Health Hazard Evaluation Report HE 80-126-777: St. Regis Paper Company: Bucksport, Maine

Details

• Personal Author:
  McManus, Kevin P.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Thirty minute air samples of ceiling concentrations were analyzed for formaldehyde (50000), styrene (100425), and methylamine (74895), by gas chromatography at the St. Regis Paper Company (SIC-2611) in Bucksport, Maine, on June 18, 1980. The evaluation was requested regarding eye and skin irritation of workers by an authorized representative of United Paperworkers International Union, Local 1188 on behalf of 20 employees working in the Coating Preparation Department. An environmental evaluation was conducted to determine whether formaldehyde, styrene or methylamine was causing the irritation. Concentrations of formaldehyde ranged from 0.40 to 0.42 parts per million (ppm). Styrene and methylamine were not detected. The author notes that OSHA and NIOSH data indicates that formaldehyde concentrations at the sampling parts of the mixing vats reach concentrations of 3ppm instantaneously and are capable of causing irritation. The OSHA standard for formaldehyde is an 8-hour time weighted average of 3ppm with a 30 minute ceiling of 5ppm. The author concludes that an irritation hazard to employees existed due to excessive instantaneous formaldehyde concentrations. A ventilation system designed to create a negative pressure inside the mix tanks, which will eliminate employee exposures to formaldehyde, is planned to be installed by the company. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Ergonomics Formaldehyde Occupational Health Plastics Safety Skin Solvents
• Keywords:
  Environmental-engineering Eye Irritation Formaldehyde Hazards-Confirmed HHE-80-126-777 Methylamine NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation OSHA Region 1 Paper Mills Styrene

  More +
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHHE80126777
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Maine ; Bucksport (ME) ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  15 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Killens, George ; Cachelin, Mary E. ; Melius, James M.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00111985
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB82-150160
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HHE 80-126-777, 1980 Nov ; :1-13
• CAS Registry Number:
  Formaldehyde (CAS RN 50-00-0) ; Styrene (CAS RN 100-42-5) ; Methylamine (CAS RN 74-89-5)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1981
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  2611 - Pulp mills - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:92cc38e987d8bb8e5525515bd8cbc36ba10354b0c24e437c344f9606f39c3b91d7c84a9704e084585e9e71b12c47399945251a00a3a6edeb0ee723d3e9b6d81f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/173468/cdc_173468_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.20 MB ]