Articles
Articles
Published On: January 31, 2022How do you as an individual know what is right and what is wrong? How do we as a society determine what is moral? Where are those individual and/or societal lessons learned? The concepts of right and wrong have been debated for centuries and continue to this day. To improve […]
Published On: January 31, 2022The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) guides August Mack through the Tier II reporting season at the beginning of each new year. EPCRA was passed by Congress in 1986 in response to environmental concerns about the storage and handling of toxic chemicals. President Reagan signed EPCRA into law, […]
Published On: January 31, 2022Several of the most popular social media trends to recently sweep social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter all have a common theme – looking back at the past and comparing it to today. Challenges like “10 Year Challenge!” “How it Went…How It’s Going” or “#LookbackFriday” are interesting to […]
Published On: January 31, 2022Historically, the use of Institutional Controls (ICs) was associated with large, complex sites involved in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cleanup programs, such as Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Corrective Action and Superfund. The ICs were commonly used in conjunction with removal actions, soil and groundwater remediation, and risk […]
Dealing with Management of Change (MOC’s) for Process Safety Management and Risk Management Planning
Published On: January 31, 2022Management of Change (MOC) and Change Management are analogous elements for both Process Safety Management (PSM) (29 CFR 1910.119 (l)) and Risk Management Planning (RMP) (40 CFR 68.75). Both are incorporated into PSM and RMP development as one of the 14 elements of each. Simply stated, both are a formalized […]
Published On: November 22, 2021As an asbestos inspector, this must be the number one misconception that most of my clients have about whether or not they need an asbestos survey. For some reason the conversation always ends up going a little something like this: Client: “Yeah business is really good and we are getting […]
Published On: November 22, 2021Molds are naturally occurring in the environment and are found almost everywhere, including indoors. However, at high concentrations, molds can affect the health of humans, especially immunocompromised or hypersensitive individuals. Exposure to molds, and the mycotoxins they produce, can lead to adverse health effects, such as fungal infections, rash, fever, […]
Published On: October 18, 2021Flammables and compressed gases are two hazardous materials commonly found in nearly any facility. From heavy industry, light industry and warehouses and nearly any facility resembling one of the three described. Over the course of 30 years of experience best practices have changed as technology advanced. For example, a gasoline […]
Published On: October 18, 2021Dust, fumes, and other airborne hazards are ubiquitous among some industries. Following regulations that control airborne hazards can seem daunting especially in industries where dust and airborne chemicals are a virtually unavoidable result of their processes. Fortunately, industrial hygiene (IH) sampling (sometimes referred to as occupational hygiene sampling) is an […]
Published On: August 9, 2021Closure is generally defined as the point of the project where no additional investigation or remediation activities are required and the regulatory agency has provided a letter to that effect. It is the point in the project that all responsible parties want to achieve, and in most cases, must achieve, preferably […]
Published On: June 25, 2021A regulatory environmental compliance site inspection and evaluation can be one of the most stressful events for environmental managers. The EPA’s “Clean Air Act Stationary Source Compliance Monitoring Strategy” suggests a full compliance evaluation by the state or regional office at least once every two years for New Source Performance […]
Published On: April 15, 2021Two agency notifications may be required for Small Quantity Generators (SQG’s) and Very Small Quantity Generators (VSQG’s). VSQG’s were formerly known as Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQG’s). The 2016 Hazardous Waste Generator Improvement Rule requires SQG’s to re-notify the US EPA or state agency concerning their hazardous waste activities. […]
