Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing

Washington – Agricultural aircraft pilots need to take more precautions to avoid collisions with obstacles during crop dusting and fertilizing operations, the National Transportation Safety Board advises in a safety alert and video released May 14.

Corvallis, OR – The number of workers injured while handling fish on certain types of commercial fishing vessels could be reduced if appropriate interventions are developed, a new study concludes.

Sacramento, CA – Federal agency statistics vastly undercount the number of nonfatal injuries and illnesses in the agricultural industry, according to a new study from the University of California Davis School of Medicine.

Washington – A new study of a poultry facility in South Carolina has concluded that although musculoskeletal disorder symptoms remained relatively stable after processing line speeds increased, MSD injuries and symptoms at the plant still were higher than the industry average and recommended levels.

Washington – A new video from NIOSH uses a true story to show how wearing a personal flotation device can save lives in the fishing industry.

Washington – The Environmental Protection Agency on Feb. 20 proposed new safety measures intended to protect farmworkers from the harmful effects of pesticide exposure.

Washington – OSHA administrator David Michaels has written a letter to employers regarding legal requirements and best practice recommendations for the safe storage and handling of ammonium nitrate.

Los Angeles – Pesticide exposure may increase the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, and individual risk varies based on a person’s genetic makeup, according to a new study from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Washington – OSHA has withdrawn from its website a guidance document for compliance officers who inspect grain storage facilities, stating that it is working on a new version to ease concerns that the guidance ignored a law exempting family farms from OSHA inspections.

Atlanta – As the nation prepares to cook millions of turkeys in recognition of Thanksgiving Day, a coalition of worker safety and consumer advocates once again have voiced their opposition to a proposed Department of Agriculture rule that would speed up line speeds at poultry-processing plants.