Chemicals safety standards

At the supranational level, CEE1C and the European Commission became natural counterparts seeking to facilitate the transposition of chemical safety standards and market reforms in the sector. A position paper of CEE1C presented at the 1995 conference Competing in the New Europe Strategies for the Central and Eastern European Chemical Industry, highlighted the growth in trade of chemicals between EU and Central and Eastern Europe, as Central and Eastern Europe exports to the EU rose by... 

Today, DDESB is concerned with the same explosives safety aspects of munitions manufacture, storage, transportation, and disposal as was recommended by Congress in 1928. An additional functional area added in 1968 by the Secretary of Defense is the establishment of chemical safety standards and a chemical safety program for chemical agents and components of chemical ammunition. 

When a federal or state agency develops chemical safety standards, these are almost always lower than the threshold values generated from the dose-reponse relationship. The reason for this is purely pragmatic, as the results from toxicity testing are generally... 

Process chemical safety standard—1 years Hazard communications standard—10 years... 

Workers in the metals treatment industry are exposed to fumes, dusts, and mists containing metals and metal compounds, as well as to various chemicals from sources such as grinding wheels and lubricants. Exposure can be by inhalation, ingestion, or skin contact. Historically, metal toxicology was concerned with overt effects such as abdominal coHc from lead toxicity. Because of the occupational health and safety standards of the 1990s such effects are rare. Subtie, chronic, or long-term effects of metals treatment exposure are under study. An index to safety precautions for various metal treatment processes is available (6). As additional information is gained, standards are adjusted. 

Standardization and Testing". The final vaccine is tested for safety, potency, and residual chemicals. Safety includes testing for endotoxin and stetihty. Potency is evaluated by quantitative determination of the amount of hemagglutinin in the vaccine. Antibody to this glycoprotein is associated with protection. The single radial immunodiffusion (SKID) technique is used to standardi2e the mass of this protein in comparison to a reference preparation. 

Dow Chemical Company Safety Standard on Confined-Space Entry states the following regarding confined space entiy. 

The American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) has a 30-year history of involvement with process safety for chemical processing plants. Through its strong ties with process designers, builders, operators, safety professionals and academia, the AIChE has enhanced communication and fostered improvement in the high safety standards of the industry. AIChE publications and symposia have become an information resource for the chemical engineering profession on the causes of accidents and means of prevention. 

Acceptable Risk. Once information is assembled concerning the characteristics of exposure and biologic effects, that information must be interpreted in terms of human safety standards. That interpretation requires that one establish a set of criteria representing acceptably safe conditions for human existence, bearing in mind that zero concentrations of environmental chemicals are unrealistic. 

Only 10 firms account for 75% of agrochemicals sales, while the 15 largest drug companies have a market share of only 33% (Stinson, 1995). About 85% of fine chemicals are manufactured by companies of the triad the United States (28%), Western Europe (39%), and Japan (17%). Italy, with 4.0 million litres reactor capacity and 71 manufacturers, topped the European fine chemicals industry (Layman, 1993). Recently India, China, and Eastern-Central European countries have gained a significant proportion of the market, as a result of the lower direct labour costs and the more relaxed environmental and safety standards. It is fair to state that the high quality of chemists in these countries has also contributed to this development. In 1993, the cost of producing fine chemicals in India was 12% below that in Europe (Layman, 1993). 

A word of caution Metals, materials in general, chemicals used to study metals in the laboratory, chemicals used for corrosion protection, and essentially any chemicals should be (1) used in compliance with all applicable codes, laws, and regulations (2) handled by trained and experienced individuals in keeping with workmanlike environmental and safety standards and (3) disposed only using allowable methods and in allowable quantities. 

For additional information see AR 385-61, The Army Toxic Chemical Agent Safety Program, DA Pam 385-61, Toxic Chemical Agent Safety Standards, and DA Pam 40-8, Occupational Health Guidelines for the Evaluation and Control of Occupational Exposure to Nerve Agents GA, GB, GD, and VX. ... 

Lacking actual test results, the next best option is to check chemical-specific safety data such as MSDSs or International Chemical Safety Cards (ICSCs) for the particular compounds and concentrations involved. Section 10 (Stability and Reactivity) of standard MSDSs should contain information on Incompatibilities with Other Materials. Similar information should be in the Chemical Dangers section of ICSCs. However, these are rarely more than lists of incompatible materials, and do not indicate what consequences can be expected. The listed incompatibilities should be considered as only applying to ambient conditions. 

Following a series of very serious chemical accidents in the 1980s, OSHA began to develop the PSM Standard. The proposed standard was published in 1990, the same year that Congress enacted the Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA). Section 304 of CAAA required OSHA to promulgate a chemical process safety standard to protect employees from hazards associated with accidental releases of highly hazardous chemicals in the workplace. It further required that OSHA develop and apply the standard to a list of... 

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