In This Edition: (Click on Bullet to Jump to Story)

  EPA News:  NRDC Lawsuit Designed to Force Report on Domestic Terrorism and Plant Vulnerability

  OSHA News:  OSHA Moves to Protect Migrant Workers

  CEPPO News:  Government orders Cleansing of Sensitive Information

   Industry Focus:   
          1.  OSHA Interpretations: Process Safety Information

  Resources:  
           1.   Call for Papers: 2003 "Hazards XVII: Process Safety - Fulfilling our responsibilities"  from IChemE

  Incident News:  
           1.   Monthly Summary of Incidents, February 21, 2002 - March 20, 2002

  Events Update:  
           1.    MKOPSC Process Safety Management/Risk Management Program Critical Issues and Updates, April 16, 2002  

           2.    NFPA World Safety Conference and Exhibition, May 19-23, 2002, Minneapolis, MN.

   Other ATI Offers Course in Crisis Management & Plant Security  

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NRDC Lawsuit Designed to Force Report on Domestic Terrorism and Plant Vulnerability 
The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has filed a lawsuit in federal court regarding the delayed report summarizing the vulnerability of US Chemical Plants. The Clean Air Act required the Justice Department to complete two reports assessing the vulnerability of U.S. chemical plants to terrorism. The interim report -- which is supposed to provide preliminary findings on the vulnerability of facilities -- was due August 5, 2000. The DOJ is 18 months late on the first report, with the second due in August 2002. 

For full text of the press release, please go to http://www.nrdc.org/media/default.asp#0311chemical

In a related story,  a group called the Safe Hometowns Initiative called for community efforts and federal policy changes to reduce chemical hazards by requiring companies to consider "inherently safer" technologies and materials, which could reduce - and in many cases eliminate - the possibility of a significant chemical release. 

Find more details from this USPIRG Story at http://uspirg.org/uspirgnewsroom.asp?id2=5896&id3=USPIRGnewsroom&

OSHA Moves to Protect Migrant Workers
In two recent presentations, OSHA has focused on reducing injury rates among migrant workers. On February 27, Assistant Secretary of Labor John Henshaw testified before the US Senate Subcommittee on Employment, Safety and Training, emphasizing OSHA's focus on reducing injury rates among migrant workers. He noted that migrants make up a disproportionate number of workers in high hazard positions, and often do not receive training or communications in languages they can understand. On March 5, OSHA and the Hispanic Contractors of America, Inc. (HCA) signed an agreement to promote safe and healthful working conditions for Hispanic construction workers through effective safety and health training and increased access to safety and health resources in Spanish.

For details about Assistant Secretary of Labor Henshaw's speech, go to http://www.osha.gov/OshDoc/Testimony_data/T20020227.html. For the official press release regarding the HCA/OSHA alliance, go to http://www.osha.gov/media/oshnews/mar02/trade-20020305a.html.

Government orders Cleansing of Sensitive Information
U.S. government agencies have been ordered to clear their Web sites of sensitive information about weapons of mass destruction that could be exploited by would-be terrorists, according to memos released on Thursday.  (Source: Yahoo News)

For more information, please go to: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&u=/nm/20020321/ts_nm/bush_documents_dc_4

PSM Interpretations - Process Safety Information
AcuSafe presents the sixth installment in a series of feature articles entitled "PSM Interpretations."  In this edition of AcuSafe News, we present a summary of interpretations about applying to Process Safety information. Find this AcuSafe feature at  http://www.acusafe.com/Newsletter/Stories/0302NewsPart6Interpretations.htm.

Call for Papers: 2003 IChemE Hazards XVII: Process Safety - Fulfilling our responsibilities  
Hazards XVII is the latest in the series of symposia run by the Institution of Chemical Engineers NW Branch since 1960. These have provided a forum for the discussion of new research and technical developments into ways to control risks in the process industries thus helping to meet increasing expectations of risk control.  The three-day international symposium & exhibition (organized by IChemE North West Branch) on 25-27 March 2003 in Manchester, U.K., preceded by a 1-day Workshop: "Exothermic Reaction Hazards in Batch and Semi-batch Processing" on 24 March 2003. The session topics are described in the Call for Papers that can be accessed at http://www.icheme.org/events/hazardsxvii/call%20for%20papers.pdf. The submission deadline is May 24, 2002. 

For any queries about the symposium or Workshop, please contact Mike Adams on +44 (0) 1539 732845 (phone/fax) or Email: mike.j.adams@talk21.com

Monthly Summary of Incidents, February 21, 2002 - March 20, 2002
We collect stories about major spills and releases from around the globe. This month's installment summarizes a total of 21 incidents brought to our attention between February 21, 2001 and March 20, 2002. Most of the incidents covered have caused significant injury, deaths, or major property damage. Accidents in Indonesia, India, New Zealand,, Japan, and the U.S. are represented.  We welcome input to this effort by submitting summaries of other notable events to editor@acusafe.com.

NFPA World Safety Conference and Exhibition, May 19-23, 2002, Minneapolis, MN.
The 2002 World Safety Conference & Exposition will provide safety professionals with fire protection and life safety information and professional development opportunities.
Click link below for details
http://www.nfpa.org/ProfessionalDev/EventsCalendar/EventsCalendar.asp

The 2-day course provides a thorough overview of crisis and emergency planning related to large-scale releases of
chemicals from process facilities. Among the topics covered include: current federal laws and regulations related to crisis management planning, overview of the proposed Chemical Security Act, how to conduct a plant security hazard assessment, development of crisis management and emergency response plans, emergency training, public relations, media issues, risk communications during emergencies and plant security issues at process facilities. Participants will develop the knowledge to develop and implement such programs at their own facilities. Attendance would benefit environmental and safety professionals, plant managers, operations and maintenance managers/supervisors, emergency response personnel and RMP coordinators. Best practices, garnered from actual successful programs, will be highlighted.

For pricing information, course descriptions, a course schedule, and biographies of AcuTech course instructors, please read our full brochure at http://www.acutech-consulting.com/training/ATI_2002FullSchedule.PDF.