Environmental, Health and Safety News | Volunteer EHS News Network Dedicated to Protecting People & Our Planet

New Data Analysis Shows Impact of Suicide in Wisconsin

Today, Suicide Prevention Day , the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) released findings from its most recent analysis of state suicide deaths and suicide-related injury. This analysis is part of an effort to update Wisconsin’s suicide prevention plan and reduce the number of suicide attempts and deaths. This analysis found: The state’s suicide...
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New England States Ammonia Safety Day, Friday October 25, 2019 (Free Tickets)

Keene State College will host the first New England States Ammonia Safety Day on Friday October 25, 2019. The event is being organized by Ammonia Safety & Training Institute (https://ammonia-safety.com/) and will cover topics such as · Strengthen the Tripod: Industry, Government, and Public Safety · Value of prevention, protection, and preparedness · Understand...
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First Human Case of West Nile Virus Reported in Wisconsin This Year

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) is advising residents to continue to protect themselves against mosquito bites as it announces this year’s first confirmed human case of West Nile virus (WNV) in a resident of Northeastern Wisconsin. West Nile virus is spread to humans through the bite of an infected mosquito and is...
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Free 4 hour Machinery and Machine Guarding

Susan Harwood Training Grants provide training and education for workers and employers on workplace safety and health hazards, responsibilities and rights. Target audiences include underserved, low-literacy, and high-hazard industry workers and employers. NIU is proud to be a recipient of the Susan Harwood Training Grant. This grant provides training and education for workers and...
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New Funding Will Help Rural Health Care Providers

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) announced today new funding for grant programs which will help fill critical health care positions by expanding education and training opportunities for Wisconsin health care professionals in rural areas. “Access to quality health care in rural communities is critical to providing care in the underserved areas in...
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Wisconsin Department of Health Services Receives $1.8 million Grant to Expand Maternal Mortality Review Team Efforts

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) announced today it will receive a 5-year, $1.8 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to decrease pregnancy complications, reduce maternal deaths, and reduce disparities in Wisconsin through an increased investment in the Wisconsin Maternal Mortality Review Team (MMRT). “Looking closely at maternal...
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Majority of Wisconsin Lung Disease Patients Who Reported Vaping Cite THC Products

In the Wisconsin investigation of people with lung disease who reported vaping, 89% of the 27 cases interviewed so far reported using e-cigarettes or other vaping devices to inhale THC products, such as waxes and oils, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services announced today. THC is the active ingredient in marijuana. While most cases...
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Statewide Effort Aims to Enroll More Families in the WIC Program

The Department of Health Services (DHS) today announced the Wisconsin Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program will celebrate National Breastfeeding Awareness Month by launching “#WICsconsin Enrollment Week” from August 19-23. During the week, local WIC agencies will talk about the available breastfeeding and nutrition support services throughout the state for families. The purpose of...
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State Health Agency’s New Data Tool Shows a Decline in the Number of Opioid Deaths in Wisconsin

Opioid deaths are at their lowest level since 2015 according to the most recent data collected by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) and reported through a new online tool featuring interactive charts, graphs, and maps, Data Direct: Opioids . “The most recent data on Wisconsin’s opioid epidemic is encouraging,” said DHS Deputy...
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President’s Challenge 2019

The Pistoia Alliance has announced that entries for its 2019 President’s Startup Challenge are now open, and will close on Sunday, 15th September 2019. The annual competition is open to informatics and technology startups who are aiming to overcome obstacles to advancing life science R&D. Two of the winners will win $20,000, along with a...
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The NIOSH Occupational Exposure Banding Process for Chemical Risk Management

Occupational exposure limits (OELs) play a critical role in protecting workers and emergency response personnel from exposure to dangerous concentrations of hazardous materials . In the absence of an OEL, determining the appropriate controls needed...
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Managed Care Organizations Selected for State Family Care Programs

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) announced today that based on results from a recent procurement, Inclusa and Lakeland Care managed care organizations (MCO) have been selected to provide the Family Care program in Brown, Door, Kewaunee, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto, and Shawano counties beginning January 1, 2020. Incumbent managed care organization Care Wisconsin...
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Older Age Groups Now Included in Investigation of Lung Disease Among People Who Reported Vaping

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) continues to investigate cases of people with severe lung disease who all reported recent vaping or dabbing (which is vaping marijuana oils, extracts, or concentrates). While cases in the investigation initially included only teens and young adults, we now have confirmed cases in older age groups. In...
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New Cases Identified in Investigation of Lung Disease Among Teens and Young Adults Who Reported Vaping

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) has received 11 cases of teenagers and young adults hospitalized with severe lung disease that has been linked to recent vaping. Seven other cases are under further investigation. Counties with confirmed cases include Door, Racine, Walworth, Dodge, Waukesha, and Winnebago. “We are currently interviewing patients, all of...
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Department of Health Services Shares Coping Tips for People Affected by Recent Storms

Storms don’t only damage property, they can affect your state of mind, and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) has tips to help people cope with the stress and unexpected changes natural disasters can create. Talk with others who understand how you feel. Don’t isolate yourself. Exercise. Even something simple like stretching or...
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Severe Weather Recovery: Replacement FoodShare Benefits Available Until August 19, 2019 for Many Wisconsin Counties

The Department of Health Services (DHS) announced today that replacement FoodShare benefits are available for an extended period of time for most of western, northern, and central Wisconsin. DHS requested and received approval from the federal Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to extend the time in which persons affected by the severe weather and...
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The Pistoia Alliance to Develop a Toolkit to Support Implementation of the FAIR Guiding Principles

Boston, 17 July, 2019 – The Pistoia Alliance, a global non-profit that works to lower barriers to innovation in life sciences R&D, today announced the launch of its FAIR Implementation project, backed by pharmaceutical companies including Roche, Astra Zeneca, and Bayer. The first project milestone by the end of 2019 will be the release...
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Russian Titanic released 100 times more radiation in Europe than 2011’s Fukushima disaster.

Mysterious radioactive leak that swept Europe came from Russia, study confirms despite Kremlin denial The source of a mysterious radioactive leak that swept Europe in 2017 has been traced to a nuclear processing plant in the southern Ural mountains in Russia, a new study confirms. Scientists analysed more than 1,300 data points all over...
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Scientists Have Discovered a Sea of Fresh Water Under the Ocean

Quartz: Thousands of years ago, glaciers covered much of the planet. Oceans receded as water froze in massive sheets of ice blanketing the North American continent. As the ice age ended, glaciers melted. Massive river deltas flowed out across the continental shelf. The oceans rose, and fresh water was trapped in sediments below the...
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Stay Safe During Heat Wave

High temperatures are expected over much of Wisconsin during the next several days, and the Department of Health Services is reminding residents to take steps to stay cool during this heat wave. “ Hot temperatures and humidity can be dangerous and even deadly,” said Jeanne Ayers, State Health Officer. “During this heat wave, it’s...
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Department of Health Services, Department of Natural Resources, and Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection Work to Make Groundwater Cleaner

Working together to make sure the water you drink is safe, the Department of Health Services (DHS), Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) have reviewed key compounds that can be in Wisconsin’s groundwater and the effects they could have on health. State health officials today...
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Fight the Bite! Take Action to Prevent Tick and Mosquito Bites

With the unofficial start of summer behind us, many Wisconsin residents are looking ahead to warmer weather and all the resources our state has to offer. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) has launched a statewide campaign to help everyone Fight the Bite and avoid tick and mosquito bites this season. Many people...
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Teens, Young Adults Visit Emergency Rooms More than Others for Heat-Related Illnesses, New Data Review Finds

A new look at data from Minnesota and Wisconsin found that teens and adults 15 to 34 years old in both states are the most likely to visit the emergency department for heat-related illness. This finding was somewhat surprising as the majority of public health alerts during heat waves focus on the very young...
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Foodborne Illness Advisory: Del Monte Vegetable Trays Pose Potential Salmonella Risk

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Minnesota Department of Health, and Wisconsin local health departments are working with the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to investigate an ongoing multi-state outbreak of salmonellosis linked to consumption of certain Del Monte vegetable...
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Inspirational 2019 UX conference for the life sciences

The User Experience for Life Science team held their 2nd Pistoia Alliance User Experience for Life Sciences Conference on the 8th-9th May 2019 at GSK, Stevenage, UK. It attracted 120 delegates, from over 50 organisations along with some special guests, who gathered for two days of sharing knowledge and hands-on workshops. The conference was...
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Background information and news about AI and ML – for novices and not only

What is the difference between AI, ML and Deep Learning? How to set-up image recognition in TensorFlow? Why many AI methods are considered “black boxes” that defy explanation of the results they provide, and what can be done to overcome this? Answers to these and many more questions of potential interest to both...
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AI in life sciences still being held back by data issues and skills shortage

Recent Press Release: Boston & London, Wednesday 15 May, 2019 – The Pistoia Alliance, a global non-profit that works to lower barriers to innovation in life sciences R&D, today announced new survey results showing access to data (52 percent) and lack of skills (44 percent) are the biggest barriers to the adoption of AI and...
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AbVance – new publication submitted

Pistoia Alliance AbVance: focus on advancing the state of the art in antibody complex modelling for drug discovery. Review on ‘Computational approaches to therapeutic antibody design’ submitted for publication. Members of the Pistoia Alliance AbVance initiative have recently submitted a review entitled “Computational approaches to therapeutic antibody design: established methods and emerging trends” for...
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Data Sharing challenges and AI

With the rise of AI & ML within Life Sciences & Health, it’s become obvious that a key blocker to success is not the maturity of the AI tools and techniques but access to data in sufficient volume and quality for the AI & ML methods to analyse. In this blog we discuss some...
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Three new use cases identified from Pistoia Alliance blockchain workshop

Jake Dreier, Pistoia Alliance discusses the outcomes from our Blockchain Use Case Analysis workshop. The Blockchain Use Case Analysis Workshop on 12 March 2019 was an incredibly exciting experience to be a part of. Representatives from companies around the world gathered to collaborate, analyze, and develop use cases for blockchain technology in Life Sciences...
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CoE for AI in Life Sciences – seeks input to future priorities

The Pistoia Alliance is looking at future priorities for our CoE for AI in Life Sciences and Health. Building on the feedback after our recent London workshop Mar 2019 and the webinars & events over the last few months. Our current list is below and we welcome your views on the priorities here and...
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Business Analysis and User Experience

The roles of User Experience Designer and Business Analyst in Life Sciences In recent years Business Analysis and User Experience Design have been in demand in Life Sciences organisations. Companies are increasingly relying on these two complementary disciplines when it comes to designing and implementing digital solutions. Business communities are actively taking crossover...
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HELM Peptide Monomer Guidelines released

The HELM team is pleased to announce the publication of monomer guidelines for peptides. Monomers are the building blocks of bio-molecules and HELM adopters need to decide what monomers they want to use very early in their journey with HELM. Until now there has been guidance on nucleotide monomers, but limited information on...
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The Pistoia Alliance Calls for Greater Focus on ‘Science not Geography’ in Push for Global Collaboration

Three-day EU conference covering range of topics examines how technology is driving change in life sciences R&D and improving patients’ health London, 18th March, 2019 – The Pistoia Alliance, a global, not for profit alliance that works to lower barriers to innovation in life sciences R&D, is urging industry stakeholders worldwide to focus...
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Federal Black Lung program is failing to prevent new illnesses AND running out of money.

By Joe Davidsonhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/07/11/black-lung-disease-cases-grow-while-federal-programs-financing-suffers Like the miners who work underground in dark and dangerous conditions, black lung disease is, for many, largely out of sight, out of mind. But for folks such as Gary Hairston, who spent more than 27 years in the mines around his Beckley, W.Va., home, the ailment is ever-present. He lives...
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550,000 Acres on Fire in Alaska

Two small communities near Anderson, Alaska were ordered to evacuate late Thursday due to a wildfire, as the state’s summer of heat and smoke continues. The Kobe Fire was reported at 6:45 p.m. Thursday and by 10:50 p.m. had grown to 600 acres, The Alaska Division of Forestry reported. There are no reports that...
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Updated Consolidated List of Lists under EPCRA/CERCLA/CAA 112(r)

EPA revised the consolidated list of chemicals subject to the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA); Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); and Section 112(r) of the Clean Air Act; also known as the List of Lists. The List of Lists is available as a PDF file and as an Excel...
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Protecting pregnant employees who work with chemicals

Lists for pregnant employee chemicals to avoid. When reviewing (SDS) safety data sheet’s, in addition to Section 11, Toxicology, Also review the hazard statements in Section 2, Hazards Identification, where you may see something like “H360 May damage fertility or the unborn child.” While there is not ONE definitive list of reproductive toxinS,...
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Study: fertilizer is root cause for increased global methane emissions, not cows

While the cattle industry is repeatedly accused of being the main culprit for increased global methane emissions (and a leading cause for climate change), a new study shows that the fertilizer industry is the root cause. The report by researchers from Cornell, published in Elementa, shows that emissions of methane from the industrial fertilizer...
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Anesthetic Gas: A Risk for Veterinary Workers

There is increasing evidence that exposure to isoflurane, the anesthetic gas commonly used in veterinary practice, may pose health risks, including nervous or reproductive system harm. A new Workplace Hazard Update, Isoflurane May Harm Veterinary Worker Health (PDF), details how staff are exposed. It also provides guidance for minimizing exposure. A California Department of...
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DOE Releases New Study Highlighting the Untapped Potential of Geothermal Energy in the United States

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Department of Energy released a groundbreaking analysis detailing how the United States can benefit from the vast potential of geothermal energy. The analysis culminated in a report, GeoVision: Harnessing the Heat Beneath Our Feet, which summarizes findings showing that geothermal electricity generation could increase more than 26-fold from...
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In case you forgot…60,000 tons of dangerous radioactive waste still sits on Great Lakes shores

More than 60,000 tons of highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel is stored on the shores of four of the five Great Lakes — in some cases, mere yards from the waterline — in still-growing stockpiles. “It’s actually the most dangerous waste produced by any industry in the history of the Earth,” said Gordon Edwards,...
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Work-Related Asthma in the ER

Most people who go to work don’t expect to end up at the emergency room for asthma. According to a Work-Related Asthma Prevention Program (WRAPP) pilot study, an estimated 1 in 4 adults who wound up in the ER for asthma in 2016 were there because of their exposures from work. The study also...
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EPA to Hold First Meeting of the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals

WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it will hold the first meeting of the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg Act), for Pigment Violet 29 (PV29), the first...
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EPA to Propose Revisions to Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) Rule

(PAINT.ORG), EPA provided notice in the Federal Register that it will be releasing a proposed rule to revise its Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule. The agency said the proposed amendments would support Agency data collection efforts, align reporting with amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) by requiring that confidentially claims be substantiated, and make...
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EPA and federal partners seek public input on draft GLRI Action Plan III

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and its federal partners are seeking additional input from the public on developing the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) Action Plan III. The plan will outline priorities and goals for the GLRI for the years 2020-2024. Input will be received until May 24, 2019. Last summer, EPA received...
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CSB Calls on EPA to Update HF Study in Wake of the 2017 Husky Refinery Fire

Washington, D.C. April 24, 2019 – Today, the US Chemical Safety Board released a letter calling on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to review its existing Hydrofluoric Acid (HF) study to determine the effectiveness of existing regulations as well as the viability of utilizing inherently safer alkylation technologies in petroleum refineries. CSB Interim Executive...
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The rise of Candida auris embodies a serious and growing public health threat: drug-resistant germs.

(NewYorkTimes) Last May, an elderly man was admitted to the Brooklyn branch of Mount Sinai Hospital for abdominal surgery. A blood test revealed that he was infected with a newly discovered germ as deadly as it was mysterious. Doctors swiftly isolated him in the intensive care unit. The germ, a fungus called Candida auris,...
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Post Fukushima – 23 countries still have bans on food imports from Japan because of the nuclear incident.

In 2015, the Japanese government filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization. Japan said all the seafood it ships is safe because it meets strict standards on radioactive substances. Japan called South Korea’s actions unfair and discriminatory. A WTO dispute panel supported Japan in February last year and recommended South Korea correct its...
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U.S. Green Building Council Launches LEED v4.1

Source (PAINT.ORG) On April 2, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced that the new version of the LEED green building program – LEED v4.1 – is now available for cities, communities and homes. According to USGBS, LEED v4.1 certification recognizes leadership by emphasizing performance monitoring, fully integrated design, social equity and human health factors. Green...
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