Although we do our best at to keep the workplace safe, violence inflicted by an outsider or between employees remains a serious safety and health issue. It can occur inside or outside the workplace and can range from threats and verbal abuse to physical assaults and homicide. In fact, according to the United States Department of Labor, workplace violence is the fourth-leading cause of fatal occupational injury in our country.
The existence of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Oil Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Rule, which has been in place since the 1970s, is widely known in the oil and gas industry. However, it is important to be aware of changes and clarifications made in 2010, which are of particular interest to those in the oil and gas industry. In a continued effort to prevent oil discharges from reaching navigable waters and adjoining shorelines, the EPA made several clarifications and changes to the decades-old SPCC Rule. The following provides an overview of the basics of the SPCC Rule while highlighting important modifications.
As a fast-growing part of the energy sector, the biofuel industry has become an attractive place to work and invest. To protect your company in the biofuel industry, it is essential to recognize potential workplace hazards of biofuels and their production processes, and take steps to protect workers from harm. In addition to common workplace hazards such as walking and working surface hazards and electrical hazards, biofuels present three major types of hazards:
Proper maintenance prevents premature equipment failure, which may cause injuries or fatalities. Drilling equipment is subjected to stress and vibration during operations. Because of this, maintenance is a necessary and ongoing activity on the drilling site.
Machines and equipment used in the workplace will inevitably require maintenance. Many of these machines can be dangerous for employees to work on due to having to reach into areas of operation where possible hazards exist. As such, it’s important to make sure that a machine is turned off while an employee is working on it. Performing regular maintenance on a piece of equipment can result in serious injury or even death if part of their body is inside a machine and it is activated.
In the spring of 2021, hackers initiated a ransomware attack against Colonial Pipeline—the largest refined oil products pipeline in the United States.
To prevent injuries and illness as a result of winter weather, it’s important to learn about the causes, symptoms, and safety considerations to take so you are prepared to handle winter’s worst. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), there is no exact temperature at which the environment becomes hazardous. Instead, factors such as low temperatures, wind speed, and wetness contribute to cold-induced injuries and illness.
To prevent injuries and illness as a result of winter weather, it’s important to learn about the causes, symptoms, and safety considerations to take so you are prepared to handle winter’s worst. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), there is no exact temperature at which the environment becomes hazardous. Instead, factors such as low temperatures, wind speed, and wetness contribute to cold-induced injuries and illness.
Although worker safety hazards in the oil and gas extraction industry are well-known, there is very little published data regarding occupational health hazards—such as the types and magnitude of risks for chemical exposures—during oil and gas extraction operations.
Shale gas exploration represents vast economic opportunity and an environmental advantage over other fossil fuel sources. However, the extensive use of horizontal drilling and multi-stage hydraulic fracturing means that there are specific, unique risks involved in this type of drilling that are not present in low-pressure, low-volume drilling.
