Environmental Health and Safety

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Noise pollution at oil and gas sites remains “woefully under-studied contrary to its public health significance,” according to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Environmental noise caused by oil and gas drilling activities is often overlooked entirely or rejected as a minor, temporary nuisance by industry and regulators, despite the fact that drilling and other activities at well sites are very noisy and can be close to homes, according to the NRDC.

A New York City Council bill would require the Big Apple’s Department of Environmental Protection to install palm-size detectors to collect dataon noise pollutionin city neighborhoods, according to WCBS Radio.

Workers cleaning a chemical spill at Penda Corp. in Portage had not been trained in proper cleanup procedures or provided proper personal protective equipment, according to an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Hospital workers who deal directly with patients wash their hands less frequently as their workday progresses, probably because the demands of the job deplete the mental reserves they need to follow rules, according to new research published by the American Psychological Association (APA).

The lack of available time to train staff, and uncertainties about certifications to ship infectious substances, are the top challenges facing hospitals undertaking Ebola preparedness and safety precautions, according to a recently conducted survey by EH&E, Inc., a leading provider of environmental and engineering consulting services.

A draft international standard on health and safety at work failed last month to get the necessary two-thirds majority vote in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) committee that is developing it. It will now have to be reviewed and voted on again.

Working non-standard hours -- often called "shift work" -- for many years is not only hard on the body, but may also dull the mind, new research suggests. According to the study, those who do shift work for more than 10 years seem to have the equivalent of an extra 6.5 years of age-related decline in memory and thinking skills.

On November 3, the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council of the National Academies convened a workshop of distinguished representatives from the public and private sectors.  The participants were asked to suggest priorities for research that will “provide public health officials, healthcare providers, and the general public with the most up-to-date information about transmission, health risks, and measures that should be taken to prevent spread of [Ebola virus disease] in the U.S."

A 55-year-old worker who was found unresponsive in a restroom at Bremer Manufacturing Co. Inc. on May 6, 2014 later died. The man, who had been employed at the Elkhart Lake foundry for the past 38 years, worked with resin-containing isocyanates on the sand molding line.

The National Safety Council has become the seventh organization to join the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Total Worker Health Affiliate Program. The program focuses on increasing the number of work environments that support the integration of occupational safety and health protection with health promotion.