COMMENT

Prompted by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration's request for comments and information on toxic chemicals in laboratories, the American Chemical Society, with the guidance of its Task Force on Occupational Health & Safety, conducted a survey on laboratory practices and policies for employee protection from exposure to chemicals. The findings of this survey support the argument that academic, industrial, and other research laboratories are distinctly different from manufacturing environments and, therefore, should have a separate toxic chemicals policy (C&EN, July 20, page 24). Furthermore, the task force concluded that enforceable guidelines, rather than standards, will provide the flexibility necessary for the reduction of lab worker exposure to chemicals. Proper practices are the most effective methods to reduce risk exposure to chemicals. In anticipation of increased efforts by OSHA to draft criteria for protection of workers in research labs, the society assigned its Task Force on Occupational Health & Safety to respond to whatever policy ...