November 14, 2008—The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) on November 10, 2008 announced the results of its biennial membership survey that projects the top public policy issues of concern to AIHA members and the occupational and environmental health and safety (OEHS) profession over the next two years. AIHA says the list allows the organization to focus its efforts on the priorities of its members.
According to Aaron Trippler, AIHA Director of Government Affairs, the results showed a few interesting trends. “The most interesting result from this survey is probably what did not appear as a top public policy issue,” said Trippler. “The issue of emergency preparedness and response was previously one of the top issues. This latest survey did not find this issue anywhere near the top. Obviously, the further we move away from 9/11 the less importance for this issue or our members believe the issue has been sufficiently addressed.
“The other interesting fact is that while updating the PELs again appeared as one of the top issues, previous concerns about the Threshhold Limit Values from two years ago seems to have abated. Another interesting trend was the appearance of the Globally Harmonized System and nanotechnology appearing among the top issues,” Trippler added. “These two issues continue to elicit increased interest from our members and should help us convince policymakers that these issues need to be addressed as soon as possible.”
