Document Zz6x3vqqyw06Z0Qj4rjYMB27

T Manufacturing Chemists Association OHC - 124 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH COMMITTEE Minutes of Meeting MCA Conference Room ' May 15, 1975 Washington, D.C. Chairman Lane opened the meeting at 9:00 a.m. with the introduction of new people. The record of attendance was: Members Present: Dr. K. S. Lane, chairman Mr. E. E. Christofano, Vice Chairman Mr. w. V. Andresen Dr. L. E. Cassidy Mr. R. S. Detrick (for Mr. D. L. Eynon) Mr. K. R. Doremus Mr. w. S. Ferguson Dr. R. D. Fulwiler Dr. E. M. Flint (for Dr. F. L. Lyman) Dr. R. L. Gibson (for Dr. W. A. McClellan) Dr. L. B. Grant Dr. M. N. Johnson Dr. S. C. Kelton Dr. E. J. Kerfoot Mr. C. S. Laubly Dr. G. J. Levinskas Dr. J. E. Long. Dr. R. L.* O'Connell (for Dr. M. R. Gasque) Dr. C. P. Reinhardt Dr. J. R. Venable Mr. A. C. Clark (part time) Mr. M. Freifeld Union Carbide Corporation Hercules Incorporated American Cyanamid Company Canadian Industries Limited Hopper's Company, Inc. Merck & Co., Inc. 'Allied chemical Corporation The Procter & Gamble Company. CIBA-GEIGY Corporation Gu.lf Oil Chemicals Company PPG Industries, Inc. B. F. Goodrich Chemical Company Rohm and Haas Company BASF Wyandotte Corporation Celanese Corporation Monsanto Company Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company Olin Corporation E. X. du Pont de Nemours & Company' The Dow Chemical company MCA Staff MCA Staff Guests Present; Mr. M. J. Decerbo Dr. E. Q. Hull Mr. J. M. Pardee (Vic Chairman, Safety and Fir Borg-Warner Chemicals Union Carbide Corporation Eastman Kodak Company Protection Committee) CMA 042667 Members Absent Mr. j. Bolton Mr. j. w. Hamntpnd Mr. W. C. Janes OHC - 125 Stauffer Chemical Company Exxon Chemical Company USS Chemicals 1. Minutes of the Last Meeting The minutes of the last meeting, January 21, 1975, were approved as distributed. 2. New officers Officers for the next term voted in by the membership without dissent and approved by the Board are; Chairman Mr. E. E. Christofano and Vice Chairman - Dr. C. F. Reinhardt. 3. Membership The Committee has twenty-three members and authori zation for twenty-four. There are two new candidates for membership and one of them, Mr. Decerbo, was present for the first time. The policy for rotation of members was reviewed briefly by the secretary. 4. Reports of Subcommittees ft.1. Health and Standards At the request of Dow, DuPont, Union Carbide, and Shell, Mr. Ferguson, as Chairman of the Health and Standards Subcommittee re-introduced the question of MCA ability and will ingness tg'proiect'a strong advocacy position in the area of the it was voted without dissent that the Committee recommend~b~the Board that MCA adopt a stronger advocacy position in the development, of OSHA standards and that administrative procedures be established to provide timely and forceful ,repr -- sentations during the hearing process. It was also recommended that- efforts be-mad to include MCA via the Occupational Health Committee among the offi cial reviewers of criteria documents. . "_ - 9T i i , .M ,1-r-lS.SdO 90.rl;; CMA 042668 OHC - 126 As a case in point where MCA could convey the industry position to OSHA, Mr. Ferguson cited the recently issued proposed "mini standards" on ketones, it is important because it is the first of an expected series of such proposed standards and contains new pattern language even more restric tive than that for carcinogens. Specific undesirable sections relate to (a) the order of acceptable compliance techniques: (1) engineering changes, (2) work practice rules, (3) personal protective equipment, (b) inclusion for the first time of the rights of employee's representatives (e.g., a designated medical doctor) to review an individual's records, and (c) omission of the rights of representatives of employers to access to medical records of individuals. Mr. Ferguson also pointed to the ex ample of other trade groups that included a lawyer in the task force preparing a response to a government document, in order to prepare responses in a timely fashion. The secretary reminded the group that it was well within this committee's charter to comment officially on nearly all sections of the proposed ketone standard. MCA's ' restrictions in this area are that such statements be cleared by staff, including counsel and that no position be taken with regard to specific values for allowable concentrations. This was confirmed by Mr. Clark who also pointed out MCA statements must (1) reflect positions representative of the industry broadly, (2) be technically sound, and (3) in accord with MCA's policies. He further indicated that the group should develop a position on its own before submitting it for legal review. 4.1.1. "Single Standard" Issue Mr. Ferguson reported a consensus in his subcommittee on his written- exposition of the issues. However, in the discussion it became clear there was still a divergence of opinion in the full committee on the desirability of an action- level. A strong objection- wae raised to the almost^universal use of 50 percent of the threshold limit value (TLV) in setting the action level. Reactions- of people- to specific chemicals can take various forms. Hence, it was felt that each case should be considered individually. The point was also made that regulations should be based on exposure rather than concentration. Accordingly, a motion was;'passed with only one negative vote cast (by Mr. Andresen) that the Committee respond to the action level concept favorably but comment that it should not always b confined to 50 percent of th TLV in view of th possible variety of physiological responses. CMA 042669 r '.10 OBX'-* 127?^ 1 f j- -1 ' > Cr" - 4.1.2. Salt 1 Water as Emetic ' .. Salt has been used in this application for. a. long-time*, and its almost universal availability is un** douhtedly a~key consideration. Nevertheless, many physician? do not. recommend it- Other emetics and alternatives to emesis were discussed. Dr. Gibson presented a letter of May 7, 1975 from Dr* F. N. Love to Dr. W. McClellan (to be distributed to the group by the secretary) strongly recommending against, the use of salt as an emetic. A motion to delete salt from, the recom mendations for emetics in MCA publications was defeated by a vote of eight to five. Another motion to retain the recommenda tion to use salt in emetics but insert concentrations of salt in. water was carried. The matter was referred back, to the sub committee to. work out suggested concentrations. Consideration was- given to using the. phrase,_ " Induce Vomiting," rather than-specify the technique to be employedv- This was rejected as being toot vague, in view of. its intended application by nonmedical personnel.. , _ 4.1.3.. Acid Skin Burn Treatment Dr- Gibson reported there was no recent additional information on phenol since the last meeting. At. the request of Mrtl Zerchex*. that secretary of- the Safety? and Fire Protection Conuaitteer- the . Occupational* Healthy ^Committee1 s. attention, was, drawn* ta Case. History^ Ndl 212&- since it involved the death of- at yoyngt mare; accident*!^splashed with an aqueous solution of phenol. He ' had washa'{}&i$sel! initially with water and later, with another man helpiq^^hjm*- .us ed- '' a recommended solvent.". Ip. the ensuing discussion^ swabbing, with PEG 300 (polyethylene glycol) was, mentioned as- being- especially effective ta the^ point afe tually eliminating; residual odor from affected akiir aressu^^ Others,.. however^ still, prefer continuous washing w^hec^pioue- - amounts- ofr water. Speed, of. reaction was indicated^ _tg be at^ least as important as whatever agent is used for removal pur poses*.^ Furthermore*, there is no known specific antidoter for phenol and treatment is supportive. .... ... shd 7i: - -i. z ,z ,,. oiz -;-hi od zncqz." v; j bl'jQitz di o i.^aoq ed-f *V uk* r < ? CMA 042670 OHC - 128 Since a British group i3 considering the treatment of phenol burns, the Committee voted unanimously to await the Jesuits of their study before making a recommendation. For hydrofluoric acid (HF) burns. Dr. Gibson reported that icewater application was the treatment of choice in several other countries including Great Britain. Also mentioned was the use of magnesium oxide by Phillips Corporation. Since this matter too is under study in Britain, it was decided to defer a recommendation until the results of their investi gation are known. In this connection, the secretary dis tributed the most recent minutes (NC.37. for March 5, 1975 meeting) of the British Chemical Industries Association Medical and Safety Committees. 4.1.4. Criteria Documents 4.1.4.1. Benzene Dr. Venable and environmental health personnel at Dow feel the benzene document is satisfactory except for the medical section. Dr. Venable then outlined his "recommendations for revision of the proposed standard for occu pational exposure to benzene." Copies will be sent to the Com mittee for comment.. Dr. Gibson stated Dr. McCl Han's position on this subject as favoring urinary phenol only for exposure cases and not to be used routinely, similarly using reticulocyte counts only on a discretionary basis, and favoring the SMA-12 blood test in place of some of those* suggested in the proposed standards `* '-it .'i . ..Vi'-.- As head: of the- AM- Task. Group on BenattnOir Dr;, McClellan has made an intensive study of this subjects**?! The MCA Safety Data She ts for Benzene and Toluene are both outdated and- are currently under going revision. The medical sections were- referred* to* this Committee by ther Safety and Fire Protection Commit&ee* whicl? is working on the,'balance of the information needed. s Specifically, this group was askedf to consider whether t-chftngftithe-current recommendation in the^SDS to induce vomiting* I Mr&Zercher.; secretary of the Safety and Fir Protection-Committee has docu mented the recommendations to avoid induction of vomiting made by API and the Consum r Product Safety Commission. , The reason CMA 042671 OHC - 129 i3 that such a procedure can lead to an even greater hazard that may- be- cause# by inhalation of vapors of these substances. Fol lowing discussion, the Committee voted unanimously to recommed that emesis.not be- induced where toluene or benzene ingestion are involved. The Committee also voted to defer a decision on a TLV to recommend in the SDS until the expected standard on benzene is issued by OSHA. The secretary mentioned the urgency of making the requested recommendations' since the SDSs currently being issued on these two products were prepared so long ago. Suggestions were made that consideration be given to discontinuing issuance of these Safety Data Sheets until they can be properly modified to change the recommendation on vomiting. There was some discussion about replacing the phrase, "Call a physician" now used in Safety Data Sheets with a more general one, such as "Obtain medical assistance." The reason is that physicians are not always available and such an instruction may lead to a delay in properly treating a victim. The question of proper language to use was referred to the Labels and Precautionary Information Committee. 4.1.4.2. Carbon Monoxide Dr. Levinskas., No report was presented by 4.1.5. Noise The secretary brought t the group's? attention.^Federal Register announcement that hearings on this subjft&.'-wonld' commence June 23. The consensus was that no furthestoLetlont need be taken beyond the- MCft statement entered into?-the- record (Docket OSH-11) on March 17, 19-75; - 6-^ Methyl Chloride The- secretary brielyi described at request for comment on a new form, "Behavioral an# Neurological BValuati of Workers Exposed to Industrial Solvents-* Methyt Chloride*. * Th request; was- submitted to- MCA May 9 by the Business-Advisory Coun cil on Fed ral R ports. Copies for comment are? to bs-distributed to members representing producers and oth rs specificatty int r- ested. - - 3 immoO . . -- j J vd CMA 042672 J* -- ^ OHC - 130 4.2. Public Relations and Communications Dr. O'Connell reported for Dr. Gasque that a bibliography, "Sources of Help with Occupational Health Problems," was presented to this group about a year aco. Nothing further was done with it at the time. The secretary was requested to circulate copies to the Committee. The bibliography being pre pared by Evelyn Burtis of Exxon Research was mentioned again and action deferred until it becomes available for review. 4.3. Legislation Although little has happened recently regarding the proposed Toxic Substances Control Act, Mr. Ingle expects increased activity on this matter soon. However, he indicated that as time goes on, the expectation for passage of this Bill by the present Congress is becoming less firm. Meanwhile, the Toxic Substances Committee, of which he is secretary, has sub mitted a marked-up version of the Bill and been in conference with the appropriate Senate and House Committees. 4.4. Liaison Activities 4.4.1. Representation on.ANSI's Z37 Committee on Acceptable Concentrations^ of Toxic Dusts and Gases Mr. Christofano has asked Dr. Torkelson to represent MCA via this Committee on Z37 since Dr. Torkelson is already a member at large and attends most of their meetings. Dr. Torkelson, who. ia not a member of OHC, agreed to do this on an informal basis but does not want to be- the designated repre sentative from MCA. This loose arrangement will be proposed to ANSI and tried, if they agree. : - 4.4.2. Proposed NCI seminar program on cancer a o " A contractor has, not yet.been, chosen to develop a program- on. "Industrial Steward ship* with Regard to Cancer Risks from Chemical Manufacture* " MCA-hasr been asked to contribute by suggesting individuals to be panel members. The group agreed to cooperate in this effort but wants to have an opportunity to review the program and express^comments on it. The. secretary was.asked tordistribute NCI's May 1 list of chemicals in the bioassay, program*and-to keep the Committee informed of monthly chang s^ 3 . ~ S A A IC X 3 ,1 ' * -T CMA 042673 4.4-.Proposed joint workshop with: Sfety anA> :.:gzjso- -. -r-pf-- gire-Protection- Committee - . ' The- secretary relayed an invitation front the Safety and3 Fire- Protection Committee to- once again coopera tively sponsor a workshop now planned for October 9, 1975".' The Committee agreed1 and- nominated Dr. Gasque to coordinate this effort with the Safety and- Fire- Protection Committee as he has done in the pastv 4.4.4. Formal liaison with Safety and Fire Protection Committee-- The consensus-was that the practice should be resumed of havinq the Vice Chairman of each of these two Com mittees attend the meetings of the other group.. Mr. Pardee was introduced to the members present and expressed strong support for this-type of' liaison-. Dr. Reinhardt now plans- to" attend future Safety and Fire Protection-Committee-meetings-. - ,, 1- r,, - -v 4-.4-.5-i Technical Panel on- Phosgene Dr.. Kerfoot-informed^ the group, that- the Technical Panel on this chemical has contracted health-related work ta ErosolaiK*-atxEinstein^University. He also reported that tha^ Chemicals Safety-Data-Sheet-for this product was revised recently and will be issued:- shortly. 5. Guidelines- foi*1 Collection- of Data for Epidemiological Studies - '' Jj:- - - . ;. . - Wii 3 ,, Dr. Reinhafdt? remarked it was impractical- ter expect epidemiologists- at: member* companies* (DuPont* and Rohnr and Haas) to take time*- out- for*thttr deve lopment of a paper1 on* ther subj ect Rather, if the Committee, felt, strongly that" such* guidelines need be developed* 1 Ltr should be done by a consultant: in the field.__Reinhardt-volunteered to. contact; * Dr. GaffedMBdEtTabershaw/Cooper Associates for: an-estimate on perfornriljKs^Heitasfci 1 AiPirticle cited:- asr closely related to thlsp Wiffc^^toH^quitfe" on target for5MCA1wai .Gaffey, wJ%^ni^o^O?*upoiibhal Medicine, "`-volume* 15dumber 10 October 1973^ fro** : " 00 ,ioi: 4. .-a eoT Staff? Rfefeortscy?'6? L-gg to 1 , :cj ' ^ 1 ^`J * ^ ^ ' TW - The seci^tiiJt'otLtllhed-highlightS'Tofiroeetingsiatt ndeda-^; at the Nationals CAneer.Advisory Board, Marcftft 1711975 ^ndtthaic^i Conference ore-Occupational^Carcinogenisis^.MarchtZSrtlsTi^ktn-sr- the New York Academy of Sciences. CMA 042674 OHC - 132 7. New Business - 7.1. Chloroprene as a potential carcinogen Dr. Reinhardt reported that a DuPont team which visited Russia recently was unable to confirm suspicions about the carcinogenicity of chloroprene. The Russians themselves who first published their concerns on the subject are not con vinced that the observations can be linked with cancers of any kind. Studies on mutagenicity and animal toxicity are being supported by the worldwide chloroprene industry. 1 7.2. State OSHA Activities The secretary distributed a review of State Plans which indicated that most states already have such plans in effect, but some have found it necessary to discontinue them because of a shortage of funds. 8. Next Meeting The next meeting was set by the Chairman for Tu sday, October 7, 1975 at Cherry Hill. This is the day prior to the joint workshop with the Safety and Fire Protection Committee to be held at the same location. Minutes subject to approval MF/etv Milton Freifeld^ Secretary CMA 042675