A spilled container of nitric acid forced the evacuation of a University of Arizona laboratory building on Monday.
No one was hurt in the incident, which occurred in UA's Shantz building.
The spill occurred when a glass container filled with between 500 and 1000 ml of nitric acid dropped and broke. According to the Tucson Fire Department, someone tried to neutralize the spill with sodium bicarbonate, causing an exothermic reaction that melted the copper piping on compressed air containers in the lab.
An adjacent street was closed while the fire department and a hazardous materials control team responded to the incident.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Hazmat response to nitric acid spill
COMM rules to get new titles
The administrative codes previously administered by the Department of Commerce are being re-titled to reflect the move to the Department of Safety and Professional Services. "Comm" codes will be "SPS" codes as of January 1, 2012. According to DSPS, the current code numbers will be bumped up by adding 300 to the existing number. For example, the current Comm 81 will change to SPS 381, and Comm 5 to SPS 305.
Lithium Battery Fire at Camp Pendleton is Third in Two Years
Posted 28 Oct 2011
http://www.sdcitybeat.com/
By: Dave Maass
Roughly 500 lithium batteries caught fire in a storeroom at the Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base last week, according to an incident report filed with the National Response Center (NRC).
This is the third incident involving lithium batteries at the base in the last two years. Last April, a 55-gallon drum of batteries began to emit gas and smoke, requiring fire department response. In November, another 55-gallon drum “vented, heated then reacted and caught on fire,” according to a NRC report. In the latest case, the fire started in a battery room, activating a fire-suppression system that resulted in the release of between 500 and 1,000 gallons of tainted water into storm drains. In all three cases, employees within a quarter-mile were evacuated.
Base officials say Marine command is investigating the June 14 incident. In an emailed statement to CityBeat, they write:
The Camp Pendleton Fire Department responded to and extinguished a structural fire aboard the base which had started in a room used to store lithium batteries, June 14. Camp Pendleton notified the National Response Center of the incident due to possible contamination of water used to put out the fire. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Future preventative measures will be learned upon completion of the investigation.
*For more information on this story go to www.sdcitybeat.com.
*For information on Veolia's battery packaging guidelines click here>>
The Battery Bandwagon: How to Thwart the Flow of Used Car Batteries to Mexico
Posted 28 Oct 2011
www.americanrecycler.com
Each year, more than 520 million pounds of spent lead acid batteries (SLABs) generated in the United States are trucked across our southern border into Mexico. Sent by profit-hungry corporations, these batteries are destined for recycling facilities with sub-par emissions controls and lax worker safety protections.
SLAB exports have grown dramatically in recent years, due largely to the implementation of stricter environmental and worker safety regulations enacted by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Seeking to maximize profit, battery brokers and recyclers are taking advantage of Mexico’s weaker environmental regulations, occupational safety standards and cheaper wages at the expense of the environment, worker safety and the health of local communities.
SLABs, or used car batteries, are made of lead, plastic and sulfuric acid – a toxic combination that can cause health problems and environmental harm when not recycled correctly. Sulfuric acid can seep into groundwater, while lead emissions can affect workers and settle in surrounding communities, causing developmental disabilities in children, loss of neurological functioning in adults and even coma or death in the most extreme cases.
In June 2011, a new study conducted by Occupational Knowledge International and Fronteras Comunes underscored the critical importance of recycling SLABs domestically. Titled, “Exporting Hazards”, the report finds that ULABs, an acronym used interchangeably with SLABs, are being exported to and recycled in Mexico under less stringent standards, resulting in significantly higher occupational and environmental exposures. The report also highlights the fact that the problem is growing exponentially. In 2010, imports to Mexico increased 112 percent from the previous year.
In one instance, the report cites an unlicensed and unregulated battery recycling facility operating next to an open air market. Because the emissions from lead battery recycling plants in Mexico are nearly 20 times higher than in the United States, and lead emissions do not travel far, it is logical to assume that families who buy and sell from this market are at greater risk of lead exposure.
Also, with the Permissible Exposure Limit for airborne lead three times higher in Mexican recycling facilities, workers at these plants are at greater risk from significant workplace exposure. While this data is alarming, it may not be the worst case scenario. The report also found that less than half of all approved Mexican recyclers report any lead emissions to authorities. The logical conclusion is that other recyclers do not report at all because their emissions far exceed permissible levels.
Given all of the apparent risks associated with battery recycling, why not ship them outside the States? The answer is simple: domestic recyclers can do it better and safer here, and maintain the green jobs so vital to our own economy.
Battery recycling in the United States is largely considered an environmental success story, with 95 to 97 percent of States-produced batteries domestically recycled every year. The United States also has enacted some of the world’s strictest emissions standards, requiring battery recyclers to upgrade their technology to comply with new regulations. To safeguard worker health and minimize community impact, recycling facilities across the nation are implementing some of the world’s most advanced recycling technology, which all but eliminates worker and community exposure.
It is also important to remember that every battery shipped across our borders impacts the number of jobs this industry can sustain. With a national unemployment rate above nine percent, every job counts in this recovering economy.
Recycling batteries here at home ensures that lead will be efficiently recycled; environmental impact will be minimized; worker and community health will be protected; and, American jobs will be maintained. As a nation, we have the knowledge, the state-of-the-art technology and the skilled work force to do the job. There is simply no excuse for dumping American waste on our international neighbors who lack the infrastructure, technology and regulatory oversight to dispose of the toxic materials safely and effectively.
*For more information go to www.americanrecycler.com
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