You can download CHAS at a glance – Boston Fall 2018 for the Boston ACS National Meeting at this page. The DCHAS Agenda Book 2018 Fall for the meeting is available here. Below is the information in a columnar format for easy scanning on a mobile device.
The attached document on Reactive Chlorosilane Byproducts was provided by Eugene Ngai, 2011 Howard Fawcett Chemical Health and Safety Award.
Thanks to an Innovative Project Grant from the American Chemical Society to the Division of Chemical Health and Safety, we are able to share the video below with the research chemistry community. The video is 2 minutes and 12 seconds long and provides an overview of the reasons that conducting a risk assessment of laboratory work is so important to maintaining situational awareness as laboratory work proceeds.
The video is meant for sharing – it carries a non-commercial, by attribution Creative Commons license and can be downloaded here.
In addition, the Division has developed a powerpoint file to serve as a teaching that accompanies the video. You can download the powerpoint file here:
Our thanks for their help with this video to :
1. Rachel Brian of Blue Seat Studios for her creativity
2. Tim Gallagher of the University of Bristol in the UK for suggesting this video and his ongoing collaboration in developing the content
3. The more that 300 people who viewed previous versions of the video and the many people who provided helpful suggestions for improving those versions.
4. The ACS Innovative Projects Grant program for funding this project.
Comments and questions about this video can be directed to Ralph Stuart, membership chair of DCHAS at membership@dchas.org
The Editor’s Spotlight for the May / June 2018 issue of the Journal of Chemical Health and Safety is shining on:
Chemical safety education for the 21st century — Fostering safety information competency in chemists by
Samuella Sigmann
The abstract for this article is:
During the education process, each person strives to acquire the necessary skill set or set of competencies needed to be successful in their selected career. For example, a job listing for a bench chemist might state that the successful applicant should have a BS in chemistry, (knowledge), be familiar with common laboratory operations (skills), and be a contributing member of a team (attitude). It is our job as curriculum designers and educators to give our students the competencies they will need to be successful. The chemistry curriculum must include those competencies needed for working safely in a chemistry research laboratory.
This can be accomplished by weaving the knowledge component of competencies spirally into the chemistry major’s curriculum. We cannot assume that a student who has successfully completed a bachelor’s degree in chemistry has acquired the necessary competencies to perform a risk assessment or read a safety data sheet (SDS). Skill-based laboratory activity is valuable and can be specifically transferred to the next task, but knowledge and attitudes assist future learning in a nonspecific transfer and must be taught as ideas and principles. This work looks at the competencies required to be a chemist from an historical point and suggests ways that chemical safety information can be infused into the twenty-first century chemistry curriculum using embedded safety professionals, risk assessment, and SDSs to broaden and deepen safety knowledge.
This article and the rest of the issue can be found at ScienceDirect site
Also included in this issue of JCHAS are:
Chemical safety information in the 21st century
Ralph Stuart
Collecting reaction incident information: Engaging the community in sharing safety learnings
Carmen I. Nitsche, Gabrielle Whittick, Mark Manfredi
Baseline survey of academic chemical safety information practices
Leah McEwen, Ralph Stuart, Ellen Sweet, Robin Izzo
The chemical safety gateway: Beyond Google’s limitations
Abe Lederman, Sol Lederman
ACS’s Hazard Assessment in Research Laboratories website: An important safety culture tool
Kendra Leahy Denlinger
Presenters: Melissa Wilcox and Julia Bramante
Saturday, August 18, 8:30 – 4 PM
Health and safety training related to cannabis has become an urgent national priority. Recent studies suggest less than fifty percent of cannabis operators provide any health and safety training for their staff, and across all United States industries the number of workers who can use cannabis legally is increasing. This course is intended for employers in states where cannabis use is legal, as well as workers and staff throughout the cannabis industry. The course will cover topics important for individuals who work at cannabis operations.
This comprehensive course presented by the American Chemical Society Chemical Health and Safety Division and the Cannabis Chemistry Subdivision is a review of methodologies, safety considerations and best practices related to working at cannabis operations whether it is a retail, manufacturing, cultivation, laboratory or a vertically integrated combination of those operations. Participants will learn how to comply with health and safety standards at each level of the supply chain. Policies and recommendations will be discussed for the following topics: workplace safety, laboratory safety, personal protective equipment training, hazardous materials (HAZMAT), and handling law enforcement interactions.
There is extensive opportunity for questions both during the workshop and with follow-up by phone and email. Each participant will receive workshop materials and resources.
EXTRACTION, ANALYSIS, AND LAB SAFETY:
WORKPLACE SAFETY:
LAW ENFORCEMENT INTERACTIONS:
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS (HAZMAT):
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Registration Notes:
One person may register for multiple workshops on a single Registration form. If you have more than one person to register using the same credit card or billing method or if you need help with the registration process, please contact Russ Phifer at 610-322-0657 or rphifer@wcenvironmental.com
You will receive a confirmation that your registration has been submitted immediately upon registering. You will be sent a confirmation of registration email as soon as your registration is reviewed. Please contact 610-322-0657 if you do not receive the confirmation within four working days.
Terms
Members of ACS who are not also members of CHAS do not qualify for the CHAS member discount.
Conditions and Cancellation/Refund Policy
Upon verified registration, information will be sent to each participant containing specific location information of the workshop. Companies may substitute registrants without prior notice or penalty. Full refund available for cancellations up to three (3) weeks prior to workshop date. 50% refund up to one (1) week prior to workshop. Cancellations made less than seven (7) days prior to workshop start date will be charged, but an 80% credit may be applied toward a future program. No-shows receive no credit and will be billed. In the event that the Division of Chemical Health and Safety is forced to cancel a workshop due to lack of registration or other causes, CHAS will notify participants at least ten (10) days in advance by email. We will notify you by email as soon as we know that the workshops will be held, i.e. we have sufficient registrants to present the workshop. CHAS suggests fully refundable air fares be used due to the potential of workshop cancellation. CHAS will not be responsible for penalties caused by these types of fares in the event of workshop cancellation.
taught by Jim Kaufman, Lab Safety Institute
Friday, August 17, 8:30 – 4 PM
Description: The Laboratory Safety Institute (LSI) will present a new course at the ACS national meetings. The course meets the needs of scientists, science educators, lab workers and their supervisors wanting to learn more about laboratory safety. “Lab Safety – Beyond the Fundamentals” continues where LSI’s introductory course (The Laboratory Safety Workshop) leaves off and explores new areas in lab safety. There is an emphasis on simple and inexpensive steps to create more effective lab safety programs and grow the culture of lab safety.
There is extensive opportunity for questions both during the workshop with follow-up by phone and email. This includes a one-hour conference call to help with the implementation of course concepts. Course participants are encouraged to submit in advance five questions/topics they wish to be sure are covered in the course: jim@labsafetyinstitute.org. Each participant will receive workshop materials (280-Page, three-ring Lab safety course notebook) and other photocopied resources.
Specific Items Covered include:
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Registration Notes:
One person may register for multiple workshops on a single Registration form. If you have more than one person to register using the same credit card or billing method or if you need help with the registration process, please contact Russ Phifer at 610-322-0657 or rphifer@wcenvironmental.com
You will receive a confirmation that your registration has been submitted immediately upon registering. You will be sent a confirmation of registration email as soon as your registration is reviewed. Please contact 610-322-0657 if you do not receive the confirmation within four working days.
Terms
Members of ACS who are not also members of CHAS do not qualify for the CHAS member discount.
Conditions and Cancellation/Refund Policy
Upon verified registration, information will be sent to each participant containing specific location information of the workshop. Companies may substitute registrants without prior notice or penalty. Full refund available for cancellations up to three (3) weeks prior to workshop date. 50% refund up to one (1) week prior to workshop. Cancellations made less than seven (7) days prior to workshop start date will be charged, but an 80% credit may be applied toward a future program. No-shows receive no credit and will be billed. In the event that the Division of Chemical Health and Safety is forced to cancel a workshop due to lack of registration or other causes, CHAS will notify participants at least ten (10) days in advance by email. We will notify you by email as soon as we know that the workshops will be held, i.e. we have sufficient registrants to present the workshop. CHAS suggests fully refundable air fares be used due to the potential of workshop cancellation. CHAS will not be responsible for penalties caused by these types of fares in the event of workshop cancellation.
Taught by Russ Phifer, WC Enviromental
Friday, August 17, 8:30 – 4 PM
Description: CHAS offers the Laboratory Waste Management workshop to assist participants with the various regulatory requirements that apply to laboratories which generate hazardous waste, as well as to provide insight into the options for on-site management and off-site disposal. Includes details on the new Hazardous Waste Improvement Rule. Focus will include discussion on recycling/reclamation techniques, economical handling of wastes and liability issues. There is extensive opportunity for questions both during the workshop with follow-up by phone and email.
Specific topics includes:
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Registration Notes:
One person may register for multiple workshops on a single Registration form. If you have more than one person to register using the same credit card or billing method or if you need help with the registration process, please contact Russ Phifer at 610-322-0657 or rphifer@wcenvironmental.com
You will receive a confirmation that your registration has been submitted immediately upon registering. You will be sent a confirmation of registration email as soon as your registration is reviewed. Please contact 610-322-0657 if you do not receive the confirmation within four working days.
Terms
Members of ACS who are not also members of CHAS do not qualify for the CHAS member discount.
Conditions and Cancellation/Refund Policy
Upon verified registration, information will be sent to each participant containing specific location information of the workshop. Companies may substitute registrants without prior notice or penalty. Full refund available for cancellations up to three (3) weeks prior to workshop date. 50% refund up to one (1) week prior to workshop. Cancellations made less than seven (7) days prior to workshop start date will be charged, but an 80% credit may be applied toward a future program. No-shows receive no credit and will be billed. In the event that the Division of Chemical Health and Safety is forced to cancel a workshop due to lack of registration or other causes, CHAS will notify participants at least ten (10) days in advance by email. We will notify you by email as soon as we know that the workshops will be held, i.e. we have sufficient registrants to present the workshop. CHAS suggests fully refundable air fares be used due to the potential of workshop cancellation. CHAS will not be responsible for penalties caused by these types of fares in the event of workshop cancellation.
The Editor’s Spotlight for the March / April 2018 issue of the Journal of Chemical Health and Safety is shining on:
Chemical suicides: Hazards and how to manage them by
Michael Logan and Christina Baxter
Michael Logan is affiliated with Research and Scientific Branch, Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, GPO BOX 1425, Brisbane, Queensland 4001, Australia.
Christina Baxter is affiliated with Emergency Response TIPS, LLC, Woodbridge, Virginia 22191, USA.
The abstract for this article is:
Emergency response to chemical suicides has become more common place in recent years. In order to address the operational implications of these events, it is first important to understand the methodologies which are commonly used, the locations where the events often occur, the concentrations of material generated, and how those concentration relates to exposure standards and flammability. Using hydrogen sulfide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide, and phosphine as examples, guidance is offered about risk control measures including personal protective equipment and decontamination strategies to effectively and safely mitigate the incidents.
This article and the rest of the issue can be found at ScienceDirect site
Also included in this issue of JCHAS are:
Expanding our Boarders: Safety at ABCChem 2018
Anatomy of an incident—Multiple failure of safety systems under stress
Hugo Schmidt
Make safety a habit!
Robert H. Hill
The state of the arts: Chemical safety — 1937 to 2017
Monona Rossol
Contamination control monitoring at the Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Plutonium Facility
Michael E. Cournoyer
In the 21st century, chemistry research is more varied and expansive than ever before, the rules that keep one lab safe will not adequately address the possible risks in others. Rather than having a universal set of rules, a more adaptive system is needed for both academic and industry labs. Ralph Stuart, Chemical Hygiene Officer at Keene State College, and Samuella Sigmann, Senior Lecturer at Appalachian State University, propose a new way of thinking that builds a dynamic safety system based on your own needs and conditions as well as provides resources on how such programs can be developed.
You can download a PDF of the presentation here.
The webinar was attended by over 850 people, who asked many more interesting questions than we were able to answer during the webinar. We built a web page to answer questions we didn’t get to and provide our initial answers. Some of these questions have many possible answers. Let us know if you have comments or questions on what we’ve said or ask an additional question on the web page.
In case you’re curious, you can see what some of the comments from those who attended in the 2018-03-08 Safety Webinar Speaker Feedback infographic.
The CHAS at a glance for the New Orleans Spring 2018 guide to chemical safety activities at the ACS National Meeting is now available!
Look here for the agenda books for the Division of Chemical Health and Safety and the Committee on Chemical Safety when they are available as well!
Link to DCHAS Agenda Book, Spring 2018
Link to the Committee on Chemical Safety agenda book
