Archive for October 2021
Congress Considering $700,000 OSHA Penalties
National Law Review Washington, DC A Congressional committee has approved maximum penalties of $700,000 per item for violations of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards. The move would mean more than a fivefold increase of maximum “willful,” “repeated,” and “failure-to-abate” violations from $136,532. Minimum penalty amounts for such infractions would increase from today’s $9,753 to…
Read MoreEPA Rescinds Previous Administration’s Guidance On Clean Water Act Permit Requirements
EPA Washington, DC EPA is rescinding a guidance document entitled “Applying the Supreme Court’s County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund Decision in the Clean Water Act Section 402 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit Program” that was issued by the Trump administration on January 14, 2021. The previous Administration’s Maui guidance reduced clean water protections by creating a new factor…
Read MoreHow Gas Stoves Are Related to Indoor Air Quality and Climate Change
NPR by Jeff Brady National – Gas stoves have become a focal point in a fight over whether gas should even exist in the 35% of U.S. homes that cook with it. Environmental groups are focused on potential health effects. Burning gas emits pollutants that can cause or worsen respiratory illnesses. Residential appliances like gas-powered furnaces and water heaters vent…
Read MoreOffice Air Quality May Affect Employees’ Cognition, Productivity
Harvard School of Public Health Boston, MA – The air quality within an office can have significant impacts on employees’ cognitive function, including response times and ability to focus, and it may also affect their productivity, according to new research led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The one-year study, which included participants in offices…
Read MoreDaines Could Play Key Role As the First GOP Sponsor of Asbestos Ban Bill
Montana Standard David McCumber Washington, DC – For the first time, an asbestos-ban bill in Congress may have the sponsorship of a Republican senator — Montana’s Steve Daines — signaling improved chances of passage. Even though asbestos has been a known human carcinogen for more than a century, it is legal in the United States…
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