Hyde Park Corner - A New Place on Facebook for Discussions

Congratulations to my good friend, Stephen Embry, on the inauguration of his new page on Facebook to post  discussions about current topics, including workplace safety. His new page is called The Hyde Park Corner.

To commemorate the inauguration of The Hyde Park Corner,
I stopped by in London today to see and

hear what was happening actually at The Hyde Park Corner. 

I must say that things are a lot more significant and current on Steve's page. I would encourage you to visit it in the near future.

To Promote Wellness, Public Health Departments Are Launching Apps. Will They Work?

Employee health concerns will soon be advanced by technology. Knowledgeable use of "apps" will assist workers' in identifying occupational conditions and hazards. Today's post was shared by RWJF PublicHealth and comes from healthland.time.com

Courtesy of Alabama Department of Public Healt The Alabama Department of Public Health is venturing into the mobile universe as the first state with a health app for residents. “Normally Alabama comes in last when it comes to health indicators, but we were one of the first states to be on Facebook and Twitter and YouTube. This is just another goal for us,” says Jennifer Pratt Sumner, the director of the digital media branch of the department. The app, which is free to download from Google Play or iTunes, brings all of the social media feeds put out by the various public health divisions into one place. It also provides health news alerts and information about wellness events, such as the annual Alabama Youth Rally. Some recent tips included educational conferences open to the public, and tips on safely consuming shellfish in the state. (MORE: Two-Faced Facebook: We Like It, but It Doesn’t Make Us Happy) “As more and more Americans use their smartphones to gather health information, I think we’ll see a greater number of health departments rolling out their own apps,” says Alexandra Hughes, an account director at Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, who wrote an analysis on social media effects entitlted “Using Social Media Platforms to Amplify Public Health Messaging” [PDF]. “Consumers are already flocking to apps to do things like count calories, prepare healthier...

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Found on

Privacy Limits for Social Networking: The Right To Be Forgotten

The explosive use of social media information as a discovery and an investigatory tool in workers' compensation matters may soon be reaching its limits as the European Union is proposing privacy data regulations. The proposed regulations would allow users to shut down and literally expunge their social media records. It would be enforceable with heavy economic sanctions against social media providers.


Click here to read : Europe Weighs Tough Law on Online Privacy (NYTimes.com)
"The proposed law strikes at the heart of some of the knottiest questions governing digital life and commerce: who owns personal data, what happens to it once it is posted online, and what the proper balance is between guarding privacy and leveraging that data to aim commercial or political advertising at ordinary people."

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HHS Relaxes HIPAA Rules During COVID Pandemic

The US Department of Health and Human Services has published a “Notification of Enforcement Discretion for Telehealth Remote Communications During the COVID-19 Nationwide Public Health Emergency,” that eases the enforcement of medical record privacy. As workers’ compensation providers increasingly employ electronic communication with their patients, these rules will have a major impact on how medical care is provided.

Three Companies to Repay EPA for Costs of Cleaning Up Contaminated Site in Clifton, New Jersey

(New York, N.Y.) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced legal agreements with Clifton 2003, L.L.C, Hampshire Generational Fund, L.L.C and WEA Enterprises Co., Inc. to repay $2.1 million spent by the EPA to clean up contamination at Abrachem Chemical, a former bulk chemical packaging facility in Clifton, New Jersey. When the EPA began its investigation and cleanup of the site in 2008, it reeked of caustic chemicals and solvents that were leaking from rusted and mislabeled drums. Sampling of the contents of over 1,600 drums revealed the presence of hazardous materials, including corrosive and flammable chemicals, benzene, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and volatile organic chemicals. Exposure to these chemicals can have serious health impacts, including an increased risk of cancer.

“The legal agreements to recover the considerable costs of the Abrachem Chemical cleanup means that the responsible parties will bear the financial burden for cleaning up this site, not taxpayers, “ said EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck. “The Abrachem Chemical site was found in a horrible state of disrepair and posed serious risks to the health of people in the surrounding community. Today the site is cleaned up, people’s health has been protected, the property is being productively used for a new business and the responsible parties are footing the majority of the bill.”

After being contacted by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection in 2008, the EPA conducted an initial investigation and found that Abrachem was improperly storing drums and bulk containers of known and unknown chemicals in seventeen, 43-foot long shipping containers and elsewhere on the property. Drums at the site were leaking and there was a strong chemical odor emanating from the facility. However, the EPA was unable to clean up the site because Clifton 2003, one of the site owners, refused to grant EPA full access to its property. In January 2009, the EPA got a warrant from a federal judge that allowed access to the property to start a cleanup.

The EPA first removed drums of the unknown chemicals from the shipping containers and moved them into the facility for staging and sampling to determine what they were. On several occasions over the course of the seven-month cleanup, areas of the surrounding community were evacuated with the assistance of local and state authorities when unknown and potentially explosive chemicals were discovered.

The EPA also identified the chemicals in the mislabeled drums and, when possible, identified where the drums had originated. Hundreds of containers were returned to their owners, while others were disposed of by the EPA at licensed hazardous waste disposal facilities out of the area. The floors inside the facility were washed and decontaminated and all debris and trash removed. The EPA completed its work in September 2009.

The Superfund program operates on the principle that polluters, not taxpayers, should pay for the cleanups. The EPA works hard to recover taxpayer dollars spent on the cleanup of abandoned and polluted sites. In this instance, more than 82 percent of the costs will be repaid through EPA’s enforcement action and resulting agreements.

For more information including an archived 2009 video about the Abrachem site, visithttp://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/removal/abrachem/.

Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/eparegion2 and Facebook athttp://www.facebook.com/eparegion2.

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Occupational Benzene Exposure and Lymphoma Subtypes
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Previous studies on the possible association between benzene exposure and lymphoma have been complicated by problems with exposure misclassification, outcome classification, and low statistical power. Vlaanderen et al.
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New Facebook Address for Injured Workers Law and Advocacy Group

Keeping up with the times is important. Facebook has changed its group services and the Injured Workers Law and Advocacy Group is moving forward with them. Please make note of our new address and join us to keep updated on new developments, exchange information and observe and participate in discussions.


Click here to join us to our new address. http://tinyurl.com/4xzdbrh

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US EPA Reaches Agreement With 70 Companies to Clean Up Passaic River NJ Pollution

Passaic River Falls
(c) Jon L. Gelman, All rights reserved

Seventy Companies Reach Agreement with EPA to Remove Highly Contaminated Mud from Lyndhurst Section of the Passaic River; Cleanup work estimated to cost $20 million

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today that it has reached agreement with 70 companies considered potentially responsible for contamination of the lower Passaic River to remove approximately 16,000 cubic yards of highly contaminated sediment from a half-mile long area of the Passaic River in Lyndhurst, New Jersey at their expense. High levels of contaminants, including PCBs, mercury and dioxin, are present in the sediment and can cause health effects. The work is scheduled to begin in spring 2013.

The agreement calls for the parties to remove contaminated sediment from a mud flat area near the north section of Riverside County Park, install a protective cap over the approximately five-acre excavated area and conduct lab tests of sediment treatment technologies. Based on the results, testing of treatment technologies at a larger scale may also be performed. The cap will monitored and maintained to ensure that it remains protective until a final cleanup plan for the lower 17 miles of the Passaic River is selected by the EPA. The excavated material will be disposed of in a licensed, permitted EPA-approved disposal facility if the sediment treatment technologies do not prove effective during testing.

“This agreement triggers actions that will reduce exposure of people and wildlife to the highly toxic contaminants in the Passaic River sediment and keep it from spreading to other parts of the river,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck. “Under the Superfund agreement, the companies responsible for the contamination will conduct and pay for the work with EPA oversight, rather than passing the costs on to taxpayers.”

Dioxin can cause cancer and other serious health effects. PCBs are likely cancer-causing substances and mercury can cause serious damage to the nervous system. The highly contaminated sediment was discovered in Lyndhurst during sampling performed by the EPA and the parties in late 2011.

Superfund is the federal cleanup program established in 1980 to investigate and clean up the country’s most hazardous waste sites. The Superfund program operates on the principle that polluters should pay for the cleanups, rather than passing the costs to taxpayers. When sites are placed on the Superfund list, the EPA looks for parties responsible for the pollution and requires them to pay for the cleanups.

Under the agreement announced today, the companies will conduct and pay for the cleanup work and EPA’s costs in overseeing it. The cost of the work to be performed is estimated at $20 million, in addition to the costs of EPA oversight.

The EPA will work closely with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, local officials, river and park users, the Passaic River Community Advisory Group, community organizations and Lyndhurst residents throughout the planning and cleanup process. The agency will provide information on the plans, coordinate the cleanup and minimize possible disruptions to river and park use to the extent possible.

The agreement includes a statement of work that identifies planning and reporting requirements associated with the cleanup. The agreement and additional information on the lower Passaic River restoration project are available athttp://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/npl/diamondalkali/ or http://www.ourpassaic.org.

Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/eparegion2 and visit our Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/eparegion2.12-079

Attachment - List of Parties that Signed the Settlement1. Arkema Inc.
2. Ashland Inc.
3. Atlantic Richfield Company
4. BASF Corporation, on its own behalf and on behalf of BASF Catalysts LLC
5. Belleville Industrial Center
6. Benjamin Moore & Co.
7. CBS Corporation, a Delaware corporation, f/k/a Viacom Inc., successor by merger to CBS Corporation, a Pennsylvania corporation, f/k/a Westinghouse Electric Corporation
8. Chevron Environmental Management Company, for itself and on behalf of Texaco, Inc. and TRMI-H LLC
9. CNA Holdings LLC
10. Coats & Clark, Inc.
11. Coltec Industries
12. Conopco, Inc. d/b/a Unilever (as successor to CPC/Bestfoods, former parent of the Penick Corporation (facility located at 540 New York Avenue, Lyndhurst, NJ))
13. Cooper Industries, LLC
14. Covanta Essex Company
15. Croda Inc.
16. DII Industries, LLC
17. DiLorenzo Properties Company on behalf of itself and the Goldman /Goldman/DiLorenzo Properties Partnerships
18. E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company
19. Eden Wood Corporation
20. Elan Chemical Company
21. EPEC Polymers, Inc. on behalf of itself and EPEC Oil Company Liquidating Trust
22. Essex Chemical Corporation
23. Exelis Inc. for itself and for ITT Corporation
24. Flexon Industries Corp.
25. Franklin-Burlington Plastics, Inc.
26. Garfield Molding Co., Inc.
27. General Electric Company
28. Givaudan Fragrances Corporation (Fragrances North America)
29. Goodrich Corporation on behalf of itself and Kalama Specialty Chemicals, Inc.
30. Hess Corporation, on its own behalf and on behalf of Atlantic Richfield Company
31. Hexcel Corporation
32. Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. on its own behalf, and on behalf of its affiliate Roche Diagnostics
33. Honeywell International Inc.
34. ISP Chemicals LLC
35. Kao USA Inc.
36. Leemilt’s Petroleum, Inc. (successor to Power Test of New Jersey, Inc.), on its behalf and on behalf of Power Test Realty Company Limited Partnership and Getty Properties Corp., the General Partner of Power Test Realty Company Limited Partnership
37. Legacy Vulcan Corp.
38. Linde LLC on behalf of The BOC Group, Inc.
39. Lucent Technologies Inc. now known as Alcatel-Lucent USA, Inc.
40. Mallinckrodt Inc.
41. National-Standard LLC
42. Newell Rubbermaid Inc., on behalf of itself and its wholly-owned subsidiaries Goody Products, Inc. and Berol Corporation (as successor by merger to Faber-Castell Corporation)
43. News Publishing Australia Ltd. (successor to Chris-Craft Industries)
44. Novelis Corporation (f/k/a Alcan Aluminum Corporation)
45. Otis Elevator Company
46. Pfizer, Inc.
47. Pharmacia Corporation (f/k/a Monsanto Company)
48. PPG Industries, Inc.
49. Public Service Electric and Gas Company
50. Purdue Pharma Technologies, Inc.
51. Quality Carriers, Inc. as successor to Chemical Leaman Tank Lines, Inc. and Quality Carriers, Inc.’s corporate affiliates and parents
52. Reichhold, Inc.
53. Revere Smelting and Refining Corporation
54. Safety-Kleen Envirosystems Company by McKesson, and McKesson Corporation for itself
55. Sequa Corporation
56. Seton Tanning
57. STWB Inc.
58. Sun Chemical Corporation
59. Tate & Lyle Ingredients Americas LLC (f/k/a A.E. Staley Manufacturing Company, including its former division Staley Chemical Company)
60. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. (f/k/a Biocraft Laboratories, Inc.)
61. Teval Corporation
62. Textron Inc.
63. The Hartz Consumer Group, Inc., on behalf of The Hartz Mountain Corporation
64. The Newark Group
65. The Sherwin-Williams Company
66. Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.
67. Three County Volkswagen
68. Tiffany and Company
69. Vertellus Specialties Inc. f/k/a Reilly Industries, Inc.
70. Wyeth, on behalf of Shulton, Inc.

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EPA to Discuss Plans for Addressing Contaminated Passaic River Sediment

EPA to Discuss Plans for Addressing Contaminated Passaic River Sediment; Public Meetings Scheduled for May 9 in Lyndhurst, New Jersey

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will discuss plans to address high levels of contaminants, including PCBs, mercury and dioxin, which are present in Passaic River mud adjacent to Riverside Park in Lyndhurst, New Jersey. Dioxin causes serious health effects, including cancer. PCBs are suspected carcinogens and mercury can cause serious damage to the nervous system. Steps are being taken under the Superfund program by the EPA to isolate and prevent movement of the contaminants from this area to other parts of the river. EPA is overseeing technical planning that has been initiated by the parties potentially responsible for the contamination. Superfund is the federal cleanup program established in 1980 to investigate and clean up the country’s most hazardous waste sites. The Superfund program operates on the principle that polluters should pay for the cleanups, rather than passing the costs to taxpayers. When sites are placed on the Superfund list, the EPA looks for parties responsible for the pollution and requires them to pay for the cleanups. Cleanups are only funded by taxpayer dollars when the responsible parties cannot be found or are not financially viable.

In the long term, risks to people wading in contaminated mud in the Passaic River alongside Riverside Park are slightly above EPA levels of concern. The EPA recommends that the public avoid wading in the mud flats in Lyndhurst.

The EPA will hold two public meetings on May 9 to discuss the planned cleanup actions and the results of recent sampling efforts in Riverside Park and the adjacent mud flats. The public meetings will be held from 3 PM to 5 PM and again from 7 PM to 9 PM in the court room of Lyndhurst Town Hall located at 367 Valleybrook Avenue.

The EPA estimates that cleanup work in the contaminated mud flats adjacent to Riverside County Park in Lyndhurst could begin in spring 2013 and extend for a period of time into summer 2013. The EPA will work closely with local officials, river and park users, the Passaic River Community Advisory Group, stakeholder organizations and the Lyndhurst community to provide information on these plans, coordinate the cleanup, and minimize possible disruptions to river and park use to the extent possible.

The EPA is overseeing a comprehensive investigation of contamination in the Passaic River that is being carried out by a group of parties potentially responsible for the contamination. Preliminary findings suggest that there could be six to eight additional mud flats in the Newark Bay to Garfield stretch of the river where elevated levels of contamination could warrant a closer look and possible action. While the EPA does not anticipate that the other mud flats present an immediate threat to recreational users of the park or river, it is working with the potentially responsible parties to plan additional sampling out of an abundance of caution. Those detailed sampling plans are being developed now to examine the mud flat areas.

Results from the latest round of mud flat sampling from this past winter are currently undergoing final review by the EPA. Any follow-up sampling deemed necessary by the EPA will likely take place under EPA oversight later this summer or fall, with results expected back in late 2012. EPA will provide the public with the sampling results as the information becomes available and will ensure that all communities are effectively engaged and informed.

Very low levels of PCBs, mercury and dioxin were found earlier this year in soil in the Lyndhurst and North Arlington sections of Riverside Park that likely were carried there by flooding. The concentrations of contaminants detected are well below established levels of concern for children and adolescents playing in the park and for workers maintaining the park. The EPA does not plan on additional sampling of the parks’ recreational areas and cleanup in the park is not necessary. The public can continue to enjoy using Riverside County Park in Lyndhurst but should practice proper hygiene that would normally be followed at any urban park that is prone to flooding.

Information on the investigation and cleanup activities in the lower Passaic River is available on the project Web sites at http://www.ourpassaic.org or http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/npl/diamondalkali/

Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/eparegion2 and visit our Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/eparegion2.


For over 3 decades the Law Offices of Jon L. Gelman 1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered work related accident and injuries.

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EPA to Hold Public Meeting on Plan for the White Chemical Corporation Superfund site in Newark, New Jersey

Environmental Protection Agency Seal (Photo credit: DonkeyHotey)

The State of New Jersey has an immense  toxic legacy that has plagued Workers' Compensation system with an epidemic volume of claims for decades. The State was home of 20% of the asbestos industry in the United States, and over 50% of the petrochemical facilities. 
New Jersey geographically situated as a transportation hub, with its close proximity to harbors and access to rail and land transportation, continues to struggle with toxic substances still remaining in the geographical area.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is proposing a plan to clean up contaminated ground water beneath the White Chemical Corporation Superfund site in Newark, New Jersey. The ground water was contaminated with volatile organic compounds by past industrial activities at the site. Volatile organic compounds can cause serious damage to people’s health and the environment. The proposed plan calls for the injection of chemicals into the ground water that will break down the contamination. The ground water will be monitored and its use will be restricted. The EPA will hold a public meeting on August 2, 2012 to explain the proposed plan and is encouraging public comments. The meeting will be held at 7:00 p.m. at the Newark City Hall Council Chambers, 920 Broad Street, Newark. Comments will be accepted until August 21, 2012.
The former White Chemical Corporation site, which covers 4.4 acres, is located at 660 Frelinghuysen Avenue in Newark, and is surrounded by many residential, commercial and industrial properties. Beginning in the 1930s, portions of the site were used by multiple businesses for industrial activities including the manufacture of acid chlorides and fire retardants. The White Chemical Corporation operated a chemical manufacturing facility at the site from 1983 to 1990 and was cited by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection for multiple environmental violations before the company abandoned the facility. Thousands of drums were left behind, with many of them leaking hazardous chemicals. The site was added to the federal Superfund list of the country’s most hazardous waste sites in 1991. 

Because of the nature and complexity of the contamination at the site, the investigations and cleanups have been divided into three phases. The proposed plan announced today is for the third phase of the long-term cleanup. 

The first phase of the work alleviated immediate threats to the surrounding community. The work was complex and dangerous and included removing drums of potentially explosive chemicals, addressing leaking chemicals throughout the site and decontaminating some buildings. In all, the EPA supervised the removal of about 9,000 drums, 12,500 chemical containers, 50,000 gallons of liquid contained in process tanks and addressed many other hazards at the facility. Some of the hazardous materials were treated on-site to neutralize the contamination. Others were removed for re-use or disposed of at off-site facilities with permits to receive them. 

Under phase two of the cleanup, the EPA focused on ongoing sources of harmful vapors that could impact the surrounding area, including contaminated buildings and soil and abandoned storage tanks. In this phase, the EPA excavated and removed 23,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil from the site, demolished nine buildings and removed an above ground storage tank. The EPA then placed clean soil over the contaminated areas and placed a stone cover over the entire property to prevent erosion. 

The third phase and final phase of the cleanup announced today addresses the contaminated ground water. After extensive study, the EPA has concluded that it is not technically feasible to pump out and treat the contaminated ground water because of the complex rock formations underlying the site. The depth, nature and variety of the rock formations would present extreme technical challenges. 

Instead, the proposed plan calls for bioremediation, the injection of chemicals into the ground water to promote the breakdown of the pollutants. The specific process to be used to inject the chemical additive will be determined by the EPA as part of the design of the cleanup. Once the process has begun, the EPA will collect samples to confirm that the bioremediation is effective. The EPA is proposing to install additional monitoring wells to monitor the ground water and to put into place restrictions that will prevent its use as a source of drinking water in the future. 

The EPA is requiring periodic collection and analysis of ground water samples to verify that the level and extent of contaminants are declining and that people’s health and the environment are protected. 

To date, the EPA has spent about $20 million on the cleanup of the White Chemical site. The estimated cost of the proposed final phase of the cleanup is $25 million. 

Written comments may be mailed or emailed to: 
Ray Klimcsak, Remedial Project Manager
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – Region 2
290 Broadway - 19th Floor
New York, N.Y. 10007-1866
(212) 637-3916
klimcsak.raymond@epa.gov

For more information on the White Chemical Superfund site, please visit:http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/npl/whitechem.

Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/eparegion2 and visit our Facebook page,http://www.facebook.com/eparegion2.
....
For over 3 decades the Law Offices of Jon L. Gelman1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered work related accident and injuries.
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Medical Treatment Denials

Medical treatment denials are SOP now thanks to the workers’ compensation reforms signed into law by Governor Brown. Currently, there is no appeal to an independent judge for denied treatment. The medical reviewing companies are making millions of dollars to deny necessary care. As a consequence, if injured workers have other insurance coverage, Medicare or MediCal, these programs are the only hope; and even then many other coverage plans may deny the treatment because they think it is work related medical cost. Injured workers and their families are caught in a vicious Catch 22. Anyone who is denied treatment should write the Governor and demand an end to these unconstitutional and unconscionable laws. Read the article here. http://https://www.caaa.org/index.cfm?pg=URDenied_Kathryn_Donahue#.U_SzwAC8jLU.facebook

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EPA to Demolish Contaminated Building at Toxic Superfund Site in Garfield, N.J

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck was joined today by New Jersey Senator Frank R. Lautenberg, Senator Robert Menendez and Congressmember Bill Pascrell, Jr. as she announced that the EPA will safely demolish the E.C. Electroplating building at the Garfield Superfund site in Garfield, New Jersey. The building, located at 125 Clark Street, is contaminated with hexavalent chromium that is reaching the basements of some area residences and businesses through the ground water. Hexavalent chromium is extremely toxic, may cause cancer and can cause nervous system damage. The Regional Administrator and members of Congress were joined by Garfield Mayor Joseph Delaney, local officials and community members to review progress and discuss the ongoing Superfund cleanup at the former electroplating facility.

“The EPA has done a great deal of work since 2002 to reduce the health risks to the people who live and work in the area of Garfield affected by chromium contaminated ground water,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck. “Today we’re pleased to announce that we’re ready to take a step forward in the long-term cleanup of the Garfield Superfund site.”

Preliminary sampling shows that parts of the E.C. Electroplating building, its two basements and the soil located under the structure are contaminated with the chemical hexavalent chromium. The structure needs to be demolished in order to properly dispose of the contaminated sections of the building and to remove the contaminated soil underneath. The EPA tested the industrial materials left at the former E.C. Electroplating and will safely remove and properly disposed of them at licensed facilities.

The EPA is currently preparing the building for demolition by removing over 220 drums and cleaning the building surface. The agency will work closely with local officials to determine the best time to do the demolition and will hold a community meeting before demolition begins to inform area residents and building owners about the work. Strict procedures will be followed to control dust during the demolition, with special attention paid to the Garfield No.7 School and to a daycare center located near the site. The EPA will establish an air monitoring network to ensure that contamination is contained during the demolition work. The air monitoring plan will be shared with the public before work begins. The demolition work is presently scheduled to take place in October.

Ground water underlying the site is also contaminated with the hexavalent chromium and is seeping into basements in some Garfield homes and businesses. Drinking water for Garfield comes from the Garfield Municipal Water Supply, which is not contaminated and is routinely tested to ensure that it meets federal and state drinking water standards, which it does.

The Garfield Superfund site, which is located in a mixed commercial and residential neighborhood, is bordered by Van Winkle Avenue to the north, Monroe Street to the south, Sherman Place to the east, and the Passaic River to the West. Historically, industrial facilities in Garfield were located in close proximity to residential areas, including a tannery, a chemical plant and two electroplating companies. Some of these facilities used hexavalent chromium in their processes and the nearby ground water is now contaminated with the chemical. In June 1993, water containing hexavalent chromium and dried crystals of chromium was discovered in the basement of Garfield Fire House #3. In 2002, at the request of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the EPA began its investigation of ground water contamination in Garfield.

In September 2010, the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry issued a health advisory recommending that the EPA continue to take steps to minimize people’s exposure to the contamination and that it expedite a long-term cleanup. The site was added to the federal Superfund list in 2011.

The EPA used its Superfund’s emergency response authority in Garfield to address the immediate health threats in properties where ground water had carried hexavalent chromium into basements. Over 500 homes and businesses have been inspected for hexavalent chromium contamination and over 2,000 samples have been analyzed. The EPA has found about 15 properties that require cleanups to protect occupants from unacceptable levels of chromium that have seeped into their basements. The EPA has an ongoing inspection and assessment program to assist any concerned residents within the impacted area.

The EPA has established a network of ground water monitoring wells to determine the extent of chromium contamination in the ground water. This in-depth investigation will allow the EPA to determine how best to clean up chromium contaminated ground water.

Superfund is the federal cleanup program established by Congress in 1980 to investigate and clean up the country’s most hazardous waste sites. When sites are placed on the Superfund list, the EPA looks for parties responsible for the pollution and requires them to pay for the cleanups. In this instance, the EPA has identified E.C. Electroplating as a company that may be liable for the cleanup. The company, however, alleges it lacks funds to conduct any cleanup. To date, the EPA’s cleanup costs for this site exceed four* *million dollars. The EPA is continuing its search for other parties responsible for the contamination at the site.

For more information about the Garfield site, visit: http://www.epa.gov/region2/superfund/removal/garfield.

Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/eparegion2 and visit our Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/eparegion2.

Articles About Chromium

The Time for a Hexavalent Chromium Safety Standard Is Now

Nov 23, 2010

EPA announced the release of the Toxicological Review of Hexavalent Chromium in the September 30, 2010, Federal Register. This draft assessment is provided for public viewing and comment. Public comments received on ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: Soldiers Exposed to Chromium in Iraq File ...

Jun 09, 2009

Soldiers Exposed to Chromium in Iraq File Suit. Soldiers who have been exposed to hexavalent chromium, a carcinogen, have filed suit against a government contractor. The present and former soldiers have brought a claims ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Defense Department to Investigate Hexavalent Chromium Exposure ...

Oct 03, 2009

Chromium exposure has been associated with lung cancer. Breathing high levels of hexavalent chromium can irritate or damage the nose, throat, and lungs. Irritation or damage to the eyes and skin can occur if hexavalent ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

New OSHA Booklet Sets Forth Hexavalent Chromium Standard

Jan 14, 2010

"Hexavalent chromium is a powerful lung carcinogen and exposure to this chemical must be minimized," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA David Michaels. "OSHA provides guidance on its standards to ensure that ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Related articles

• Chromium-polluted plant on Garfield Superfund site will be demolished, cleaned by EPA
• Pompton Lakes residents want DuPont site to be declared Superfund priority
• EPA to Hold Public Meeting on Plan for the White Chemical Corporation Superfund site in Newark, New Jersey

Governor Murphy Announces Intention to Nominate Rachel Wainer Apter to Serve on the New Jersey Supreme Court

At Ruth Bader Ginsburg Hall at Rutgers–Newark, Governor Phil Murphy today announced his intention to nominate Rachel Wainer Apter to the New Jersey Supreme Court to fill the seat of Associate Justice Jaynee LaVecchia, who will retire at the end of the current Court term on August 31, 2021. The appointment will first be sent to the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Judicial and Prosecutorial Appointments Committee. With the Committee’s approval, the Governor will proceed with a formal nomination, subject to advice and consent in the Senate.

New Vital Signs Report How has the prescription painkiller overdose epidemic grown in women

The prescription painkiller epidemic is killing more women than ever before. New data shows prescription painkiller overdose deaths among women have skyrocketed. Since 1999, the percentage increase in deaths was more than 400 percent among women compared to 265 percent in men.

"About 18 women die every day of a prescription painkiller overdose in the US, more than 6,600 deaths in 2010. Prescription painkiller overdoses are an under-recognized and growing problem for women."

To read more about this report click here: US CDC

Click here to read "Press Release: Prescription Painkiller Epidemic Among Women"

Read more about painkillers and workers' compensation:

Workers Compensation Insurance Company and PBMs Liability for

Oct 28, 2009

A pharmacy dispensed narcotic painkillers to a Patricia Copening, 35 year old doctor's office receptionist, who killed a 21 year old man in a fatal Las Vegas accident. A case is pending against the seven pharmacies (Wal-Mart, ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: Opioid Use in Workers' Compensation

Jun 18, 2013

Labels: Drugs, opioids, pain killers, Prescription medication, workers compensation. Posted by Jon Gelman at Tuesday, June 18, 2013 · Email ThisBlogThis!Share to TwitterShare to Facebook · Newer Post Older Post Home ...

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Florida, Oxycodone Trafficking, Workers Compensation and Blame

Oct 14, 2011

Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that Schedule II prescription painkillers, like oxycodone, today cause more drug overdose deaths than cocaine and heroin combined. Oxycodone and ...

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Workers' Compensation: Criminal Charges Urged Against Sedgwick

Jun 21, 2013

When a physician overprescribes painkillers and the patient dies, it's criminal. Similarly, when a workers' compensation insurance carrier acts the same way, it should be a criminal act,” said Singer. To read the entire letter to ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers Compensation Is Quietly Under Attack in America

Guest Blog
by Steve Cooper*

As the economy crawls out of the dumps and more people return to the job site, a strong workers compensation environment is as important as ever. Unfortunately, workers comp appears to be under quiet attack in many states.

In Virginia, a law aimed at stopping Virginia dock workers from “double-dipping” may actually leave longshoremen more vulnerable than workers doing much safer work. HB153 is making its way through assembly and has the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) concerned:

“Why in the world should a Virginia harbor worker be denied benefits that are provided for other Virginia citizens who work in a business across the street from the harbor?” said Deborah C. Waters, general counsel for the longshoremen’s union.

Arthur W. Moye Jr., executive vice president of the Virginia Maritime Association, which represents more than 400 member organizations employing more than 70,000 workers in port-related jobs, said the primary reason for seeking the legislation was duplication.

Harbor workers are the only employees in the state who can seek workers’ compensation coverage under both state and federal programs, he said. Most workers in Virginia are eligible for coverage only under the state program.

“We feel the federal act covers the needs of an injured worker and covers it in a far superior way than the Virginia state act does,” Moye said.

There are differing opinions about this bill, however. The sticking point is the limitation on what the federal act covers. Worker representatives feel it is hardly sufficient, especially for a worker faced with a serious injury such as a lost limb or a family incurring a costly funeral. It is difficult to classify something as “double-dipping” when the first “dip” doesn’t do enough. Moreover, “double-dipping” is prohibited, making the new law appear obsolete on arrival:

Today, injured maritime workers in Virginia, like those in some other states, are covered under the state’s workers’ compensation program as well as two federal programs: the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act and the Merchant Marine Act, or Jones Act, which applies only to members of crews of vessels under way.

Under the current arrangement, an injured shipyard worker can file claims under the state and federal longshore-act program, though the laws prohibit “double-dipping.”

“There’s a lot of things that the state act does that the longshore act doesn’t cover,” said Stephen Harper, a Richmond attorney and chairman of the workers’ comp section of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association.

In the event of a fatal injury, for example, the state program offers the family of the victim a $10,000 funeral benefit plus $1,000 in transportation costs, Harper said.

Under the federal program, the maximum funeral benefit is $3,000.

Under the state and federal plans, Harper said, if a worker suffers a permanent injury, such as a crushed ankle, that prevents him from returning to his old job, he is eligible for compensation for a certain period of time, based on a doctor’s evaluation of the degree of impairment.

In most cases, once the payment is made under the federal programs, the insurer’s obligation ends. Through the state workers’ comp program, however, benefits can last as long as 500 weeks, or 9-1/2 years.

“They’re putting the longshore people in a much, much worse situation than the guy working down the street at Walmart,” Harper said. “The same injury, the guy down at Walmart may be able to get lost wages because of that ankle fusion for 9-1/2 years, potentially, but under the longshore act it could be a lot less.”

In Kansas, House Bill 2531 is poised to diminish workers comp as well. The law changes how those appointed to hear workers comp cases are selected. It is alleged that the new selection process skews anti-worker:

Such judges are now chosen by a panel consisting of one member picked by the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and one picked by the Kansas AFL-CIO. The bill would use a seven-member panel composed of the state labor secretary, a person from an employee organization chosen by the labor secretary, and representatives of the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, National Federation of Independent Businesses, Kansas AFL-CIO, Kansas State Council of the Society of Human Resource Management and Kansas Self-Insurers Association. More people at the table may be a good idea, but the proposed lineup is hardly rich with employee representation.

In Pennsylvania, employers successfully won a 5.7% decrease in workers comp funding this week:

The Pennsylvania Insurance Department (PID) recently approved a 5.7 percent overall decrease in workers’ compensation costs. The rate cuts will result in $160 million in savings for Pennsylvania employers, the department estimates.

“At a time when many are feeling a financial pinch and doing more with less, it is a very hopeful sign that the business community may now be able to pay less in workers’ compensation insurance premiums,” said Insurance Commissioner Mike Consedine.

The article makes no mention of the impact this could have on workers, but does suggest that Pennsylvania employers are given an even larger discount when they display superior safety practices:

Businesses enrolled in the Certified Workplace Safety Committee program of Pennsylvania’s Department of Labor and Industry (DOLI) receive an additional 5 percent discount. Currently 9,652 businesses have certified safety committees. Participating businesses have realized insurance premium reductions totaling $432.8 million since the program began, DOLI reports. “Pennsylvania employers are able to benefit from the outstanding job they are doing to provide safer workplaces,” said Labor Secretary Julia Hearthway.

In Wyoming, nearly $1,000,000 in workers compensation has gone unpaid, according to the WyoFile:

Did you know; of Wyoming’s 18,228 employers 1,212 of them are delinquent on their Wyoming Workers’ Compensation premiums — to the tune of $943,498.73, according to state officials? That’s 6.6 percent of Wyoming’s employers who pay into Wyoming Workers’ Compensation — delinquent. $1 million. Yet, those delinquent employers still enjoy legal immunity for their own proven negligence in a worker injury/death — because that’s part of the compromise of workers’ compensation?

Employees in Wyoming do not enjoy the same leniency when it comes to delinquency. If an injured worker files 1 day late, no case, no benefits. No matter.

To make matters worse, workers compensation legislation can often be misleading. In Missouri, workers comp was recently “expanded” to include many job-related diseases. What this means is that the state is now on the hook, rather than businesses, for harm done to employees by employers. This appears to be a win for workers on the surface, but is actually a Republican-driven move aimed at making Missouri more “business friendly”:

In a move that Republicans contend will make Missouri more attractive to businesses, the state Senate has approved legislation to expand the workers’ compensation program.

The measure, SB572, approved with a largely party-line 28-6 vote, would cover occupational diseases under the workers’ compensation program — freeing businesses from potentially costly litigation.

But this bill tucked in some very questionable caveats, including lumping together disparate diseases and the exclusion of immigrants and prisoners:

St. Louis County Democratic Sen. Tim Green drafted — but did not offer — an amendment that would have excluded occupational diseases from the compensation program. He said curable injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome aren’t similar to lethal diseases such as mesothelioma, a type of cancer that can be caused by exposure to asbestos.

“I don’t think they should be treated the same,” Green said. “Putting it back in the workers compensation system isn’t right and that’s what this bill did.”

The legislation would also prevent illegal immigrants or people who are in prison from collecting workers’ compensation benefits.

The bill is expected to breeze through the Missouri House.

A surprising bright spot is South Carolina which is attempting to make up the decrease in workers comp responsibility that business owners have witnessed since 2009:

South Carolina employers could see their workers’ compensation premiums increase next year if state regulators go along with a proposed 7.3 percent increase in the state’s loss cost rates.

The National Council on Compensation Insurance filed for the proposed increase earlier this month, making it the first such proposed increase since 2008. Most recently, the state has seen three loss cost decreases totaling 13.4 percent.

Based on 2009 and 2008 policy year data, the rate filing calls for a 5.3 percent increase in experience, a 2.2 percent increase in trend, a 0.1 percent increase in benefits, and a slight decrease of 0.4 percent in loss adjustment expenses.

Even if the current proposed rate change is approved as filed by South Carolina Acting Insurance Commissioner Gwendolyn Fuller McGriff, employers will still have seen a cumulative decrease of 7.1 percent since 2009.

On the national level, reports are emerging of a disproportionate number of workers in need of disability compensation, especially for mental illness. Typically anti-worker source The New York Post suggests that workers are grasping at safety net straws due to the country’s economic decline:

“It could be because their health really is getting worse from the stress of being out of work,” Matthew Rutledge, a research economist at Boston College, told the paper. “Or it could just be desperation — people trying to make ends meet when other safety nets just aren’t there.”

The paper said that, according to recent research by JPMorgan Chase, the government was mailing out disability checks to about 10.5 million people, including 2 million to spouses and children of disabled workers, at a cost of about $200 billion annually.

The stagnant economy has grown those ranks. About 5.3 percent of the population between the ages of 25 and 64 are collecting federal disability payments, a jump of 4.5 percent since the recession hit in 2009.

There is no question these numbers represent a drastic leap, but how our system treats the injured and disabled is not to be taken lightly. JPMorgan and The New York Post have been champions of the austerity that has been the enemy of many a necessary program from a worker standpoint. Workers compensation can ill-afford to be next on the chopping block.

Steve Cooper (E.m. Ployd) lives in Washington, DC, and is the editor of We Party Patriots. He educates union members on the benefits of social media, offering instruction on engaging on Facebook and Twitter. When not ruining his posture and finger muscles through endless computer use, Cooper is an avid chef and musician. The We Party Patriots has an active on Facebook page that is "A bold, accessible online approach to achieving the Labor Movement's goals and defeating the powers that Tea."

Related articles

• Workers Compensation Fails to Cover Most Occupational Disease Claims (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Workers Compensation: A Cash Cow For Medical Providers (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Collecting Unpaid Medical Bills in Workers Compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• The Religious Opt-Out Scheme: A New Approach to Eliminate Workers' Compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
• Gingrich Calls Present Workers' Compensation System Dangerous (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)