Washington, DC, March 18, 2013 – Today the U.S. Chemical Safety Board announced that it will hold a public meeting in Washington, DC, to discuss the status of its March 2007 recommendation that the American Petroleum Institute (API) and the United Steelworkers International Union (USW) jointly lead the development of an ANSI consensus standard with guidelines for fatigue prevention in the refinery and petrochemical industries. The recommendation was the result of the CSB’s investigation into the 2005 fire and explosion at the BP Texas City Refinery that killed 15 workers and injured 180 others.
The CSB’s public meeting will convene at 9:30 a.m. EDT in the Horizon Room of the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center located at 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20004. In the afternoon portion of the meeting, the Board will consider the status of three recommendations to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) concerning fuel gas safety and process safety management regulation of organizational changes and of atmospheric storage tanks. Further information is available here.
The CSB is requesting written public comment on the draft evaluation of the actions taken by the API and USW to implement the CSB recommendation related to fatigue. The CSB’s draft evaluation concerning the fatigue recommendation, and information about how to submit public comments can be found at www.csb.govor by clicking here. Members of the audience will have an opportunity at the meeting to comment on the draft evaluation, as presented by the investigative staff.
The hearing is free and open to the public. Pre-registration is encouraged but not required; to register for the event, please send email to firstname.lastname@example.org. Members of the audience will have an opportunity to comment on the draft evaluation, as presented by the investigative staff. A summary of the draft evaluation can be found here.
The CSB is an independent federal agency charged with investigating serious chemical incidents and hazards. The agency's board members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. CSB investigations look into all aspects of chemical accidents, including physical causes such as equipment failure as well as inadequacies in regulations, industry standards, and safety management systems.
The Board makes safety recommendations to OSHA, EPA and other regulatory agencies, as well as to plants, corporations, industry and labor groups, and standards bodies; it does not issue citations or fines.. Visit our website, www.csb.gov.
For more information, contact Communications Director Hillary Cohen, (202) 261-3601, cell (202) 446-8094 or Sandy Gilmour at (202) 251-5496.