Why a CHO and CHP?
Since 1970, OSHA has developed an extensive list of regulations that govern the safety of workplaces in the United States. (OSHAs part of the Code of Federal Regulations is Section 29; see http://gabby.osha-slc.gov/OshStd_data/ for more than you care to know.) Around 1981 it became apparent that the regulations governing large-scale chemical industry plants were inappropriate for small-scale laboratories. Throughout the 1980s OSHA began drafting new sets of regulations for small-scale laboratories where the production and sale of chemicals and other hazardous substances was not the main focus of the organization. Obviously, academic research labs were in this category and many organizations (including the American Chemical Society) weighed in with advice and recommendations about appropriate regulations regarding academic labs. In 1990, OSHA promulgated a new section of the Code of Federal Regulations (29 CFR 1910.1450) that applied to small-scale labs. This standard is now commonly re
