Newsletter

Volume 52
 
Jul 12, 2022

Participants Share Thoughts After June Auditor Training Course

Next month’s newsletter will feature in-depth interviews with several EHS and other industry professionals who participated in ResponsibleAg’s June auditor class. Here’s a sneak peek at some of their impressions about the course.

It’s never too early! Reserve your spot for this year’s second ResponsibleAg auditor training course. The comprehensive course, which combines in-class and hands-on training, will be November 15-18 at the Ford B. West Center for Responsible Agriculture in Owensboro, Kentucky. The class covers numerous aspects of audits, including how to properly file and maintain EHS&S documentation, procedures for inspecting chemical warehouses, commercial motor vehicle training and record requirements.

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Watch for Heat-Related Illnesses

Temperatures soared during June and early July in many parts of the country, and the extreme heat could continue throughout the summer. Every year, dozens of workers die and thousands more become ill while working in hot or humid conditions. Because the law requires employers to protect workers from heat illness, here are a few tips to help meet that responsibility.

  • Provide workers with water, rest and shade.
  • Because nearly three out of four fatalities due to heat illness happen during the first week of work, allow new or returning workers to gradually increase workloads and take more frequent breaks as they build tolerance to the heat. Follow the 20% Rule: On the first day, employees should work no more than 20% of the shift’s duration at full intensity in the heat. The duration of time at full intensity should increase by no more than 20% per day until workers are used to working in the heat.
  • Recognize the signs of heat hazards – slurred speech, abnormal thinking or behavior, seizures and loss of consciousness.

Plan for emergencies and train workers on prevention. If a heat hazard occurs, call 911 immediately, cool the worker with water or ice and stay with them until help arrives.

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Schedule an Audit before the Busy Fall Season

Are you looking for ways to help identify safety risks and correct problems to ultimately prevent workplace injuries and fatalities? Consider having a ResponsibleAg-credentialed auditor complete an audit this summer before the busy fall season starts. To help you prepare for an audit, take a few minutes to review the ResponsibleAg audit checklist. It’s just one of the helpful resources available from ResponsibleAg.

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In case you missed it, read and download Poly Tank Tips to Minimize Risk of Costly Tank Failure.

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“Safety performance among participating TFI member companies continues to outpace our industry peers when compared to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Programs like ResponsibleAg help drive the safety culture and accountability that lead to these results.”

Corey Rosenbusch, President & CEO, The Fertilizer Institute, Arlington, Virginia TFI was key in helping launch ResponsibleAg Program in 2014

“Each and every day, there are agencies and lawmakers trying to put forth measures that could take away a lot of the tools necessary for modern agriculture. Being part of ResponsibleAg and doing what our industry should do shows that the industry is committed to safety, and it goes a long way toward protecting the modern ag tools we provide to farmer customers.”

Richard Gupton, senior vice president for public policy and counsel, Agricultural Retailers Association, Arlington, Virginia ARA was key in helping launch ResponsibleAg Program in 2014

Subscribe to the ResponsibleAg newsletter here: ResponsibleAg Newsletter. Don’t forget to follow us on LinkedIn or on Twitter at @ResponsibleAg.

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News from Around the Industry

Celebrate Your Workplace Safety Successes during OSHA’s Safe + Sound Week

It’s not too late to plan to participate in OSHA’s Safe + Sound Week August 15-21. If you’re looking for ideas or resources to help showcase your ongoing workplace safety efforts, check out OSHA’s tips on developing your safety and health program. Join ResponsibleAg and other businesses that support and participate in this annual nationwide event.

Five Changes EPA Proposes on Use of Atrazine

The EPA recently proposed several revisions to its Sept. 2020 atrazine interim decision, including these five changes to atrazine herbicide labels to decrease atrazine runoff from treated fields:

  • Prohibit application when soils are saturated or above field capacity
  • Prohibit application during rain or when a storm event likely to produce runoff from the treated area is forecast to occur within 48 hours following application
  • Prohibit aerial applications of all formulations
  • Restrict annual application rates to two pounds of active ingredient or less per acre per year or less for applications to sorghum, field corn and sweet corn
  • Add a "picklist" to labels requiring growers to select a combination of application rate reductions and/or runoff control measures when using atrazine in certain watersheds.

For more information or to submit your comments during the 60-day public comment period, visit the Proposed Revisions to the Atrazine Interim Registration Review Decision.

Attend 2022 NAEHSS Safety School – Industry’s Premiere Safety Program, Networking Opportunity

Now’s the time for EHS&S professionals to register for the National Agronomic, Environmental Health and Safety School in Bloomington, Illinois in August. You’ll learn about regulatory issues facing the industry, get the latest safety information and have a chance to network with peers.

Dates: August 23-24
Keynote Speaker: John Buckley, president and CEO, Wilbur-Ellis
Additional Presentations:

  • Are You Committed, Compliant and Safe? – Tim McArdle, Industry Ambassador, ResponsibleAg
  • Safety: Becoming a Person of Influence – Billy Pirkle, vice president, corporate services, Novus Ag, and Kip Landwehr, EHS manager, Land O’ Lakes/Winfield United
  • Updates from the Hill – Richard Gupton, senior vice president, public policy and counsel, Agricultural Retailers Association, and Justin Louchheim, senior director of government affairs, The Fertilizer Institute
  • Anhydrous Ammonia: Understanding, Avoiding and Mediating Inherent Risks – Fred Whitford, PhD director, Purdue Pesticide Programs, Purdue University
Register Now

Welcome ResponsibleAg Credentialed Auditors

ResponsibleAg is excited to introduce newly credentialed ResponsibleAg auditors Brad Harris of J.R. Simplot in Brandon, MS and William Schueler of Valley Agronomics, Nampa, ID. Welcome to the team!

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Nearly 35 More Locations Receive Certification!

Welcome to these facilities that are now Committed, Compliant, Safe and Certified. We'd like to send a special shout out to the locations that have completed recertification, noted below with an asterisk*. The commitment to safety by all these facilities represents an incredibly positive and important effort for our industry. Congratulations to all!

*Claiborne Farmers Co-op - New Tazewell, TN
*Franklin Farmers Co-op - Decherd, TN
*Gavilon Fertilizer LLC - Lake Providence, LA
*Gavilon Fertilizer LLC - Saint Joseph, MO
*GreenPoint Ag - Humphrey, AR
*GreenPoint Ag - Magnolia, MS
*GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Ackley, IA
GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Alburnett, IA
*GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Alden, IA
*GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Alexander, IA
GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Jesup, IA
*GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Maquoketa, IA
*GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Thornton, IA
*GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Waukon, IA
*GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Wheatland, IA
GROWMARK AgVantage FS - Winthrop, IA
*Hancock Farmers Cooperative - Sneedville, TN
 *Lewis County Co-op - Hohenwald, TN
*Lincoln Farmers Co-op - Petersburg, TN
Nutrien Ag Solutions - Billings, MT
*Nutrien Ag Solutions - Haynesville, VA
*Nutrien Ag Solutions - Odebolt, IA
*Perry Farmers Co-op - Linden, TN
*Sequatchie Farmers Co-op - Dunlap, TN
Simplot Grower Solutions - Brownfield, TX
Simplot Grower Solutions - McCook, NE
*Simplot Grower Solutions - Orland, CA
*Simplot Grower Solutions - Othello, WA
*Southeastern Farmers Coop. - Pikeville, TN
*Southwest Virginia Farm Supply - Castlewood, VA
*The McGregor Company - Prescott, WA
Weakley Farmers Co-op - Greenfield, TN
*Weakley Farmers Co-op - Martin, TN
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OUR MISSION

ResponsibleAg is an industry-led initiative committed to helping agribusinesses properly store and handle farm input supplies. The program helps members ensure they are compliant with environmental, health, safety and security regulations to keep employees, customers and our communities safe.