FHWA Receives Partnership Award For Worker Health and Safety |
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Federal Highway Administration
July 15, 1999
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, July 15, 1999
Contact: Jim Pinkelman
Tel.: 202-366-0660
FHWA 41-99
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is among several agencies and organizations that has received the first annual Partnership Award for Worker Health and Safety from the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA).
"Safety is President Clinton’s highest transportation priority, and this award is a testament to the success we are achieving in improving highway safety, " Federal Highway Administrator Kenneth R. Wykle said. "We look forward to continuing FHWA’s partnerships with state and local governments and with labor and industry to advance the safety of highway users and workers."
The award was created by NORA to recognize and honor those organizations participating in a NORA-related research partnership that achieves the goal of protecting and enhancing worker health and safety. NORA is a national occupational research agenda developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and its public and private partners to provide a long term frame work for occupational safety and health research.
Among other organizations that shared in the award were the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety, the National Asphalt Pavement Association, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, the International Union of Operating Engineers, the Labors’ Health and Safety Fund of North America, the Labors’ International Union of North America, and the Asphalt Institute.
The FHWA and the other partners set a new benchmark when the hot mix asphalt paving industry voluntarily agreed to use innovative control technology equipment which will reduce worker asphalt fume exposure by 80 percent on all new large highway class highway pavers produced after July 1997.
The partnership was formed amid ongoing debate surrounding the potential health effects of asphalt fume exposure and possible regulatory activity aimed at reducing these exposures. Working together, the FHWA and the other partners ensured that effective control technology, designed and evaluated by NIOSH and its partners, was implemented to protect the 300,000 highway paving workers across the country.