the AAR and what future actions it may declare if this is allowed. At this time, it does not appear that this will impact tank cars for vinyl chloride or ethylene chloride, neither of which are classified by DOT as inhalation hazards based on my review of 49 CFR §172.102 for classification of hazardous substances. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or comments. Thank you for considering this initiative.
Regards,
Rich
To VI HSE Committee,
Attached are the VI’s comments that were submitted yesterday to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) docket with respect to the department’s Occupational Exposure Banding (OEB) proposals. VI raised concerns that industry illness data will not be considered when establishing OEBs and that OSHA’s permissible exposure limit (PEL) process is far more rigorous and should not be replaced with OEBs. At this time, NIOSH intends to use OEBs for substances that do not have any PEL. Thanks to Keller and Heckman’s Larry Halprin and his colleagues for their expert assistance with this submission. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.
Regards,
Rich
To VI HSE Committee,
Greg Clark has provided the attached update of the regulatory matrix for VI’s HSE Committee. Thank you to Greg for pulling this comprehensive update together each quarter. Due to time constraints of the May 15 conference call, the review of this update was deferred from the agenda and was to be provided after the call. As a reminder, our third quarter HSE Committee call is scheduled for Tuesday, August 29, 2017 from 2:00 to 3:30 pm. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or suggestions.
Regards,
Rich
To VI HSE Committee,
In case you have not already seen this, a group of activist environmentalists have filed a Petition for Review in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals challenging EPA’s 2 year delay in implementation of its changes to the Risk Management Program rule. I will keep you informed on any additional developments. Please advise if you have any questions.
Regards,
Rich
To VI HSE Committee,
In the email below, ACC explains that EPA will be conducting two webinars related to confidential business information claims as they relate to the TSCA reform (LCSA) rules being implemented now. Please feel free to share the dates with those in your organization that may have responsibilities in this area. I will share details for participation as it becomes available.
Regards,
Rich
To VI HSE Committee
My apology for the late notice n this request. Keller and Heckman has asked VI to support submission of the attached comments to OSHA with respect to the upcoming session of the UN Sub Committee Experts on GHS Classification and Labelling of Chemicals. My initial read is that they are very supportive of VI’s position for testing as-received samples in appropriate size test chambers when determining combustibility properties of dusts. I would like to give Keller and Heckman authorization to proceed with filing on VI’s behalf. As they would need to be filed today, please have your relevant subject matter expert review the comments for compatibility with your organization’s position on the matter. I appreciate hearing back from you today with any objections or comments. Thanks for considering this request.
Regards,
Rich
To VI HSE Committee,
Attached for your reference are the comments submitted on June 30th by Keller and Heckman’s Larry Halprin on behalf of the VI to OSHA’s Deputy Directory, Ms. Maureen Ruskin with respect to United Nation’s proposal to update the GHS Hazard Communication requirements for combustible dust. OSHA is participating on the UN committee developing these changes. Thank you to those who provided a quick review and approval to submit these important comments.
UN’s GHS proposal has two basic issues in its current form:
- UN would require materials greater than 500 microns to be ground to a particle size below 75 microns – VI advocates for testing samples in an “as-received” form;
- UN would require additional information in hazard communication that details hazard mitigation and risk reduction for situations where combustible dusts might be present – VI believes this goes well beyond the scope of what information a material manufacturer should be providing since it is impractical to anticipate every scenario where this might be relevant.
Thank you to Larry Halprin for bringing this to VI’s attention and preparing our comments. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or comments.
Regards,
Rich
VI Dick Doyle Op-Ed Open & Fair Competition in The Hill 06-30-17
Vinyl Institute Comments to Cal DTSC on AA Guideline Submitted 02-03-2017
Vinyl Institute Comments to Cal DTSC on AA Guideline Submitted 02-03-2017