Resources for Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

Fairfax: OSHA Plans PSM Inspections for Chemical

www.occupationalhazards.com

In an exclusive, face-to-face interview with OccupationalHazards.com, Richard Fairfax, director of OSHA enforcement programs, announced the agency intends conduct a slew of complex process safety management inspections at chemical plants, but was uncertain when inspections could begin.

Fairfax said he originally planned to launch the National Emphasis Program (NEP) for the chemical industry in late summer or early fall of 2008, but now is unable to make the deadline because his resources are tied up investigating the Imperial Sugar refinery blast in Georgia. That explosion killed 12 workers and critically injured 11 others.

“This doesn't mean that I have stopped working on it,” Fairfax explained. “We will continue with it and when we are ready, we will launch it.

Approximately 28,000 chemical plants operate throughout the country, and Fairfax said OSHA plans to randomly select facilities for inspection. These inspections will be similar to the OSHA inspection program for refineries, which began in June 2007.

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