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Newspaper-safety officials heard from R. Davis Layne, OSHA's Region IV administrator, during the Health & Safety keynote address at the NAA Newspaper Operations Superconference on Monday.
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Health & Safety sessions began Sunday when attendees discussed respiratory-protection standards for newspapers which took effect in April. Monday the group heard about hot new technologies, including a fashion show of the latest in protective clothing and safety equipment.
Three panelists explored the Environmental Protection Agency and print-industry efforts to develop PrintSTEP, Printers' Simplified Total Environmental Partnership. The EPA says the work is in progress by a committee of public and private sector participants who "are testing a regulatory framework that will ultimately benefit the environment, printers, and the public. PrintSTEP tests a variety of new approaches for making the regulatory system more effective, flexible, and transparent for interested parties. PrintSTEP does not change the existing environmental standards for the printing industry. Instead, it changes the process of implementing those standards. Key elements of the new approach include: providing a level of regulatory oversight proportional to the level of waste or emissions generated; enhanced opportunity for public involvement; plain language tools to assist printers in understanding regulatory requirements; and a streamlined environmental permitting process."
However, Gerould J. McCoy, Gannett Co. director of environmental law, cautioned that with their new public-notice and state-enforcement requirements, the standards could place new regulatory burdens on newspapers. He urged attendees to monitor local efforts, scheduled to begin with grants offered to five states.
Afternoon sessions included discussions of underground storage tank issues, zero waste generation and NAA's waste management/pollution prevention training kit, which helps newspapers teach employees about hazardous waste and pollution prevention. The kit, $99 for members, has checklists, instructor manuals, employee handbooks and more.
--by Bob Sims