OSHA Fines Texas Battery Recycler

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Exide Technologies, headquartered in Milton, Ga., for one serious and one repeat violation at its battery recycling facility in Frisco, Tex. OSHA initiated a Feb. 7 safety and health inspection after receiving a referral that alleged workers were being exposed to lead while recycling lead batteries.

OSHA has proposed penalties totaling $77,000.

In a release, Stephen Boyd, OSHA’s area director in Dallas, says, "This company should have implemented engineering and work practice controls to prevent workers from being exposed to hazardous concentrations of lead. OSHA's standards must be followed to prevent injuries and fatalities."

The serious violation was cited for failing to ensure that employees who worked more than eight hours during a workday were not exposed to lead at concentrations greater than the reduced permissible exposure limit.

The repeat violation was cited for failing to prevent exposure to lead at concentrations greater than 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air over an eight-hour period and failing to implement engineering and work practice controls to reduce and maintain employees' exposure to lead. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.

OSHA adds that it cited the company's Fort Smith, Ark., facility in June 2008 and Exide’s Laureldale, Pa., facility in January 2009 for similar violations with proposed penalties of $36,600 and $52,400, respectively.