News from around the World

News Archive

October 2011

Companies urged to do more to protect at-work drivers

The Fleet Safety Forum, a not-for-profit initiative by Brake, the road safety charity, and Colas Ltd, are working together to improve the safety of at-work drivers and other road users through the Pledge2DriveSafely campaign.

In 2010, at least 540 people were killed in crashes involving an at-work driver. That's the equivalent of 10 people every week. Brake's Pledge2DriveSafely campaign aims to combat this carnage on our roads by appealing to people who drive for work to do so with the utmost care and attention, protecting themselves and other road users.

The campaign revolves around Pledge2DriveSafely workshops, sponsored by Colas Ltd. Managers are invited to attend these sessions at various locations around the UK and throughout the year, which offer training and practical tools to enable them to pass on effective and engaging safe driving messages to their at-work drivers. Brake can also arrange in-house training sessions on request.

The workshops are designed for fleet and driver training managers, and are delivered by experienced and qualified trainers. Workshop attendees are shown how to run discussion based workshops on six core principals of safe driving, which ask people to pledge to drive:

• Slow - within speed limits
• Sober - free from alcohol and drugs
• Sharp - not tired, ill or with poor sight
• Silent - phone off and out of reach
• Secure - belted up in a safe vehicle
• Sustainable - only when you have to

Attendees are provided with access to interactive learning materials through Brake's Fleet Safety Forum website www.brakepro.org

More information: www.brake.org.uk

Towards Safety Through Advanced Solutions: 6th International Conference in Poland on 11-14 September 2012

The Conference will take place in Sopot, Poland on 11-14 September 2012.

It is connected with the "Workingonsafety.net" - and international network of decision-makers, researchers and professionals responsible for the prevention of accidents at work. This network brings accident prevention specialists together to give the possibility to exchange of information and experience between different countries and sectors. It consists of a biannual conference and an Internet platform.

This 6th Conference is hosted by the Central Institute for Labour Protection - National Research Institute, (CIOP-PIB) based in Warsaw. National Organizing Committee and National Scientific Committee are based on CIOP-PIB experts and International Committee consists of the experts from Denmark, Norway, Germany, United Kingdom, Sweden, Spain and Netherlands.

During the Conference plenary sessions and parallel technical sessions will take place.

The main theme is: Towards Safety Through Advanced Solutions. The conference will have a special focus on the prevention of accidents and trauma at work. The primary interest of the Conference will be the following branches: construction, transport, agriculture, manufacturing, mining and healthcare.

The organizers especially want to encourage papers in the following areas of safety:

• Advanced technologies for improved safety
• Advanced solutions related to personal protective equipment
• Management of occupational safety
• Smart regulations and inspection
• Human factors in the improvement of safety at work
• Myths on safety in the information society - problems solved by ICT solutions?
• Psychosocial aspects of safety

Abstracts for all sessions (not exceeded 300 words) should be submitted (up to 1 February 2012) electronically through the Conference website.

The venue of the Conference is Sheraton Hotel, Sopot, Poland. Address: Powstancow Warszawy 10, 81-718 Sopot.

Information on the programme, registration fees, presentations, deadlines etc. one can find on the Conference website as well as on the website of the WOS National Organizing Committee: www.ciop.pl | Email: wos2012@ciop.pl | Tel: +48 22 623 37 82 | Fax: +48 22 840 08 11

Do you know OSH UPDATE?

Keeping up with the latest worldwide OSH information can be a time consuming exercise, but help is available if you take out a user friendly priced subscription to the ever growing OSH UPDATE collection of 20 databases that contains:

BSI Standards

British Standards Institution

CCOHS

Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety

CISDOC

The Health and Safety Information Centre of The International Labour Office

EU Legislation Full Text

Office of the Official Publications of the European Communities

European Agency Publications

European Agency for Safety and Health at Work Publications

HSELINE

UK Health and Safety Executive Information Services

ILO Conventions, Protocols and Recommendations

International Labour Office

International Bibliographic

Produced by Sheila Pantry Associates Ltd

International Full Text Collection

Full text documents from many worldwide authoritative sources

Irish Full Text Collection

Full text documents from the HSA, other Irish government departments and selected Irish organisations

Irish Legislation Full Text

Full text of Irish Acts and SIs relevant to safety, health and welfare

IRSST

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Major Hazards Accidents and Incidents Database (MHAID)

Produced by Sheila Pantry Associates Ltd

NSAI Bibliographic

References to all Irish Standards published by the NSAI

NSAI Full Text

Full text of Irish Standards on Health and Safety

NIOSHTIC

US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

NIOSHTIC-2

US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

RILOSH

Ryerson International Labour Occupational Safety and Health

RoSPA

UK Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents Information Services

UK Legislation Full Text

Full text of UK Acts and SIs relevant to safety, health and welfare.

It is worth spending time checking out the latest reports and other guidance and advice that have recently produced from worldwide sources. You will find many such pieces of advice and guidance in OSH UPDATE www.oshupdate.com

The electronic services OSH UPDATE www.oshupdate.com will help you and your organisation to keep up-to-date. These services continue to bring you the latest information on health, safety, environment, fire and other subjects that you will find useful in your daily work. OSH UPDATE contains over 820,000 records.

OSH UPDATE contains both full text and bibliographic information and is continuously enlarged as new information is published. These services are used by organisations, universities, companies and individuals worldwide.

For a 15 DAY FREE NO OBLIGATION TRIAL contact: Sheila Pantry Associates Ltd | email: sp@sheilapantry.com | or fill in the Interest form www.sheilapantry.com/interest.html

ECHA sets up ENES - an Exchange Network on Exposure Scenarios

The new network aims at identifying good industry practices on drafting exposure scenarios and building a dialogue between supply chain actors to improve the protection of human health and the environment.

The European Chemicals Agency together with the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC), Eurometaux, CONCAWE (the oil companies' European association), the European Association of Chemical Distributors (FECC) and the International Association for Soaps, Detergents and Maintenance Products (AISE) on behalf of the Downstream Users of Chemicals Coordination Group (DUCC) have established a cross-sector collaborative network to share knowledge, techniques and approaches to building and applying (REACH) exposure scenarios.

The first meeting will be held in Brussels, on 24-25 November 2011. Sectors of industry, NGOs, Member State authorities and other stakeholders will be invited to participate.

ENES will share the approaches and practical experience of industry and other stakeholders from the first REACH registration deadline, the areas that are working well and the areas where improvements are needed.

The Exchange Network of Exposure Scenarios is among the activities that ECHA is rolling out to support companies for the second registration deadline in 2013. Practical solutions for preparing and communicating ESs identified by the first Network meeting will be published in the beginning of 2012 by the Agency.

Further Information: https://echa.europa.eu/view-article/-/journal_content/title/echa-sets-up-enes-an-exchange-network-on-exposure-scenarios

Dr John Howard to give Keynote address at the 2011 Risk Assessment Symposium in the USA

NIOSH Director John Howard will be the keynote speaker at the upcoming Risk Assessment Symposium-Converging Risk Analysis, Management, and Perception, on 3-4 November 2011, in Baltimore, Maryland, USA (preceding the Professional Conference of Industrial Hygiene).

The symposium is designed to provide participants with a combination of global and local perspectives on important drivers to risk assessment, risk management, and risk communication and how to make a greater impact in solving complex problems.

Guidelines for the Establishment of CIS Health and Safety Information Centres and Other Information Centres by Sheila Pantry OBE, BA, FCLIP

This is the 3rd Revised edition June 2011 of these Guidelines based on many, many years experience working and establishing information centres, training staff and users, not only in the UK but in over 20 countries worldwide and can be found on www.sheilapantry.com/cis/other/guidelines.pdf

Please feel free to use these Guidelines and share the content with others who either wish to start an information centre and improve the services.

FOCUS: ECHA launches the 'REACH 2013 - Act Now!' campaign

This is to remind the industry to start preparing for the second REACH registration deadline. Companies manufacturing or importing chemicals in quantities at or above 100 tonnes per year are required to register these substances with ECHA by 31 May 2013.

The Agency has organised this awareness campaign to promote the best practise in fulfilling the obligations and also to publicise the various services and tools that can help companies comply with the REACH registration requirements. Geert Dancet, ECHA's Executive Director, says to industry: "I ask you to help us to pass this message on so that companies start their preparations for registration earlier than last time and take full benefit from the best practice and our support tools to deliver dossiers of higher quality."

On ECHA's website, there is a dedicated webpage on which there is an agenda for the events that ECHA is rolling out in relation to the REACH 2013 deadline. All relevant materials and links can also be found there. In addition, ECHA has designed a promotional web banner that Member States, industry associations and other organisations can add to their REACH web pages. This banner will help to brand the 'Act now!' campaign in all EU countries. Additionally, by clicking on the banner visitors will be directed to the ECHA 'REACH 2013 - Act now!' campaign pages.

REACH 2013 - Act now - Next step towards safe chemicals!

Web streaming: http://webcast.ec.europa.eu/eutv/portal

Annals of Occupational Hygiene on-line archive is now complete back to its first issue in 1958

Annals is accessible free to British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS) members and international partners (see www.bohs.org), and is available to subscribers to the archive via Oxford University Press.

Interesting items from the early issues include:

The first issue, giving papers from a meeting on noise and vibration http://annhyg.oxfordjournals.org/content/1/1.toc

A 1960 paper on "sensations of warmth and freshness" by David Hickish, still a member of BOHS. http://annhyg.oxfordjournals.org/content/1/4/271.full.pdf+html
(and there was another paper by David later in 1960)

A description of conditions in the asbestos textile industry (but written by an official of one of the companies) http://annhyg.oxfordjournals.org/content/2/1/54.full.pdf+html

Sherwood and Greenhalgh's celebrated first description of a personal sampler, which brought about a revolution. http://annhyg.oxfordjournals.org/content/2/2/127.full.pdf+html

Articles in Annals of Occupational Hygiene are indexed in OSH UPDATE: www.oshupdate.com

The British Occupational Hygiene Society: 5/6 Melbourne Business Court, Millennium Way, Pride Park, Derby, DE24 8LZ, UK | e-mail: admin@bohs.org

Dr Trevor Ogden, Chief Editor, Annals of Occupational Hygiene | http://annhyg.oupjournals.org | Email: ogden@ogs.org.uk or annals@bohs.org

USA CDC reports excessive alcohol consumption cost the U.S. $224 billion in 2006

Most of the costs were due to binge drinking

The cost of excessive alcohol consumption in the United States in 2006 reached $223.5 billion or about $1.90 per drink, according to a new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Almost three-quarters of these costs were due to binge drinking, consuming four or more alcoholic beverages per occasion for women or five or more drinks per occasion for men, the report said.

Excessive alcohol consumption, or heavy drinking, is defined as consuming an average of more than one alcoholic beverage per day for women, and an average of more than two alcoholic beverages per day for men, and any drinking by pregnant women or underage youth.

Researchers found the costs largely resulted from losses in workplace productivity (72 percent of the total cost), health care expenses for problems caused by excessive drinking (11 percent of the total cost), law enforcement and other criminal justice expenses related to excessive alcohol consumption (9 percent of the total cost), and motor vehicle crash costs from impaired driving (6 percent of the total cost). The study did not consider a number of other costs such as those due to pain and suffering by the excessive drinker or others who were affected by the drinking, and thus may be an underestimate. Researchers estimated that excessive drinking cost $746 per person in the United States in 2006.

More information: www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2011/p1017_alcohol_consumption.html

ASSE Announces Approval of Groundbreaking Prevention through Design (PtD) Standard

The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) recently announced the approval of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/ASSE Z590.3 standard, "Prevention through Design: Guidelines for Addressing Occupational Risks in Design and Redesign Processes."

This new standard provides guidance on including prevention through design concepts within an occupational safety and health management system, and can be applied in any occupational setting. The standard will be available soon in print and electronically.

For more information, please contact ASSE Customer Service at 847-699-2929 or customerservice@asse.org.

Preventing Worker Deaths from Trench Cave-ins

Workers are at risk of death from cave-ins during trenching and excavation activities. US NIOSH recommends engineering controls, protective equipment, and safe work practices to minimize hazards for workers.

www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/wp-solutions/2011-208/pdfs/2011-208.pdf

Safety and Health in Agriculture: Code of practice from the ILO

This code of practice is intended to raise awareness of the hazards and risks associated with agriculture and promote their effective management and control; to help prevent occupational accidents and diseases and improve the working environment in practice; to encourage governments, employers, workers and other stakeholders to cooperate to prevent accidents and diseases; and to promote more positive attitudes and behaviour towards occupational safety and health in agriculture throughout the sector.

Agriculture is one of the most hazardous of all economic sectors and many agricultural workers suffer occupational accidents and ill health each year. It is also the largest sector for female employment in many countries, especially in Africa and Asia. Agriculture employs some one billion workers worldwide, or more than a third of the world's labour force, and accounts for approximately 70 per cent of child labour worldwide.

This code of practice is intended to raise awareness of the hazards and risks associated with agriculture and promote their effective management and control; to help prevent occupational accidents and diseases and improve the working environment in practice; to encourage governments, employers, workers and other stakeholders to cooperate to prevent accidents and diseases; and to promote more positive attitudes and behaviour towards occupational safety and health in agriculture throughout the sector.

The code was adopted by an international group of experts meeting in Geneva from 25 to 29 October 2010. It was endorsed and approved for publication by the Governing Body of the ILO at its 310th Session (March 2011).

Safety and Health in Agriculture: ILO Code of practice, 1 November 2011, ISBN 978-92-2-124970-2

www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/forthcoming-publications/WCMS_159457/lang--en/index.htm

OSH UPDATE and FIREINF: Essential access to worldwide authoritative and validated FIRE and OSH information that is user friendly and cost effective

Keeping up with the latest worldwide OSH and fire information can be a time consuming exercise, but help is available if you subscribe to the ever growing OSH UPDATE collection of 20 databases and the FIREINF collection of 17 databases.

It is worth spending time checking out the latest reports and other guidance and advice that have recently produced from worldwide sources. You will find many such pieces of advice and guidance in OSH UPDATE www.oshupdate.com and in FIREINF www.fireinf.com

The electronic services OSH UPDATE www.oshupdate.com and FIREINF www.fireinf.com will help you and your organisation to keep up-to-date. These services continue to bring you the latest information on health, safety, environment, fire and other subjects that you will find useful in your daily work. OSH UPDATE contains over 817,000 records - including CISDOC database and FIREINF over 538,000 records.

OSH UPDATE and FIREINF services contain both full text and bibliographic information are continuously enlarged as new information is published. These services are used by organisations, universities, companies and some ILO CIS Health and Safety Information Centres worldwide.

For a 15 DAY FREE NO OBLIGATION TRIAL contact: Sheila Pantry Associates Ltd | email: sp@sheilapantry.com | or fill in the Interest form www.sheilapantry.com/interest.html

Do you know the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health?

The Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health (SJWEH) is an international scientific occupational safety and health (OSH) periodical that was formed from the fusion of the publications known formerly as Work-Environment-Health and Nordisk Hygienisk Tidskrift. It is published in English and began publication on 1 January 1975.

The Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health is published by the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, the Danish National Research Centre for the Working Environment, and the Norwegian National Institute of Occupational Health. The Journal appears bimonthly. Its publication dates are the first day of the following months: January, March, May, July, September and November. It also publishes supplements on an ad hoc basis.

Lengthy papers may be published as supplements, for example, dissertations and symposium papers. Supplements are peer reviewed and are generally supervised by a guest editor. The editorial office will supply further information upon request.

Impact factor and ranking

For the latest available year, 2010, the impact factor of the Journal is 3.540. The five-year impact factor is 3.586. In the Journal Citation Report category of PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH, the Journal is ranked 17th out of 140 journals in the science edition and 4th out of 114 journals in the social science edition.

The circulation of the Journal is worldwide. At the end of 2010, it was distributed to approximately 34 countries on 6 continents. Most of the subscriptions came from the United States, Netherlands, Canada, Finland, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, Spain, France, Australia, South Korea, Japan and Denmark.

The Journal is open to all authors without regard to nationality. In 2010, 300 manuscripts were submitted for publication from all over the world.

Contact: Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health, Topeliuksenkatu 41 a A, FI-00250 HELSINKI, FINLAND | Tel: +358-30-474 2694 | Fax: +358-(0)9-878 3326 | Email: see the editors for specific e-mail addresses

SJWEH is indexed cover to cover in OSH UPDATE www.oshupdate.com which is a collection of 20 databases containing worldwide information. Ask for a 15 day free trial www.sheilapantry.com/interest.html

FOCUS: Mobile phone addiction threatens safety on roads warns charity, as survey reveals three in 10 drivers text at the wheel

The UK Road safety charity Brake and Direct Line are warning of the danger of mobile phone addiction, as research out today reveals the shocking extent of driver distraction from texting, emailing and social networking.

The survey revealed that nearly three in 10 drivers (28%) texts at the wheel and one in 13 (8%) do this at least once a week. One in 11 drivers (9%) surfs the web, emails, uses apps or social networking sites when driving.

Texting has been found to make drivers 23 times more likely to cause a crash, potentially killing or maiming innocent road users. Using a phone to email or surf the web also causes serious distractions.

In the United States, death from distracted driving has been increasing and researchers put this down to increases in drivers using smartphone technology.

A recent Ofcom report warned of increasing levels of smartphone addiction in the UK by users who are unable to go without checking their phone even for short periods or through the night. Over a quarter of adults and nearly half of teenagers now own a smartphone and the volume of mobile data transferred over the UK's mobile networks has increased forty-fold between 2007 and 2010.

More information: www.brake.org.uk/news/723-280911

Ergonoma Journal No. 25, September 2011 has just been issued

Ergonoma Journal is the European Ergonomics Health and Wellness at Work Quarterly Magazine, bilingual English/French, read by 42,000 ergonomic products dealers and distributors and ergonomics, health and wellness at work managers in 33 European countries.

It is the only European publication allowing you to stay informed of trends and news about ergonomics and wellness at the workplace

You can subscribe to Ergonoma Journal, either 4 issues (one year) for 20 euros (30 euros outside Europe), or 8 issues (two years) for 30 euros (40 euros outside Europe), 12 issues (three years) for 40 euros (60 euros outside Europe).

Contact: Patrick Le Martin, AMT Europe Ergonoma, 32 Morsans, 28800 Neuvy en Dunois, France | Tel: +332.37.44.04.60 | Fax: +332.37.44.04.50 | Email: patrick@ergonoma.com | www.ergonoma.com

A+A 18-21 October 2011- Germany

Düsseldorf will be dedicated to prevention and safety topics from 18 to 21 October 2011. These are the dates for the biannual A+A, the leading International Trade Fair with Congress for Safety and Health at Work.

At its inception in 1954, the trade fair was launched as a national event for "Occupational Safety + Occupational Medicine". Since then, A+A has developed into an authoritative international idea and market platform.

This year, with 1,580 exhibitors from 54 nations on 57,400 m² of booked exhibition area, it is posting new record numbers and presents itself as international as never before. Two thirds of the exhibitors come from abroad. After Germany (27,200 m²), the highest demand for display area comes from Italy (4,500 m²), China (3,200 m²), France (3,000 m²), Great Britain (2,800 m²) and the Netherlands (2,000 m²).

For further information on A+A 2011 www.AplusA.de

Welcome to the thirty-seventh edition of the UK REACH Competent Authority e-bulletin

The aim of this e-bulletin is to provide you with a free regular update of news and information from the UK REACH Competent Authority, as well as keeping you informed of any REACH issues particular to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).

Below you will find brief information on a number of topics and issues, each linking to more detailed articles on the HSE or ECHA websites.

ECHA publishes new example exposure scenarios

To support companies in complying with one of their new obligations under REACH, ECHA has developed practical examples of how to generate exposure scenarios (ESs) together with the cleaning products industry and the construction chemicals industry.

http://echa.europa.eu/view-article/-/journal_content/8b8bbfce-5be0-4f3c-8ca9-9e0b630acf0c

ECHA publishes new guidance on the Scope of Exposure Assessment

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has published a new chapter in the Guidance on information requirements and chemical safety assessment: Chapter B8 - Scope of Exposure Assessment.

https://echa.europa.eu/view-article/-/journal_content/title/echa-publishes-new-guidance-on-the-scope-of-exposure-assessment

ECHA publishes new Guidance on the compilation of Safety Data Sheets

This guidance provides information on issues to consider when compiling a Safety Data Sheet, in particular detailing the changes arising from the different revisions of Annex II of REACH and transition periods for implementation of these changes. It also gives general information on for which substances and mixtures SDSs needs to be provided and by whom.

https://echa.europa.eu/view-article/-/journal_content/title/echa-publishes-new-guidance-on-safety-data-sheets

ECHA calls for information to avoid unnecessary animal testing

ECHA calls for information on further substances to avoid unnecessary animal testing.

Testing proposals for four substances have been published on the ECHA website. Any scientifically valid information held by third parties is requested which will be taken into account by ECHA when considering its decision.

• 37 substances (02/09/2011 - 17/10/2011)
• 26 substances (16/08/2011 - 30/09/2011)

https://echa.europa.eu/information-on-chemicals/testing-proposals

ECHA commences public consultation on the C&L of 6 new substances

ECHA has announces a public consultation on harmonised classification and labelling of Benzoic acid, Thixatrol MAX, Tralkoxydim, Cycloxydim, Fenoxycarb and Methyl-2,5-dichlorobenzoate are underway++ http://echa.europa.eu/consultations/harmonised_cl_en.asp

If you have any suggestions for things we should include in our e-bulletins or on our website (http://www.hse.gov.uk/reach) you can contact us on UKREACHCA@hse.gsi.gov.uk

HSE is moving to a new email newsletter system

From October the REACH e-bulletins will be sent from HSE's new email newsletter system using the hse@public.govdelivery.com email account. The new format will have a more appealing look and feel, in response to feedback.

Companies are urged to start preparing for the 2013 REACH registration deadline

ECHA launches the 'REACH 2013 - Act Now!' campaign at the REACH Conference on 23 September to remind the industry to start preparing for the second REACH registration deadline. Companies manufacturing or importing chemicals in quantities at or above 100 tonnes per year are required to register these substances with ECHA by 31 May 2013.

The Agency has organised this awareness campaign to promote the best practise in fulfilling the obligations and also to publicise the various services and tools that can help companies comply with the REACH registration requirements. Geert Dancet, ECHA's Executive Director, says to industry: "I ask you to help us to pass this message on so that companies start their preparations for registration earlier than last time and take full benefit from the best practice and our support tools to deliver dossiers of higher quality."

On ECHA's website, there is a dedicated webpage on which there is an agenda for the events that ECHA is rolling out in relation to the REACH 2013 deadline. All relevant materials and links can also be found there. In addition, ECHA has designed a promotional web banner that Member States, industry associations and other organisations can add to their REACH web pages. This banner will help to brand the 'Act now!' campaign in all EU countries. Additionally, by clicking on the banner visitors will be directed to the ECHA 'REACH 2013 - Act now!' campaign pages.

The REACH conference, organised by the European Commission together with the Agency, is the first event on the agenda of the 'REACH 2013 Act now!' campaign. The conference will highlight best practise and necessary improvements to ease the way for the 2013 registration deadline.

The event can be followed live in six languages and a recording of the web stream will be available after the event.

http://echa.europa.eu

IOHA2012 will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on the 16-20 September 2012: Call for papers

The Malaysian Industrial Hygiene Association (MIHA), the organizer of the 9th International Occupational Hygiene Association (IOHA) International Scientific Conference is proud to announce that it has launched the Call for Papers on the website.

IOHA2012 will be held on the 16-20 September 2012, with Professional Development Courses PDC scheduled on 16-17 September 2012 and Conference proper on 18-20 September 2012.

Share your expertise and experience to continuously improve Industrial Hygiene practices globally by presenting at this prestigious conference. Deadline for Paper Submission is 15 December 2011, and submission to be completed electronically through our website.

The following topics are encouraged to be presented at the Conference:

1. Nanotechnologies, nanomaterials and ultrafine particles
2. Globally harmonized system
3. Control banding
4. IH issues in emerging economies
5. Asbestos Exposure Assessment Strategies
6. Health management and promotion in workplace
7. Sustainable OH & Safety Management systems
8. Indoor environmental quality
9. Industrial ventilation
10. PPE - the last protection
11. Health risk assessment
12. Ergonomics
13. Human factors engineering
14. Occupational epidemiology
15. Toxicology
16. Noise & hearing conservation program
17. OH issues in construction on industry
18. Psychosocial
19. Emergency Response and roles of IH
20. Exposure monitoring & lab capability
21. Environmental health
22. Managing Safety & health in workplaces
23. IH capability & trainings
24. Managing biological hazards
25. Ethics
26. Confined spaces

Conference registration will begin in December 2011. The Organizing Committee look forward to your participation.

Northern Ireland announces drink drive limit reduction - Brake reaction

Northern Ireland Environment Minister Alex Attwood has announced a package of measures to tackle drink driving, including introducing a lower drink drive limit and graduated fixed penalties.

The new legislation would include the following measures:

• Lower blood alcohol limits of 50 mg / 100 ml for most drivers and 20 mg / 100 ml for young or inexperienced drivers and for those who drive for a living. At present the drink drive limit is 80 mg / 100 ml.
• A graduated penalty regime including fixed penalties for first offences at lower limits and court prosecution for high level first offences or any second or subsequent offences.
• Random breath testing powers which would enable police to breathalyse drivers without the need to have reasonable suspect that the driver had taken alcohol.
• Automatic referral of offenders to an approved drink drive rehabilitation scheme.
• Removal of the right, in certain circumstances, for a driver to ask for a blood or urine sample to replace a breath test sample.

Subject to Executive Committee agreement, the Department of the Environment intends to have drink drive legislation ready for public consultation by March 2012. Read more.

Julie Townsend, Brake campaigns director, said: "We welcome these moves in Northern Ireland to help tackle the devastating, needless and costly casualties caused by drink driving. In particular, we support proposals for a lower drink drive limit, and random breath testing powers for police, which will provide a more effective deterrent and show that drink driving is a crime you can't get away with. We hope to see the rest of the UK following suit on these points: drink driving remains one of the biggest killers on our roads and it's high time we saw decisive action to stamp out this abhorrent menace.

"However, Brake would like to see a tougher regime than that proposed in Northern Ireland. We advocate a zero tolerance drink drive limit of 20 mg per 100 ml of alcohol for all drivers, in line with evidence that even very small amounts of alcohol affect your driving. This sends a clear message that it's always none for the road.

"We are also concerned that fixed penalties for first offences at lower limits could cause confusion, leading to some drivers believing that being just a bit over the limit is acceptable. It is not."

Read about Brake's campaign for zero tolerance on drink drivers.

Introducing the SINLIST

ChemSec, The International Chemical Secretariat, is a non-profit organisation dedicated to working towards a toxic free environment. Based in Göteborg, Sweden, ChemSec was founded in 2002 by four Swedish environmental organisations: Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, WWF Sweden, Nature and Youth and Friends of the Earth Sweden. These NGOs are the ChemSec member organisations and are represented on the ChemSec board.

ChemSec operates through support from a broad spectrum of society. A main contributor is the Swedish Government, but ChemSec also receives financial support from charitable foundations and other NGOs.

What is the SIN LIST?

The SIN (Substitute It Now!) List is an NGO driven project to speed up the transition to a toxic free world. The List 2.0 consists of 378 chemicals that ChemSec has identified as Substances of Very High Concern based on the criteria established by the EU chemical regulation, REACH. The SIN List is an important tool for speeding up the REACH legislative process, and is based on a straightforward concept: substitute hazardous chemicals with safer alternatives. Think of it as a fast track to a toxic-free world.

Substitute It Now!

The 378 chemicals on the SIN List 2.0 are currently being used in everything from detergents and paints to computers and toys. Sometimes in high levels. Yet consumers have no knowledge of this. The SIN List puts pressure on legislators to move forward with speed and urgency. It provides progressive retail companies with a helpful list of hazardous chemicals to avoid as they aim for a sustainable future. It also challenges certain chemical companies to shape up.

The most hazardous chemicals according to EU legislation

The SIN List contains substances that are identified by ChemSec as fulfilling the criteria for Substances of Very High Concern provided by REACH. These are substances that can cause cancer, alter DNA or damage reproductive systems. It also includes toxic substances that do not easily break down, but instead build up in nature - with a potential to cause serious and long-term irreversible effects.

A unique collaboration between NGOs and progressive businesses

The SIN List has been developed by ChemSec in close collaboration with leading NGOs in the EU and the US. Companies in the ChemSec Business Group have also contributed to the development of the list. The SIN List, a combined effort of public interest groups, businesses, scientists and technical experts, is based on credible, publicly available substance information from existing data bases, scientific studies and new research.

An ongoing project

The SIN List is a living, ongoing multi-stakeholder project that will evolve according to new developments and findings. It will be continuously updated as new information on dangerous chemicals becomes available.

The aim of the SIN List project is to ensure that REACH Authorisation procedure is an effective tool to fast-track the most hazardous substances for substitution and to facilitate toxic use reduction by businesses and other actors.

378 substances listed

Here is the complete SIN List 2.0 of 378 (updated in May 2011) substances - all of which fulfil the criteria for Substances of Very High Concern as defined in the REACH regulation. The database contains 311 substances that are Carcinogenic, Mutagenic and toxic to Reproduction (CMRs), 17 substances that are Persistent, Bioaccumulative and Toxic or very Persistent and very Bioaccumulative (PBTs and vPvBs) and 50 Substances of Equivalent Concern

www.sinlist.org

The 8th International Film and Multimedia Festival, Istanbul, Turkey

Films from Brazil, Switzerland and the UK have been awarded prizes in the 8th International Film and Multimedia Festival, during a ceremony at the World Congress on Safety and Health at Work, in Istanbul, Turkey, on 14 September 2011. Multimedia productions from Germany, Sweden and Mexico also received prizes.

This was held during the World Congress, attracted 232 entries from 30 countries. An international jury awarded first prizes to films from Brazil, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. In the multimedia category, the first prize was given to a production from Sweden. The Festival was jointly organized by two of the ISSA Prevention Sections: "Electricity" and "Information".

The full results of the International Film and Multimedia Festival are available on the ISSA website: www.issa.int

The results were announced by Festival co-organizer and Chairman of the ISSA's International Section on Information for Prevention, Marc de Graef, and Peter Rimmer, who presided the Festival's film jury.

First prizes

Do it with prevention...

SESI - Serviço Social da Indústria, Brazil

Giants of Leadership - The Nature of Safety

Lattitude Productions Limited, United Kingdom

Headbanger

Eidgenössische Koordinationskommission für Arbeitssicherheit (EKAS), Switzerland

Special Awards were also given to the following films:

Almost there

Social Security Organization (SOCSO), Malaysia

Balance

Floating World Films, Norway

Our mind is the key of our life

Tüpras / Turkish Petroleum Refineries Corporation, Turkey

The jury also gave special mention to the Napo series of films, to the Turkish Ministry of Agriculture for their series of safety films, and to companies who made films for multinational workforces.

European Agency for Safety and Health at Work report 'Legionella and legionnaires' disease

A policy overview presents the regulatory framework related to Legionella and guidelines for practical application, including policies of international organisations.

Linked to the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work Healthy Workplaces Campaign on Safe Maintenance, the factsheet summarises the occupational aspects of exposure to Legionella and offers good practice examples of how to control Legionella risks.

• Read the report (English)
• Factsheet (in 24 languages)
• Search for case studies in Case Studies Database (English)
• Safe Maintenance Campaign

Hard work all round pays off for first Arabic NEBOSH exam

The time between taking an exam and finding out if you've succeeded is never easy. You wonder if all your hard work has paid off and if the result you were looking for is the one you're going to get.

It is not only students that feel this way! Recently, both NEBOSH and Bahrain based course provider RRC Middle East (ME) were nervously awaiting the results of the first ever Health and Safety at Work exam to be set in Arabic. Fortunately, neither had anything to worry about.

Students from Middle Eastern businesses and government departments took the course with RRC ME. Out of 17 who took the assessments 16 achieved the qualification. Importantly, subsequent feedback from students gathered by the course provider was very positive.

"Several students told us they had been afraid about taking this course, because the name NEBOSH is so strongly associated with higher-lever professional qualifications," said Hasan AlAradi, Managing Director of RRC ME. "Even though the Health and Safety at Work qualification is an entry level course, some believed it might be too difficult for them.

"However, all agreed that the Arabic language of our course made the content very clear and easy to digest. And with tutor and students sharing practical experiences, their apprehension about the course turned to confidence and helped in gaining understanding of the topics. The exam itself was also a very good translation."

A number of students have since expressed an interest in taking a Certificate level NEBOSH course in Arabic, should this become available to them in the future.

NEBOSH Chief Executive, Teresa Budworth commented: "It has been a major project for NEBOSH setting an examination in a foreign language, so we're delighted to hear of this success. My congratulations go to the students who passed and to RRC ME for delivering such an effective course.

"We want NEBOSH to help preserve and improve occupational health and safety in workplaces worldwide, so it's important we extend the availability of our qualifications to those who are non-English speaking. This process will take time, but with plans for the Health and Safety at Work qualification to be set in Russian and Chinese Mandarin, as well as Arabic, we're starting to move in the right direction."

For more information on the qualification and examinations in languages other than English, please contact NEBOSH Customer Services on + 44 (0)116 2634700 or info@nebosh.org.uk

The National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health (NEBOSH) was formed in 1979 and is an independent examining board and awarding body with charitable status. NEBOSH offers a comprehensive range of globally-recognised, vocationally-related qualifications designed to meet the health, safety, environmental and risk management needs of all places of work in both the private and public sectors.

Courses leading to NEBOSH qualifications attract around 30,000 candidates annually and are offered by over 400 course providers around the world. NEBOSH examinations have been taken in over 90 countries. NEBOSH qualifications are recognised by the relevant professional membership bodies including the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), the International Institute of Risk and Safety Management (IIRSM) and the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA).

Topics covered by the Health and Safety at Work qualification include: risk assessment and control; work equipment; transport safety; electrical safety; fire safety; manual handling and hazardous substances. 24 hours of study time is needed to pass a multiple choice examination and practical assessment.

Contact: Julia Whiting, Communications Co-ordinator, NEBOSH | Tel: +44 (0)116 263 4724 | Email: julia.whiting@nebosh.org.uk

Nail guns - new publication from USA NIOSH

Nail guns are widely used on many construction jobs - especially in residen­tial construction. While they boost productivity they may also cause tens of thousands of painful injuries each year.

This new publication from the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is intended to provide a resource for residential home builders and construction contractors, subcontractors, and supervisors to prevent these kinds of injuries.

www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2011-202