Author Archives: Rory
We told you BP couldn’t be trusted
US President Barack Obama has vowed to end the “cosy relationship” between oil companies and US regulators in the light of the April 2010 Gulf of Mexico disaster. He also condemned “the ridiculous spectacle” of oil executives “falling over each other to point the finger of blame,” the BBC and other media reported. Federal regulators […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged BP, Center for Public Integrity, Deepwater Horizon, Hazards, OSHA, Texas City Refinery Comments closed
US president’s panel calls for cancer precaution
Policymakers in the US should abandon a reactionary approach to regulation of cancer causing chemicals and champion a precautionary approach, top advisers to Barack Obama have said. Their report comes on the heels of a UK study of occupational cancer numbers which shows the official estimates cited routinely by both US and UK authorities have […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged environmental cancer, Hazards, HSE, occupational cancer, OSHA, precautionary approach, President's Cancer Panel Comments closed
Can Samsung be green and cancerous?
On 31 March 2010, 23-year-old Park Ji-yeon died of leukaemia. She contracted the blood cancer at the age of 20 after working at the Samsung semiconductor factory in Onyang, South Korea. Her case is part of a cancer cluster affecting workers at the microelectronics giant. Samsung’s response to a high profile campaign for justice for […]
Deadly criminals need policing
Whether the problem is blood spilled in the workplace or oil spilled in the oceans, a series of recent disasters show why more regulation of profit-hungry industries is needed. “Twenty-nine dead coal miners in West Virginia, seven dead workers at an oil refinery in Washington State and 11 dead on a Gulf of Mexico oil […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged BP, Health and Safety Executive, Leo Gerard, Massey Energy, USW Comments closed
Green construction is no safer
Green construction is no less hazardous for workers than the less environmentally concerned alternative, a US study has found. Researchers from Oregon State University and East Carolina University compared reportable injury and illness rates at sites building to the highly sought after green Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standard with comparable conventional sites. […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Green building, green construction, LEED, The Pump Handle Comments closed
Watchdog ‘interventions’ at deadly waste firms
Major UK waste and recycling firms are to be the target of “central interventions” by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in a bid to address the sector’s appalling health and safety record. HSE says it is acting after its first targeted waste programme “arrested the rising accident rate and brought about a small reduction” but […]
Recycling firm fined after arson attack
A York hazardous waste recycling company has been fined £40,000 and £6,110 costs for failing to safeguard flammable liquid that was used in an arson attack on the business. BCB Environmental Management Limited pleaded guilty at Harrogate Magistrates Court to breaches of the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002 (DSEAR) after illegally processing drums […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged BCB Environmental Management Limited, dangerous substances, Recycling Comments closed
Greenpeace adds to Samsung cancer pressure
A global electronics giant embroiled in an occupational cancer scandal has been accused by Greenpeace of reneging on a promise to phase out toxic chemicals linked to cancer and other diseases. This week climbers from the environmental group scaled the Benelux headquarters of the Korean multinational Samsung, sticking the message “Samsung = Broken Promises” in […]
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged ANROAV, cancer, Greenpeace, ICRT, Korea, Samsung, SHARPS Comments closed
Would you trust this man with your safety?