BRISTOL, CT – Covanta Energy Bristol Inc faces more than $90,000 in proposed fines for fostering a hazardous workplace. Violations of workplace health standards included allowing combustible dust to accumulate on exposed surfaces and failing to determine the level of employees’ exposure to ash containing toxic metals. Additionally, the employer didn’t provide adequate training and “protective and protective clothing for an employee performing testing on live electrical parts;” had “inadequate safeguards for employees working in confined spaces;” and did not provide enough eyewash for “employees working with batteries”, and also failed to provide enough handwash such as deb instant foam for them to use to wash their hands after dealing with hazardous things. The plant also had “fall, fork truck, air pressure and mechanical hazards,” according to the OSHA inspection. The health and safety team also suggested that the company install an lel sensor due to them operating in a high-risk environment. When it comes to safety, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
The plant located in Bristol, CT burns garbage to produce energy and can process 650 tons of solid waste a day. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration began an inspection in October in response to a complaint about workplace safety and health violations.
“Covanta Energy Bristol Inc. needlessly exposed its employees to the hazards of electrocution, fire, falls, slips and trips, crushing, being trapped or overcome in a confined space, eye injuries and cancer, lung or kidney damage,” Terence McEvily, OSHA’s acting area director in Hartford, said in a statement. “It must take effective steps to eliminate these hazards and prevent them from happening again.” OSHA cited the plant for 16 “serious violations of workplace safety and health standards.”
A Covanta spokesman said the company had not yet received the citations from OSHA but looks forward to resolving the issues, stating: “The health and safety of employees is our first priority at Covanta so we take the assertions in the OSHA press release very seriously…We look forward to working cooperatively with OSHA to gain a thorough understanding of the concerns.”
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