|
Air Today . . . Gone Tomorrow Article
In National Emergencies,
OSHA to Provide Assistance, Not Enforcement
By James L Nash,
Occupational Hazards, April 8, 2004
Soon after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, OSHA announced it would provide technical
assistance to rescue and recovery workers, but would not enforce its safety and health
regulations.
OSHA employees worked long hours during the emergency operation, and there were no
fatalities at one of the nation's most hazardous sites. In the years that followed 9/11,
however, the decision to suspend OSHA's traditional enforcement authority has aroused
controversy.
As the work around the old World Trade Center (WTC) proceeded, critics claim some workers
did not wear proper respiratory protection and were not protected from the toxic
atmosphere that was present.
"Now, literally 6,000 heroic workers who responded in that emergency are seriously
ill," according to Joel Shufro, executive director of the New York Committee for
Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH), a leading critic of OSHA's handling of safety and
health at the former WTC site.
In its new National Emergency Management Plan (NEMP), the agency has clarified that in the
future, OSHA will not enforce safety rules, but will instead "provide technical
assistance during large-scale emergencies," according to an OSHA official. A major
part of OSHA's assistance role during the emergency phase of nationally significant
incidents "includes the assessment and the management of the risks faced by first
responders and recovery workers," the official explained.
The management of these risks includes using OSHA standards, but this will be done within
the National Incident Management System (NIMS) and the National Response Plan (NRP), which
are administered by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The OSHA regional administrator in whose region the incident occurs may seek to regain
OSHA's traditional enforcement authority, but this shift must be based on "the
incident's unique set of conditions and risks" and only after consultation with the
politically-appointed assistant secretary of labor for OSHA.
"OSHA's NEMP has some shocking flaws," commented Shufro. "OSHA's role will
be limited to providing 'advice and consultation' with the result that standards that are
specifically designed for emergencies, such as the Hazardous Waste Operations and
Emergency Response standard will be treated as merely advisory."
Donald Elisburg helped prepare a report for the National Institute for Environmental
Health Sciences on the lessons learned from the recovery operations at the WTC. "The
question is not whether someone will get cited," Elisburg contended, "but who in
fact is responsible for the health and safety of first responders and skilled support
personnel. Someone has to say 'You are required to wear a respirator,' and assure it's
done."
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appears to be following Elisburg's advice. In
March, DHS released a memorandum spelling out NIMS, "a core set of principles"
that will "enable effective, efficient, and collaborative incident management at all
levels. The document provides for a safety officer (SO) who has the ultimate
responsibility for the safety of workers and who reports directly to the incident
commander. The SO has "emergency authority to stop or prevent unsafe acts during
incident operations."
The Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), a part of DHS, has been charged
with carrying out the management of future emergency recovery operations. A FEMA official
explained that NIMS requires compliance with all OSHA regulations. Aside from the SO's
emergency power to stop unsafe acts, however, it not clear how safety and health standards
will be enforced.
"FEMA is not a regulatory agency," the official explained, "and therefore
it has no role in enforcing workplace safety regulations."
http//occupationalhazards.com/articles/11624 FAIR USE NOTICE
This article contains copyrighted material, the use of which has not always been
specifically authorized by the copyright owner. I am making such material available in my
efforts to advance understanding of democracy, economic, environmental, human rights,
political, scientific, and social justice issues, among others. I believe this constitutes
a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US
Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107,
the material in this article is distributed without profit for research and educational
purposes. Take me back to learn more |
|
|