A recently carried out state investigation of chemical concerns at New Mexico Highlands University resulted in 10 quotes and $ 43,393. However, there has also been doubt about the death of a school administrator.
The State of New Mexico Environmental department's work and security office issued a citation and notification of the punishment to the NMHU of February 27th. The document is based on an inspection that Ivan Hilton Science and Technology Building's OSHA carried out after reports about concerns about toxic chemicals within the building in the building.
These concerns worsened after the death of Marty Lujan, who had worked as an administrator in Ivan Hilton. The city of Las Vegas Castle Ivan Hilton due to the chemical concerns on September 3. Lujan died after an illness on September 14th.
“One of the questions that came to mind, in relation to what Osha examined, belonged to the relationship or non-relationship (to) the death of Marty Lujan,” said Nmhu President Neil Woolf on Wednesday. “There is no relationship between (Lujans) passport and the events in the science building.”
Woolf said that the Osha officers were based on this conclusion about information from the medical examiner.
The list of quotes and punishments from Osha differs from a list of the dangerous waste office of the environmental department in October. This report lists 16 potential violations that the NMED inspectors found during their inspection on September 11th in Ivan Hilton.
According to Woolf, many quotes from Osha refer to the failure of the university when documenting their regulations. For example, the university made voluntary respiratory protection reports available to its employees, but was unable to provide evidence that information on its use, including possible risks, was provided.
“For some people, respiratory protection providers can be harmful,” remarked Woolf. “You need to know what the risks are.”
The OSHA report cites a lack of information and training in dangerous chemicals in your work area. without chemical hygiene plan for employees, faculties and students; And find out that the employees were exposed to eye injuries while using corrosiva because he lacks suitable stations to rinse the eyes.
The Osha report also quotes a refrigerator that was removed from Ivan Hilton and brought to the school's recycling center.
“Recycling technicians were exposed to unknown residues, while she pulled parts of a used chemical laboratory refrigerator that had been deposed for recycling,” says the Osha report. “NMHU has not offered any training courses on dangerous chemicals with which the employees may come into contact, while they reduce devices with chemical residues from the science building Ivan Hilton.”
Woolf noted that the environmental department focused more on how the chemicals in Ivan Hilton affected in classes and laboratory systems. The examination of the OSHA focused on the effects of these conditions.
“This was the last large area for us,” he said about Osha's report. “We are grateful that Osha helps us to fix the conditions in the scientific building.”
Woolf said the university was following the same process that followed when she received a report on environmental department in New Mexico. He said a correction plan was being developed to solve all the problems that Osha found. The university will document how each of these problems is resolved.
Assistant professor Michael Reme, who taught for forest courses in Ivan Hilton Hilton, said he received the list of punishments and violations of Osha because he submitted a report with them in August.
Reme told the optics in September that he had become sick after working in the building.
“I went sick with a headache, with shortness of breath and irritation after I called sitting and working in my office,” Reme told The Optic on September 19.
Reme said that he noticed several things from the Osha violations, including the respiratory protection plan and improper training to use dangerous materials
“We have created many bad habits at our workplace where people do not know how to deal with things properly, and they are not trained in how to deal with things properly,” said Reme.
Ivan Hilton was closed by the city of Las Vegas on September 3 after the police reacted to a first report on a chemical spill in the building. The university took steps to fix problems that were found during an inspection by the environmental department. These corrective measures and the cleaning of the building enabled Ivan Hilton to reopen on January 10th for the spring semester.
Reme said he was happy to be back in the building and explained that the reopening had restored a feeling of normality.
“There is no longer a big problem with the remaining legacy chemicals in the building that caused this problem,” said Reme.
Woolf said that improving the Highland Campus will be an ongoing process.
“Sometimes we use the expression, this problem is behind us,” he said. “My answer is no. … This problem will always be at the forefront and in the center, as this has helped us as an institution.”
“I don't want us to become complacent as an institution and have the feeling that this problem was behind us,” continued Woolf. “This problem and every problem of health and security are always ahead of us, never behind us.”