Update to OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program

On September 15, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced updates to the Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP) that will expand the criteria for being placed in the program.  Along with expanding the criteria, OSHA also outlined new information on follow-up inspections and conditions for being removed from the program.  The SVEP was developed to focus enforcement efforts on those employers that willfully violated certain safety and health standards, repeatedly violated standards, or refused to correct violations.  The update will broaden the scope of the program standards that would be included.

According to OSHA, the following criteria updates will be included:

Getting into the program:

  • Employers will be placed in the program for citations of at least two willful or repeated violations or who receive failure-to-abate notices based on the presence of high-gravity serious violations.

Follow-up while in the program:

  • After notice of the final order, follow-up or referral inspections will be made yearly – but not longer than two years.

Getting out of the program:

  • Employers have the potential of removal from the Severe Violator Enforcement Program three years after the date of receiving verification from the employer that all program-related hazards have been abated.
    • Employers’ have the ability to reduce time spent in the program to two years, if they consent to an enhanced settlement agreement that includes use of a safety and health management system with seven basic elements in OSHA’s Recommended Practices for Safety and Health Programs.

For more information regarding the update, click here.

New Extreme Heat Resources Launched

Extreme heat kills over 700 people annually and has been the greatest weather-related cause of death in the United States over the last 30 years according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). On July 26, 2022, the current federal administration launched a new website to aid employers and decision makers in assessing the health risks of extreme heat. Heat.gov was launched through the interagency National Integrated Heat Health Information System (NIHHIS) and it provides a one-stop resource for national heat and health data.

Heat.gov provides decision makers with valuable tools to make decisions based on real-time and forecasted data. The website provides information on Climate and Health outlooks, Vulnerability mapping, National Risk Indexes, and many more. There is also a Heat Safety Tool app provided by OSHA and NIOSH to aid in outdoor activity planning. For more information regarding the app, click here.

Spokane County Burn Ban (effective 7/22/2022)

Fire Marshals from Spokane Valley Fire Department (SVFD), City of Spokane Fire Department (SFD), Spokane County, City of Cheney, City of Airway Heights and City of Deer Park have all enacted the Fire Danger Burn Restriction effective Friday, July 22.

Campfires, backyard fire pits, and burning of fields and yard waste is not allowed.  With high temperatures in the forecast, all Cities and Fire Agencies want to keep area communities safe from fire risk by reducing the number of human-caused wildfires. See  Spokane County’s flyer here.

While the burn restriction is in place, any person found with a recreational fire or conducting open burning who fails to take immediate action to extinguish or otherwise discontinue such burning when ordered or notified to do so shall be charged with a misdemeanor. (IFC 109; SCC 3.02)

1-bromopropane (1-BP) Added to the Clean Air Act’s List of Hazardous Air Pollutants

SEI Blog Jenelle

On December 22, 2021, the EPA Administrator signed a notice adding 1-bromopropane (1-BP) to the Clean Air Act’s list of hazardous air pollutants (also known as air toxics). The chemical 1-BP is largely used in solvent vapor degreasing, adhesives, dry cleaning, furniture foam fabrication, spot cleaners, stain removers, adhesives, sealants, automobile care products, and other applications including the aerospace industry. EPA is modifying the list of hazardous air pollutants because the Agency has determined that 1-BP is a hazardous air pollutant and its emissions, ambient concentrations, bioaccumulation, or deposition are known to cause or may reasonably be anticipated to cause adverse effects to human health or the environment.

Effective February 2022, facilities will need to include 1-BP in their assessment (i.e. Potential-to-Emit) of their source size classification (i.e., area source or major source).

EPA will be working to revise current NESHAP regulations and identify whether additional NESHAP are warranted. Under a separate action, EPA is developing a regulatory infrastructure that will address compliance and implementation issues that may arise from the addition of a chemical to the list of hazardous air pollutants. This regulatory infrastructure will be proposed for public notice and comment in 2022 and is expected to be finalized in early 2023.

This is the first time that EPA has added a pollutant to the list of hazardous air pollutants since Congress created the list through the 1990 Clean Air Act amendments. For more information, including a fact sheet and pre-publication version of the action, click here!

Washington L&I Files Emergency Heat and Smoke Rules

On June 1, 2022, Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) filed Outdoor Heat Exposure and Wildfire Smoke emergency rules that take effect June 15, 2022. The emergency rules are designed to keep workers that perform job tasks outside safe until permanent rulemaking can be established. Under the emergency rules, employers will be required to monitor temperatures and air quality, provide information to the workers, provide training, and more.

Craig Blackwood, L&I’s assistant director for the Division of Occupational Safety & Health stated, “The record-setting heat wave last summer underscored the importance of protecting outdoor workers. Add in the smoke from more frequent and devastating wildfires, which is a proven hazard, and it’s a recipe for danger every summer.”

For more information regarding the emergency rules, click here.

Is Your Facility Compliant?

Would you like to avoid a compliance request from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)? Then you should be aware of the DHS program outlining Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards for facilities that possess “high-risk” chemicals of interest. If you meet or exceed the threshold screening values for the chemicals, you must go through the screening process which involves taking training, submitting a Top-Screen for DHS review, possibly conducting a Site Vulnerability Assessment, developing or revising a Site Security Plan, and hosting a DHS representative for an on-site inspection. To find out if this applies to your company, check out the list of the high-risk chemicals and the threshold screening quantities in Appendix A of the standards.

For more information regarding the CFATS process, click here.

If you require assistance complying with the regulatory guidelines, drop us a line. We’d be happy to assist.