The National Toxicology Program has scheduled four draft NTP Technical Reports for peer review: vinylidene chloride, cobalt metal dust, tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA), and glycidamide. The reports should be available by September 20, 2013, here. The peer-review meeting, scheduled for October 29, is open to the public. Preregistration is requested for both public attendance and comment.
The EPA, Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives issued a chemical advisory on the hazards of ammonium nitrate storage, handling and management. The advisory provides lessons learned for facility owners and operators, emergency planners and first responders from recent incidents involving ammonium nitrate, including the deadly explosion in West, Texas.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has asked for feedback by Sept. 30 on how to restart the Yucca Mountain licensing process. A federal appeals court last month ordered the NRC to continue its review of the Nevada site.
HA International, a producer of resin-coated sand for the foundry and hydraulic fracturing industries, has agreed to pay a $100,000 civil penalty under an agreement with the EPA, to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Air Act at the company’s Oregon, Illinois, facility. Test results showed that the plant exceeded limits on volatile organic compounds, primarily the hazardous air pollutants phenol and formaldehyde. The settlement requires the company to install equipment to reduce VOC emissions by an estimated 92 percent, and to complete environmental projects valued at $100,000 in the Oregon area.
The House natural resources committee will hold an oversight field hearing in Billings, Mont., today, on “State and Local Efforts to Protect Species, Jobs, Property, and Multiple Use Amidst a New War on the West.” Five House members are scheduled to be in attendance, including committee chair Doc Hastings (R-WA), and invited witnesses include representatives of the Montana Petroleum Association, Montana Farm Bureau and Citizens for Balanced Use.
The Senate environment and public works committee’s subpanel on green jobs and the new economy is holding a field hearing today in Portland, Ore., on “An Efficient Way to Grow Jobs: Energy Upgrades that Save Families and Businesses Money, Reduce Pollution, and Create Good Jobs.” Witnesses include Oregon governor John Kitzhaber and Portland Hospital Service Corporation executive director Deborah Lark.
