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Where do we gofrom here? (Andhow do we getthere?)
The beginning of a new year al-ways brings about a certainamount of anticipation of what
will be in store for us in the monthsahead. Goals are made and plans areexcitedly set in motion to achievethose goals. As we move into the newyear at Chemical Health & Safety, I’dlike to share some of the excitementthe editorial staff has been experienc-ing concerning the future of the jour-nal.
Knowing where we want to be in thenext several years is paramount. Thefundamental goal of the journal remainsunchanged: Chemical Health & Safetyis to be the premier resource for chem-ical safety professionals worldwide.
Since its creation, Chemical Health& Safety has evolved into a resourcefor the Chemical Hygiene Officer, theprincipal safety professional in thelaboratory. After nearly a decade ofthe laboratory standard, I have wit-nessed the position of Chemical Hy-giene Officer evolve into somethingmuch larger than a technical chemicalsafety expert. CHOs have become, outof necessity, “laboratory safety profes-sionals.” In many facilities, CHOs areresponsible for radiation and biologi-cal safety, waste disposal, and manyindustrial hygiene functions, such as
indoor air quality and even fork-liftsafety! “Laboratory safety” now in-cludes topics such as hazardous wastemanagement, laser safety, electricalsafety, as well as many other topicsnot normally associated with chemis-try. Just as “chemistry” has evolved toinclude topics such as material sci-ence, biology, and physics, the chem-ical safety profession has evolved toinclude much more than chemistry.
During the same ten years, I havealso come to realize there is muchmore to “chemical safety” than “labo-ratory safety.” Many chemical safetyissues occur outside the confines ofthe laboratory. Certainly we find our-selves needing chemical safety infor-mation in the pilot plant duringscale-up work or during hazardousmaterial clean-up operations. Ever in-creasingly however, we find it neces-sary to have chemical safety informa-tion—and more—in the field wheresamples are drawn for analyses, oreven in our own homes on a springweekend before we “weed and feed”our lawns. The line of demarcationbetween chemical safety and labora-tory safety has blurred as the profes-sion has developed during the last de-cade.
The editorial board has recognizedthe evolution of the chemical safetyprofession. In order to be a more com-plete resource for all safety profession-als and chemical safety professionalsin particular, CH&S has started to ex-pand coverage into areas such aschemical pilot plant safety, aspects ofbiological and radiation safety, facility
remodeling and reconstruction, chem-ical toxicology, hazardous materialsresponse, incident review and cri-tique, and any other area that is usefulto the CHO or to any other personresponsible for chemical safety. Weeagerly anticipate addressing chemicalsafety issues in Europe and Asia as ourreadership increases outside of theNorth American continent.
One of our most underdevelopedareas at CH&S is sharing the lessonslearned from solving complex safetyproblems. I am positive there are a fairnumber of CHOs and industrial hy-gienists reading this editorial whohave had experiences worth sharingwith the rest of us. I would like tochallenge you to share some of thoseexperiences. As we read about howothers have overcome difficult prob-lems and the lessons they havelearned in the process, we becomemore efficient at what we do. A criticaldiscussion of lessons learned is alwayswin–win.
Is CH&S moving away from the lab-oratory? In a word, no! However, thejournal is maturing to include all areasof chemical health and safety, insideand outside the laboratory. So, wheredo we go from here? Forward, ofcourse. How do we get there? To-gether.
Harry J. ElstonEditor
Editor’s Note
It’s dues time again at the American Chemical Society, and that includes Division dues as well. Timelypayment of your division dues is the ticket to continuing your subscription to Chemical Health &Safety.
Starting with the May/June issue, delinquent and other unpaid members of the division will no longerreceive the journal. If you have any question as to your payment status, I would encourage you tocontact the division secretary, Dr. Sung Moon.
If you’re having problems receiving the journal, especially if you’re a division affiliate (non-ACSmember), please contact the division as soon as possible. It is our sincere desire to insure promptdelivery to you.
31074-9098/00/$20.00 © Division of Chemical Health and Safety of the American Chemical SocietyPII S1074-9098(99)00072-6 Published by Elsevier Science Inc.
EDITORIAL