Environmentalists. Every Day. America's Solid Waste Industry

Now available: recordings from WASTEC webinar about OSHA & NFPA Requirements for Arc Flash Safety (recorded on August 31). Here’s link to QuickTime movie, but MP3, MP4, AVI and PPT files also are available in WASTEC and NSWMA members-only pages on website.

According to a recent report by the U.S. Department of Labor, the number of fatalities by solid waste collection workers declined substantially in 2009 compared to 2008. In its Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the fatality rate during 2009 for both solid waste collection and landfill employees continued to decline, as it has in recent years.

Institutes of the National Solid Wastes Management Association (NSWMA) recently submitted comments regarding proposed rules by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). NSWMA’s Landfill Institute offered comments on EPA’s proposed rule regarding amendments to the mandatory reporting of greenhouse gases, and NSWMA’s Healthcare Waste Institute recently submitted comments regarding OSHA’s blood-borne pathogens standard. Read full release here.

Waste handling companies use electrical power for a variety of tasks. This work can be challenging and requires care to avoid injury and remain compliant with safety regulations. In this one hour and 30 minute Webinar, you will learn more about these requirements and the solutions that you must put in place when working with balers, compactors, conveyors and other equipment at your facilities. Employees of these companies are often asked to troubleshoot and test equipment to verify that it is being fed the proper electrical current and voltage or to verify that power has been disconnected.

Specifically,  new regulations and guidelines for electrical arc flash protection from OSHA (29 CFR 1910, Subpart S) and the NFPA (NFPA 70E) require that your employees wear flame resistant clothing, face shields and other arc flash rated protective equipment when they are performing this work at greater than 50 volts.  The NFPA 70E rule also contains requirements for performing arc flash studies, labeling electrical panels and preparing electrical “hot work” permits.

The session will include opportunities for questions and answers.

WASTEC is providing this session at no cost for NSWMA and WASTEC members, but pre-registration is required.

May has seen the continuation of a trend that started last year with the majority of fatal accidents involving solid waste employees or vehicles occur at employers that are not members of EIA/NSWMA. Small haulers and local governments have been involved in many fatal accidents this month. The frustrating thing is that we’ve asked many of them to become members. Would being an EIA or NSWMA member have prevented the fatality? We’ll never know. But it certainly could not have hurt. Safety Monday and the other EIA/NSWMA safety resources help hundreds of companies and local governments keep their workers safe. Every Day.

Veolia ES Technical Solutions, L.L.C., the hazardous waste subsidiary of Veolia Environmental Services North America, is pleased to announce that its York, Pa. facility has been accepted into OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program (VPP). At a March 25th ceremony, OSHA recognized the company for its outstanding efforts in achieving exemplary occupational safety and health compliance. The York facility joins the VPP at the Star Award level, the highest level granted.

NSWMA’s General Counsel and Safety Director, David Biderman was interviewed for podcast by the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence. In this podcast, he describes the successes and challenges related to safety in the solid waste field. Listen to the podcast now.

Effective January 27, 2010, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration implemented a texting ban for drivers of commercial motor vehicles subject to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. NSWMA expressed support for the DOT announcement prohibiting texting by drivers of commercial vehicles such as large trucks and buses. The prohibition is the latest in a series of actions taken by DOT to address distracted driving since it convened a national summit on the issue last year. NSWMA was one of the first associations to advocate for a national ban on texting while driving. NSWMA has publicly supported legislation introduced by Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) to ban texting while driving. NSWMA participated in the DOT’s September 2009 Distracted Driving Summit. Many NSWMA members already prohibit texting or cell phone use while
driving company vehicles.

The National Solid Wastes Management Association (NSWMA) has filed comments with the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regarding possible changes in hours of service rules. In its comments, NSWMA strongly urged FMCSA to keep the “100-air mile” reporting exception and the 34-hour reset provision that are a part of current federal hours of service regulations. Learn more here.

The National Solid Wastes Management Association (NSWMA) has filed comments with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regarding possible new rules addressing “combustible dust,” which likely will be proposed later this year. NSWMA’s comments expressed a concern that OSHA has included the solid waste industry as a target for regulation even though in September 2008, OSHA issued an advisory stating there was no history of combustible dust events at transfer stations, materials recovery facilities (MRFs) or landfills. Read more.