December 31, 2003—The highest level of American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) membership, the Professional Member, is now open to those with a Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM) certification. In approving the change, ASSE officials noted that all new member applicants with a CHMM designation will now be eligible for automatic classification.
Of ASSE’s 30,000 members, more than 500 have the accredited CHMM certification and nearly 250 are not Professional Members. Those ASSE members with a CHMM may now apply for reclassification to Professional Member. CHMM joins the designations of Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH), Certified Health Physicist (CHP), Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP), U.K.-Institute of Occupational Safety and Health -Registered Safety Professional (IOSH-RSP) and Professional Engineer (P.E.) as the accredited certifications/registrations accepted for Professional Member status in ASSE.
This inclusion is another action taken by ASSE and the Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers (ACHMM) to enhance their mutual efforts in the area of occupational safety, health and the environment. In September 2002 an agreement was signed between ASSE and the ACHMM that states: a) they will seek opportunities for cooperative effort in the areas of government affairs, professional and technical standards development and professional practice; b) encourage a cooperative effort at all levels of their organizations in activities such as professional development and community service; c) use their communications capabilities to promote cooperation, reciprocal activities and mutually beneficial initiatives; d) develop cooperative initiatives of mutual or reciprocal benefit, such as member discounts, product exchanges and publication sales; and, e) establish a respective Board of Director liaison to facilitate communication between the organizations.
ACHMM is a membership organization primarily for people with a CHMM designation. Established in 1985, ACHMM has 10,000 members. While the Institute of Hazardous Materials Management (IHMM) certifies and recertifies CHMMs, certification that began in 1984, the Academy and its affiliated chapters serve as the national membership organization.
ASSE membership categories are Professional Member, Member, Associate Member, International Member and Student Member.
The revised ASSE applications that include the CHMM check box on the application are now available. For more information, contact ASSE.
