Welcome to the 2022 National Response Team (NRT) Worker Safety & Health (WSH) Technical Conference website!
The WSH Technical Conference was held on June 22, 2022 from 12:30pm - 5:00pm EDT.
Meeting Agenda
Click on the session titles below to view PDF/PPT files of each presentation. To view video clips of each presentation, go to Presentations under the event Documents page.
12:30-1:00pm: Welcome and Opening Remarks
1:00-1:55pm: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) 101 - Speaker: Eddie Murphy, Department of Transportation, PHMSA
Mr. Murphy will discuss PHMSA’s missions, organization, jurisdiction, response, lessons learned
and will answer questions.
2:00-2:55pm: Climate and Heat: Occupational Concerns and National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Recommendations - Speaker: Brenda Jacklitsch, PhD, MS, NIOSH
Workers are among the
most exposed populations to climate-related hazards, and amongst those exposed,
outdoor workers and emergency responders are at highest risk. In 2009, NIOSH
authors developed a seven-category framework to characterize the scientific
literature that includes hazard or exposures and occupational health effects
related to climate. Occupational-related hazards and exposures include: (1)
increasing ambient temperature, (2) air pollution, (3) UV radiation, (4)
extreme weather, (5) vector-borne diseases and expanding habitats, (6)
industrial transitions and emerging industries, and (7) changes in the built
environment. These hazards will not only present physical dangers, but also
issues related to mental health and health equity. Among the physical hazards,
increasingly high ambient temperatures and the resulting heat stress have been
of immediate concern. In this presentation, additional emphasis will be given
to heat stress, and the NIOSH Criteria for a Recommended Standard:
Occupational Exposure to Heat and Hot Environments will be highlighted.
Ongoing NIOSH heat and climate-related activities will also be discussed.
3:00-3:55pm: Disaster Response Defensive Driving - Speaker: Brian Kovak, Environmental Protection Agency
EPA and other Federal agencies go to disaster areas to provide assistance. This typically entails difficult driving conditions.
This presentation provides information to assist personnel driving in adverse conditions. The primary goal of this presentation
is to help drivers to recognize and understand driving hazards and take appropriate actions to increase their safety in disaster areas.
4:00-4:45: Training Requirements under Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) Standards - Speaker: Lana Nieves, OSHA
This presentation will provide an overview of OSHA’s HHAZWOPER standard, with a focus on the training sections. The discussion will cover things such asinitial and refresher training, training documents, position categories, and commonly asked training questions. Finally, this presentation will show where to access resources and information available from OSHA to help with the HAZWOPER’s safety and health program.
4:45-5:00pm: Closing Remarks
Additional Information
Please contact Ally Brown, EPA Contractor, at allison.brown@gdit.com with questions.