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*********** IN THIS ISSUE ************

Regulatory Update: Good Process Safety Without Regulation
OSHA Insider: Does Your Catastrophe Plan Include Preparations for an OSHA Inspection?
Hot Topics: OSHA Changes PSM Interpretation After Seven Years
Human Factors Focus: OSHA Proposes Ergonomics Standard
Resources: Useful and Free Software
Chemical Safety Board Update: CSB Stumbles as it Grows
Events Update: HAZMAT 2000 Conference in St Louis April 4, 2000

*********** STORY ABSTRACTS ************

Regulatory Update
Good Process Safety Without Regulation
Canada is one of the few developed nations that do not have some form of process safety management (PSM) legislation, a fact of which many Canadian producers and operators are proud. For Canada, despite the unregulated state, has a safety record that rivals that of countries like the United States and the United Kingdom, where regulation has been in effect for several years. How does Canada do it? Click here for an article on this subject by AcuTech Consulting’s Leslie Parchomchuk of the Vancouver office.

OSHA INSIDER
Does Your Catastrophe Plan Include Preparations for an OSHA Inspection?
At the recent AIChE meeting in San Francisco, Mark Dreux, an attorney with McDermott, Will, & Emery in Washington, D.C, presented a helpful series of papers on managing the legal issues from a catastrophic release. One aspect is handling the OSHA / EPA inspection, which more often than not follows a large release. We have condensed some of Mark’s thoughts into a short article on this inspection activity. Click on this link to learn more.

HOT TOPICS
OSHA Changes PSM Interpretation After Seven Years
Recently, OSHA's Director of Compliance Programs issued a memorandum for Regional Administrators and State Designees that rescinded several letters of interpretation concerning the application of the Process Safety Management standard (29 CFR 1910.119) to oil and gas production facilities. The memo also offered a clarification -- that even short daily visits may preclude exclusion under the "normally unoccupied remote facility” (NURF). Click here to Read more about this important issue. Included here are copies of the Memo and the deleted Letters of Interpretation.

HUMAN FACTORS FOCUS
OSHA Proposes Ergonomics Standard
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) proposed a standard designed to reduce repetitive-motion injuries among the 27 million Americans in the workforce who labor on assembly lines, at computer workstations or in jobs involving heavy lifting. Read a summary of the potential impact and timing issues.

Resources
Useful Software Offered on AcuSafe.com
Now, from the engineers at AcuTech Consulting, two handy tools to make your HAZOP Studies and design work a bit faster. Click here read more about, and download, “Flange” and “Vessel.”

Chemical Safety BOARD Update
Chemical Safety Board Stumbles as it Grows
Less than two years after it finally opened for business, the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board is experiencing growing pains as its leaders deal with their roles, responsibilities, and authority. Click here for more details on this emerging story.

Events Update
HAZMAT 2000
Have you made plans to be in St. Louis starting April 4th for the National Response Team’s annual HAZMAT conference ? Of particular interest to AcuSafe readers may be the session chaired by Jim Belke of the EPA on “Innovations in Accident Prevention.” There also are several sessions on the terrorism issues that have become a concern of late. Also, we should expect to see more data analysis from the RMP database. Be sure to sign up now.