IHMM Today May 23, 2023

INSIDE IHMM

IHMM Board of Directors Nominations

IHMM Directors and Officers are volunteers who serve without pay. They may serve up to two, four-year terms. Directors are responsible for the governance of IHMM, including establishing the overall direction of IHMM, the appointment of Executive Director, policy-making, and financial management.

IHMM has two Board seats expiring at the end of 2023. IHMM is soliciting candidates for these two seats; one an At-Large Director seat that may be held by a CHMM, CHMP, CDGP, CSHM or CSMP. One a CSMP Director seat that must be held by a CSMP.

The composition of the present Board is here > https://ihmm.org/board-of-directors/

Qualified candidates may submit nomination papers [self nomination is acceptable] on or before June 30, 2023. The documents for this announcement, procedures, and nomination form are here:

• 2024 IHMM Nominations and Elections Process

• 2024 IHMM Call for Nominations

• 2024 IHMM Fillable Nominations Form

IHMM Excellence in EHS Management Award

The Excellence in EHS Management Award recognizes an individual who has excelled in their role as an EHS manager. The Institute for Hazardous Materials Management [IHMM] will present the award at the annual National Safety Council Expo.

The honoree will receive a commemorative plaque and be recognized in a press release and in IHMM member communications. Travel expenses to the award ceremony will be subsidized. If traveling from overseas IHMM will pay travel expenses from the nearest port of entry.

Nominations will be accepted from March through July of each year and the presentation to the winner will be in conjunction with the National Safety Council Congress and Expo, this year on October 23-25, 2023 in New Orleans.

Make your nominations here >>  https://ihmm.org/ehs-management-award/

See previous award winners here >> https://ihmm.org/past-honorees/

IHMM Needs Volunteers

“There’s nothing stronger than the heart of a volunteer.” — Jimmy Doolittle. We all benefit from the expertise, knowledge sharing, content creation and mentoring that our volunteer leaders share with our communities of practice.

IHMM has a wide variety of ways that our certificants and members can volunteer their time, make a substantial contribution to their communities of practice, and earn valuable Continuing Maintenance Points [CMPs].

Volunteering with IHMM is a deeply rewarding and giving endeavor, ranging from being a subject matter expert on a scheme committee to leading discussions in our COLLABORATION engagement platform to becoming a mentor for a college student.

Take a few minutes and review How to Become An IHMM Volunteer, and then scroll down and take the volunteer self-assessment.

CHMP Scheme Committee

• Must be a CHMP > https://ihmm.org/chmp-scheme-committee/

Government Affairs Committee

• Open to all certificants, We need volunteers in these 16 states – Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Arizona, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Florida, Delaware, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, and Maine. These are states where the requirements of an “environmental professional” or QEP are cited that coincide with an IHMM credential so that relatively little work would need to be done to clarify the desired outcome.
• > https://ihmm.org/government-affairs-committee/

IHMM Certifications in Development Update

• The Certified Pandemic Preparedness Specialist [CPPS] credential had a review by the IHMM Board on April 21st and IHMM will be able to start to build the website. The examination questions for the CPPS exam are being loaded into the Kryterion system at this writing. Dan Blankfeld and Gene Guilford have met with the Maryland Congressional delegation on this credential and look forward to more meetings.
• The Associate Hazardous Materials Manager [AHMM] credential had a review by the IHMM Board on April 21st and other than an edit to the professional experience section of an option for eligibility, this credential’s examination questions are completed and is scheduled for launch by Memorial Day, 2023.  The draft website is here > https://ihmm.org/ahmm/  and the only element left to complete is a 60-second video.

A Collaborative Culture

There are 965 different conversations going on in the IHMM/HMS Collaboration platform this week.

A collaborative culture is important for every business but is especially important for our hazardous materials, dangerous goods, environment, health, and safety communities of practice. Do you have a problem you need to solve and want the opinions of your colleagues? This is where we come together to help each other.

IHMM credentialed professionals are at the top 1% of their professions and their reach is global. We are at the forefront of environmental protection, health, and safety and this is where collaborating with the best people in their fields, always willing to help one another, lessens the stress of our jobs, and where we strive as a team to make a difference of which we are proud.

We opened COLLABORATION to enable thousands of certificants and supporters to collaborate together. You can collaborate here.

Access to COLLABORATION is through the same username/password you use to access your MYIHMM account. Having a problem? Contact Jimmy Nguyen at [email protected]

TSA AIR CARGO Security – Reminder on deadlines for the Certified Cargo Screening Program

NEWMOA Holds Webinar to Discuss PFAS Draft Model Legislation

Save the Date for “TSCA Reform — Seven Years Later” on June 29, 2023

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C^®), the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), and the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health are pleased to announce the seventh annual Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) conference, “TSCA Reform — Seven Years Later,” to occur Thursday, June 29, 2023. This complimentary virtual conference featuring speakers from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and non-governmental and industry stakeholders will provide updates on a host of topics, including the interface of science and policy under TSCA, new chemicals, risk evaluation and management, the regulation of articles, and more.

Materials from the 2022 “TSCA Reform — Six Years Later” conference are available to ELI Members at https://www.eli.org/events/tsca-reform-six-years-later.

• WEBINAR — TOP TSCA TOPICS: Cumulative Risk, NAMs, Risk Evaluations, CBI, And More!, May 17, 2023, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (EDT), Via Webinar: Panelists Anna Lowit, Senior Science Advisor, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), and Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C^®), will discuss New Approach Methodologies (NAM), cumulative risk assessment methodologies, systematic review procedures, new approaches to new chemical reviews, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) reporting, and confidential business information (CBI) protections. Register now.
• RECORDED WEBINAR ON-DEMAND — “Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Regulations”: Panelists discuss the history and evolution of EPR legislation, expected developments that will affect the chemical and chemical product industry, and what companies need to know to prepare for these changes. Panelists included LeRoy (Lee) C. Paddock, Distinguished Professorial Lecturer of Environmental Law at the George Washington University Law School; Edith G. Nagy, Regulatory Consultant, B&C; and Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Partner, B&C. Watch now.

EPA Releases Congressional Justification For FY 2024 Budget: EPA has posted the justification for its fiscal year (FY) 2024 appropriation estimates for the Committee on Appropriations (Congressional Justification (CJ)). According to the CJ, EPA’s FY 2024 budget includes $470.7 million and 1,677 full-time equivalents (FTE) for Objective 7.1, “Ensure Chemical and Pesticide Safety.” The CJ includes the following target dates for actions under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA):

• By September 30, 2026, complete at least eight high-priority substance TSCA risk evaluations annually within statutory timelines compared to the FY 2020 baseline of one;
• By September 30, 2026, initiate all TSCA risk management actions within 45 days of the completion of a final existing chemical risk evaluation; and
• By September 30, 2026, review 90 percent of risk management actions for past TSCA new chemical substances reported to the 2020 Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) Rule compared to the FY 2021 baseline of none.

EPA Will Hold GenRA Training On May 23, 2023: EPA will hold training on May 23, 2023, on Generalized Read-Across (GenRA), a publicly available tool that uses an automated approach to make reproducible read-across predictions of toxicity. EPA states that read-across “is a commonly used data gap filling technique whereby endpoint information for one substance is used to predict the same endpoint for another substance, supported by structural or other feature similarities.” Specifically targeted for decision-makers, EPA has divided the training into two parts to accommodate a variety of interests and schedules. Registration for one or both sessions is free but required.

• Session 1 (Presentation and Questions and Answers (Q&A)) 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. (EDT)

This session will provide an overview of GenRA content and function with opportunities for participation and Q&A.

• Session 2 (Breakout Sessions) 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. (EDT)

This session will break participants into breakout rooms to work on exercises in small groups, aided by facilitators.

Consultations for applications for authorisation

We have launched consultations on 14 applications for authorisation covering 15 uses of:

• Chromium trioxide (EC 215-607-8, CAS 1333-82-0): used for etching in electroplating, functional chrome plating, functional chrome plating with decorative character, manufacture of passivated copper foil in Lithium-ion batteries.
• Sodium dichromate (EC 234-190-3, CAS 10588-01-9): used for the sealing after anodizing of aluminium alloys and passivation of metallic coatings of actuation and landing gear system parts for the aviation industry.
• Acids generated from chromium trioxide and their oligomers (EC -, CAS -): used in passivation baths.

Read more about the uses, including the description of the function of the substance, exposure scenarios, possible alternatives identified by the applicants, together with socio-economic information, on our website. Submit your comments through the webform by 12 July 2023

Commission adopts restriction on lead in PVC

The European Commission adopted on 3 May 2023 a regulation prohibiting the use and placing on the market of lead in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) articles. This concludes a process that started in 2016 when ECHA introduced a restriction proposal for the first time.

Commission consultation on the production for export of chemicals banned in the EU

The European Commission is looking for information as part of its initiative to prohibit the production for export of certain hazardous chemicals that are banned in the EU – to protect non-EU countries from their negative effects on health and the environment.

Have your say by 31 July 2023.

On April 20, 2023, the European Commission (EC) announced the implementation dates for the introduction of new hazard classes as part of its revision to Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on the Classification, Labelling, and Packaging of Substances and Mixtures (CLP). The new hazard classes and criteria rules will be phased in over several years. New substances must comply by May 1, 2025, and new mixtures by May 1, 2026. Substances placed on the market before May 1, 2025, must comply by November 1, 2026, and existing mixtures placed on the market before May 1, 2026, must comply by May 1, 2028. For more information, please read the full memorandum.

Read more > https://www.actagroup.com/regulatory-developments/entry/ec-implements-new-hazard-classes-to-clp

EPA Readies Regulatory ‘Infrastructure’ Plan For Newly Listed Air Toxics

EPA is preparing to propose a rule creating the “regulatory infrastructure” for how to address Clean Air Act requirements triggered by the listing of new hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) such as 1-bromopropane (1-BP), though the agency is months behind schedule and environmentalists are pressing officials to quickly set such limits.

The agency sent its proposal for White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) pre-publication review May 16, according to OMB’s website. OMB review typically takes up to 90 days, but can be faster or slower, depending on the circumstances.

The new rule is required, EPA says, to set up a process to dictate how chemicals newly added to the Clean Air Act’s list of HAPs are then regulated under the agency’s many rules governing various industry sectors.

Listing of a new HAP may also trigger permitting requirements under the air law, EPA and environmentalists have previously said.

The first such HAP to be listed is 1-BP, a solvent EPA added to the list of regulated substances under air law section 112 in December 2021. When EPA listed the chemical, the agency said it would issue a rule to govern how new HAPs in general will be handled, along with new guidance.

According to EPA’s regulatory agenda, the proposal will develop “a regulatory infrastructure directly addressing the impacts on regulated entities from the addition of a HAP . . . to ensure the effective and efficient implementation of requirements triggered by the addition of a new HAP. This action will develop the regulatory requirements including the opportunity for public comment.”

–Inside EPA

Rulings May Fragment Interstate Ozone Litigation, Threatening Federal Policy

EPA, state air regulators and environmentalists are raising concerns over recent rulings finding that challenges to the agency’s disapproval of interstate ozone plans should be heard in regional courts, warning that such fragmentation threatens to undermine federal policy on interstate air pollution, a field they say inherently requires a coherent national approach.

“There is a problem with multiple Circuits all reviewing the same Disapproval Rule at the same time in a couple dozen different challenges, as that generates the potential for conflicting and confusing overlapping determinations on common issues of law and fact. That’s precisely why Congress directed that rules of national applicability, like this one, be reviewed in the D.C. Circuit,” one environmentalist says.

At issue are recent rulings from the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the 5th and 8th Circuits retaining jurisdiction over suits brought by some states over EPA’s disapproval of their state implementation plans (SIPs) for meeting Clean Air Act “good neighbor” obligations with respect to the 2015 ozone national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS).

In a May 1 unpublished per curiam order, a divided 5th Circuit panel rejected EPA’s motions to either dismiss or transfer litigation brought by Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and several industry groups in State of Texas, et al., v. EPA to the D.C. Circuit.

And the 8th Circuit, in a brief April 25 order, without explanation similarly rejected an EPA motion to dismiss or transfer Arkansas v. EPA to the D.C. Circuit.

Further, the 5th Circuit has also stayed application of EPA’s SIP disapproval with respect to Texas and Louisiana, citing those states’ likelihood of success on the merits, and is considering a similar motion to stay filed by Mississippi. Other courts such as the 10th Circuit will consider the issue when they reach merits arguments.

So far, EPA has said merely that it is reviewing the 5th Circuit’s stay order.

–Inside EPA

OSHA’s Safe + Sound Campaign is a nationwide opportunity to raise awareness and understanding of the value of proactive occupational safety and health (OSH) programs in all workplaces. Mark your calendars! Safe + Sound Week will take place from August 7-13, 2023. Safe + Sound Week is a nationwide event held each August that recognizes the successes of workplace health and safety programs and offers information and ideas on how to keep America’s workers safe. Registration for Safe + Sound Week opens in early July.  We look forward to your participation!

Safe + Sound emphasizes the need for safety programs at small- and mid-sized businesses, which are more likely to have limited resources dedicated to safety. As you know, effective OSH programs can help organizations identify and manage workplace risk before they cause injury or illness, improving sustainability and the bottom line. Safety and health management systems are a critical best practice to ensure that OSH programs achieve significant results and lower risk exposure.

Halt a Hazard

Workplace hazards can emerge over time. Setting aside time to regularly identify and rank safeguards can help keep safety and health hazards under control and keep workers safe.

1. Identify ONE hazard to control within your workplace.
2. Brainstorm potential controls using OSHA’s Identifying Hazard Control Options: The Hierarchy of Controls.
3. Choose and implement which control(s) are most effective for your workplace.
4. Download your challenge coin and share that you have completed the Halt a Hazard Challenge via email or on social media using #HaltAHazard and #SafeAndSoundAtWork!

Take the Challenge!

Beat the Heat

Under the OSH Act, employers are responsible for protecting workers from known hazards, including heat. Developing a heat injury and illness prevention plan is vital to keeping workers safe. Highlighting the dangers of heat is an important first step in educating workers and employers on how to prevent and recognize when heat is affecting workers’ health and safety. Since heat illness can be a medical emergency, planning and preparing for heat illness is essential to increase the chances of a positive outcome.

OSHA is sponsoring a Beat the Heat contest to raise awareness about the dangers and hazards of heat exposure in indoor and outdoor workplaces and to motivate workers, employers, and others to take action to prevent heat illness. To participate, stakeholders will create an awareness tool to increase worker and employer knowledge about hazardous heat in the workplace. The contest is open now, and submissions are due by June 9, 2023.

Enter the Contest!

Respiratory Protection Program Management – Susan Harwood Training Grant

University of Texas Medical Branch, William J. Pate, CHMM

This training course is intended to educate participants on the requirements of developing and implementing a compliant Respiratory Protection Program. The focus of this course will be on topics related to preparation for an infectious disease pandemic. At the end of this training the attendee should be able to:
1) Manage an effective respiratory protection program through proficient application of 29 CFR 1910.134
2) Compare potential routes of exposure
3) Identify and implement potential controls (engineering, administrative, and PPE)
4) List the equipment needed to support fit testing
5) Explain the difference between qualitative and quantitative fit testing
6) Discuss the different types of respiratory protection available
7) Demonstrate correct donning/doffing of respiratory protection

This training course is 7.5 hours and participants will receive a certificate of completion that may be suitable for professional certification maintenance (CSP, CIH, CHMM, CHSP, etc.).

This course will provide 7.5 Continuing Nursing Education (CNE) contact hours. Accreditation statement: University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston is approved with distinction as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by Louisiana State Nurses Association –  Approver, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. LSNA Provider No. 4002176

This training is available only to employees and employers who are subject to OSHA regulatory requirements.  Grant-funded training is not available to state or local government employees unless they have occupational safety & health responsibilities (e.g. occupational safety and health trainers, program managers, committee members, or employees responisble for abating unsafe and unhealthy working conditions for their organization).  Registration in this course confirms that meet these conditions.  This training will include the opportunity to don, doff, and fit test respiratory protection including N95, half-face, full-face, and powered air-purifying respirators.  Anyone participating in this training and wanting to put on a respirator agrees that they have been medically cleared by their employer to do so in accordance with OSHA’s Respiratory Protection Standard.

The 8-hour training program is offered at various dates from March through September. For more information and registration for this FREE program go here >> https://www.utmb.edu/ehs/programs/radiation-occupational-safety-program/RPPSHTG2023

Columbia Southern University

The Hazardous Materials Society [HMS] is a partner of Columbia Southern University. Columbia Southern University is an online university based in Orange Beach, Alabama, that strives to change and improve lives through higher education by enabling students to maximize their professional and personal potential.

A subsidiary of Columbia Southern Education Group, CSU offers online degree programs at the associate, bachelor, master, doctorate or certificate levels in a multitude of areas such as occupational safety and health, fire administration, criminal justice, business administration, human resource management, health care administration and more. CSU also features undergraduate and graduate certificate programs to provide focused training in specialized areas for adult learners.

Click on the CSU graphic at left and learn more about the professional development and degree program opportunities at CSU.

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