In response to warnings from federal agency watchdogs, the Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has hired a chief information officer (CIO) to improve information-technology efforts, as well as bolster cybersecurity at the board.
November 15, 2026
Environmentalists are touting new allegations that chlor-alkali industry workers face severe asbestos exposures despite safety guidelines, saying the claims bolster not only the agency’s proposed TSCA ban on the substance but also its overall decision to stop assuming workers will use protective gear in chemical risk evaluations.
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EPA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG)’s annual report on management challenges facing the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) says vacancies at top staff positions as well as in three of the panel’s five seats remain threats to its work, especially after rule changes that bar the board from functioning with a single member.
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The non-profit outlet ProPublica is reporting chlor-alkali firms have long exposed workers to high chrysotile asbestos levels, including violations of OSHA’s permissible exposure limit (PEL), potentially undercutting the industry’s argument that it should be exempt from a proposed EPA rule banning use of the notorious carcinogen.
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The Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board’s (CSB) new report on a 2016 fire and explosion at a crude oil terminal emphasizes findings that the ultimate cause of the incident was a failure to follow OSHA’s standard for safeguarding “hot work,” and urges industry to prioritize those practices to avoid future disasters.
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EPA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) is suggesting the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) address a raft of procedural and staffing issues in a future strategic plan as part of its “special review” of the body’s “capabilities,” along with new details on a behind-the-scenes clash that led to the resignation of its former chair.
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An industry attorney says employers are facing a “big change” in the worker safeguards required by EPA’s significant new use rules (SNURs) for chemical safety after that agency adopted a new policy tightening several elements of the rules, including adoption of a hierarchy of controls model long favored by OSHA.
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Former EPA chemicals chief Steve Owens used his first public meeting as acting chief of the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) to announce a slate of transparency initiatives for the independent agency, including publication of accidental-release reporting data it has been gathering since 2020.
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Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) Chair Katherine Lemos has resigned with three years left in her term, reportedly citing “eroded confidence” in the body’s mission and priorities, months after the Senate confirmed two new CSB members and just days after the announcement of President Joe Biden’s latest nominee.
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A new study from the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) warns that there are major data gaps on risks posed by indoor exposures to a variety of chemicals and mixtures in part because even well-studied contaminants can behave differently in indoor environments, potentially boosting recent calls for OSHA to develop indoor air safety standards.
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