IES Blog: Categories
Environmental:
NC Manufacturing Network Welcomes Specialty Foam Producer Nomaco
Let’s Talk Trash!
November 15, today, is America Recycles Day! There are many reasons to recycle, but here are two great reasons to recycle more at home
Book Review: The Quality Cauldron
Review of a mysterious book that presents a variety of quality-improvement tips for witches, wizards, and various types of supernatural beings such as vampires, zombies, and ghosts.
North Carolina’s Water World
Picture the Mississippi River in the times of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer. Slow moving steam boats packed with goods heading to markets. Sweaty dock workers and well-dressed passengers all milling about. But instead of the Mississippi, this picture could have been our Eastern North Carolina bays and rivers – such as the Albemarle peninsula and the surrounding water ways.
Mobile Devices in the World of Environmental Health and Safety
What are the recent developments in automating Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) performance? Yes - you guessed it - Mobile Devices (MD).
The Cold, Hard Facts About Fracking In North Carolina Part 2
The only reason fracking for natural gas has occurred on the scale that it has throughout the country in the first place is because our Congress has exempted it from the very federal regulations that would have stopped it dead in its tracks
The Cold, Hard Facts About Fracking In North Carolina Part 1
Since my comments a few weeks ago about “fracking” in North Carolina, I have read a lot of articles and heard a lot of discussions regarding this subject. I’ve heard words used like “ensure” and “protect”.
Establishing a Wildlife Management Habitat at Your Company
In a slightly different role as a technical assistance provider, your IES is helping companies establish “Wildlife Management Habitats”. A Clayton, NC company set aside 74 acres to be managed as wildlife habitat which has been certified by the Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC). IES provided a NC State University student intern from the Fisheries & Wildlife Sciences department to assist in meeting certification requirements...
What North Carolina Needs to Know About Pennsylvania’s Energy Experience
At the 9th Annual Sustainable Energy Conference in Raleigh, the Friday Luncheon Keynote Speaker, John Hanger, discussed Pennsylvania’s Energy Exploration Experience. Mr. Hanger, a nationally recognized expert on energy and the environment, has an impressive background, having served as commissioner of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and as secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Much of his discussion was aimed at Pennsylvania’s experience with hydraulic fracturing, generally referred to as “fracking”. All of it was designed to inform North Carolina of what he believes we need to know regarding Pennsylvania’s experience with energy exploration, in general, and with fracking in particular.
The Latest on Sustainability from Walmart
On March 28, Miranda Ballentine, Walmart’s Director of Sustainability, came to NC State University’s Centennial Campus to give an update on Walmart’s sustainability program. The title of her talk was The Future of Sustainability - A Perspective from Walmart. Attending the meeting were a number of Walmart suppliers, employees from all 3 triangle universities (Duke, UNC, and NCSU) and other manufacturers / organizations. NC State’s Industrial Extension Service (IES) sponsored the program and provided a variety of campus tours and networking opportunities to the attendees.
Energy Savings Potential with Pumping Systems
A Quick Update on ISO 50001 Energy Management Systems
ISO 50001:2011 is the new standard specifying requirements for organizations developing and Energy Management System or EnMS. ISO is the International Organization for Standardization which is based in Switzerland but is made up of organizations from ~ 163 member countries. The organization representing USA is NIST or the American National Standards Institute.
MESHage: May Your Season be Fun and Safe
Holli Singleton, NC State's MESH Certificate program manager here again but not with the obligatory list of holiday safety tips. This year, I'm deviating from the traditional precautionary statements like “No more than 20 extension cords per outlet” (Or is it just 2?) and “Don’t eat yellow icicles," and offering 5 of my own tips, safe or otherwise, to help maximize your seasonal fun.
Meeting Business Ethics – The Next Step in Sustainability?
The Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition or EICC, requires all “participants” to meet their “code of conduct” which includes requirements for:
- Labor
- Health and Safety
- Environmental
- Management Systems
- Ethics
A Rule to Limit Rules - Balancing Economic and Environmental Efforts
Senate Bill 781 was enacted into law on July 25, 2011. It is a North Carolina General Statute (NCGS 150-b), entitled;
AN ACT TO INCREASE REGULATORY EFFICIENCY IN ORDER
TO BALANCE JOB CREATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION.
Essentially, it will prevent any new, State - environmental rule, adopted on or after October 1, 2011, from being more restrictive than the underlying federal law or rule.
An Important MESHage for Safety Professionals
Link: http://www.ies.ncsu.edu/mesh/
Have you considered adding the MESH certificate to your list of credentials as a safety professional?
A great addition to your resume, the MESH Certificate highlights your EH&S, OSHA compliance, injury prevention, and waste management expertise.
Modeling - Takes the Runway
Air Dispersion Modeling that is. And the models are not from Calvin Klein. Plug and Chug. Input the stack emission parameters – and calculate the resulting outdoor concentrations.
The Certificate Represents Knowledge
I hear the familiar descriptions as students introduce themselves when attending our OSHA Training Institute (OTI) courses. “I’m new to the responsibility of safety and health”, or even better, “Last week I was informed that I am the new Safety and Health Coordinator”.
The Real Final Four – Gold, Silver, Platinum, and Palladium
What is a precious metal? To NC State employees (like me) – many metals could be considered precious (relative to my salary, ha ha ha). Wikipedia says its gold, silver, platinum and palladium. It also states that "other precious metals include the platinum group metals: ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium, iridium, and platinum…” Now that’s a lot of iums.