Environmental, Health and Safety News

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) announced today that the nationally-recognized Family Care program has been approved to continue for five more years. Family Care allows frail elders and adults with physical, developmental, or intellectual disabilities to remain in their homes or communities whenever possible. The approval comes from the Centers for Medicare...
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As part of the ongoing investigation into the multistate outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 ( E. coli O157) infections, Wisconsin health and food safety officials have found E. coli O157:H7 bacteria in an unopened bag of pre-washed chopped romaine collected from an ill person’s home. Additional laboratory testing is pending to determine if the...
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Having already seen record-breaking cold this year, and with frigid temperatures in the forecast for most of the state this week, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) wants to remind residents to take steps to be safe and stay warm as temperatures fall . Last winter, 75 people died from exposure to cold...
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The Wisconsin Department of Health Services is investigating multiple cases of adenovirus (add-e-no-virus) infection on college campuses around the state. Adenovirus infections most commonly cause respiratory illness, and while serious illness is rare, in some cases it can lead to pneumonia or death. “Adenovirus infection is easily spread, which is why we tend to...
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The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) is urging state residents to take extra care while preparing their Thanksgiving meals this week. While hygiene is always important in food preparation, recent outbreaks of E. coli O157:H7 and hepatitis A infections shines a bright light on how vital hygiene is. “The holidays are a time...
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This report is intended for all members and friends of the Pistoia Alliance, and any others interested in its work supporting cross-industry collaboration and innovation.It sets out to consider what the life science, biopharma R&D and healthcare ecosystem might look like in 2030.   The objective is to ensure that the Pistoia Alliance, its...
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Our second drug repurposing datathon is dedicated to finding a cure to Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG). This is a rare (1000 cases a year worldwide) and deadly form of cancer in children. Over the last 50 years the understanding of DIPG as a heterogeneous group of tumors requiring a personalized medicine approach has...
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All members invited to attend the Pistoia Alliance AGM.   Wednesday 4th December 2019 at 16:00 to 17.00 GMT via Webinar   All individuals involved in the activities of the Pistoia Alliance within its member companies are cordially invited to attend the Pistoia Alliance Annual General Meeting.   Please reserve the time and register for...
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For 12 weeks during the summer in 2018, Sebastian Coates (a then-colleague, now co-founder) and I had the rare opportunity to take a step into the world of enterprise blockchain at an industry leading pharmaceutical company.   With blockchain being a nascent, cutting-edge technology, the opportunity to research and experiment with it presented a...
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The post FAIR Implementation appeared first on Pistoia Alliance.
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WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) fiscal year (FY) 2019 final statistics show a significant increase in the number of inspections and a record amount of compliance assistance to further the mission of ensuring that employers provide workplaces free of hazards. OSHA’s enforcement activities reflect the...
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A recent study published in the scientific journal “Chemosphere,” involving scientists from Japan, Finland, France, and the United States, addresses these issues. The team, led by Dr. Satoshi Utsunomiya, Ryohei Ikehara, and Kazuya Morooka of Kyushu University, a prestigious research school in Fukuoka, Japan, developed a method in 2018 that allows scientists to quantify...
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(ScienceDaily) Integrating a super moisture-absorbent gel with light-active materials, researchers in Singapore have developed a humidity digester to dry the ambient air while generating energy. The method, presented November 20 in the journal Joule, is a green alternative to air conditioners with a trick — pulling water out of thin air. Like plants, artificial...
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CNN –  Heliogen, a clean energy company that emerged from stealth mode on Tuesday, said it has discovered a way to use artificial intelligence and a field of mirrors to reflect so much sunlight that it generates extreme heat above 1,000 degrees Celsius. Essentially, Heliogen created a solar oven — one capable of reaching...
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“Landfills are really struggling to manage them, and they just decide they can’t accept them….” Bill Rowland, president of the Iowa Society of Solid Waste Operations, said he’s unsure “we as a society” considered what would happen to the blades as older turbines are repowered. “There wasn’t a plan in place to say, ‘How...
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(Michael Best & Friedrich LLP) Today, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) began the process of implementing another priority in Governor Evers’ Executive Order #40 by creating the Wisconsin Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Action Council or “WisPAC.” The Council will be led by DNR and will coordinate PFAS-related activities among state agencies...
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NASA scientists are helping California create a detailed, statewide inventory of methane point sources — highly concentrated methane releases from single sources — using a specialized airborne sensor. The new data, published this week in the journal Nature, can be used to target actions to reduce emissions of this potent greenhouse gas. Like carbon...
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The Los Angeles Times has a harrowing new story about Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands. Japanese forces invaded the small Pacific nation and its residents during World War I, and the United States did the same during World War II under that classic guise of “liberation.” But the US was hardly acting altruistically,...
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The telecommunications industry and their experts have accused many scientists who have researched the effects of cell phone radiation of “fear mongering” over the advent of wireless technology’s 5G. Since much of our research is publicly-funded, we believe it is our ethical responsibility to inform the public about what the peer-reviewed scientific literature tells...
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Previously healthy male never smokers, ages 27 to 50, developed chest symptoms from 1995 to 2012 while working in the facility’s production areas. Patients had an insidious onset of cough, wheeze, and exertional dyspnea; airflow obstruction (mean FEV1 = 44% predicted) and reduced diffusing capacity (mean = 53% predicted); and radiologic centrilobular emphysema. Lung tissue demonstrated a unique...
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Artificial intelligence (AI) is a broad transdisciplinary field with roots in logic, statistics, cognitive psychology, decision theory, neuroscience, linguistics, cybernetics, and computer engineering. The modern field of AI began at a small summer workshop at Dartmouth College in 1956. Since then, AI applications made possible by machine learning (ML), an AI subdiscipline, include Internet...
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In the October 2019 draft risk evaluation for methylene chloride (MC), EPA reviewed a suite of potential MC exposures and made initial determinations on risk. These preliminary determinations may change as EPA’s evaluation becomes more refined through the public comment and peer review processes. Below are the draft risk evaluation and supporting documents for MC. ...
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced selections for up to $24.9 million in funding to drive innovative, industry-led technology solutions to advance the marine and hydrokinetics industry and increase hydropower’s ability to serve as a flexible grid resource. Innovative water power technologies have the potential to increase the affordability of hydropower and...
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A group of Russian scientists has revealed the first pictures of a massive fountain of methane gas bubbling from the sea floor in the eastern Siberian Sea. During the 35-day expedition that started Sept. 21, the scientific expedition organized by Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU)  noticed a spot of emerald-colored water which turned out to...
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EPA Press Office (press@epa.gov) — Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler and Region 5 Administrator and Great Lakes National Program Manager Cathy Stepp unveiled an updated and aggressive action plan under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). The GLRI Action Plan III will guide the actions of federal agencies and their many partners...
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The National Safety Council,  published a Position/Policy Statement on October 21, 2019 addressing cannabis (marijuana) impairment in safety-sensitive positions. NSC stated that “it is clear that cannabis impacts psychomotor skills and cognitive ability,” and concluded that “there is no level of cannabis use that is safe or acceptable for employees who work in safety-sensitive positions.” (“Safety-sensitive”...
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From Rick Edinger: In April 2019 I published an article entitled “What Ever Happened to NFPA 472?” In that piece I examined the addition of two new National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) documents related to hazardous materials response, their relationship to each other and the existing hazmat standards, and the effects on the hazmat response community....
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Farming is more than just work for many; it’s a way of life that is rewarding despite the tough physical work. But now it’s becoming increasingly apparent that the unique challenges faced daily by farmers – from the long hours to the isolation to the many uncertainties beyond their control – can also greatly...
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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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 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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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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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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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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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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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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