In talking about EHS, is seems like every other sentence has a new acronym. Wouldn’t it be great to have a handy list of industry abbreviations and acronyms at your disposal?
A
- AAR
- Asbestos Analysts Registry
- AAS
- atomic absorption spectrometry
- ABIH
- American Board of Industrial Hygiene
- ACBM
- asbestos-containing building material
- ACGIH
- American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists
- ACM
- asbestos-containing material
- ADA
- Americans with Disabilities Act
- AFL-CIO
- American Federation of Labor – Congress of Industrial Organizations
- AHERA
- Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act
- AIA
- American Institute of Architects
- AIHA
- American Industrial Hygiene Association
- AL
- action level
- AMA
- American Medical Association
- ANSI
- American National Standards Institute
- API
- American Petroleum Institute
- ASHARA
- Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Reauthorization Act
- ASHRAE
- American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers
- ASSE
- American Society of Safety Engineers
- AST
- aboveground storage tank
- ASTM
- American Society for Testing and Materials
B
- BEI
- biological exposure index
- BLS
- Bureau of Labor Statistics
- BNA
- Bureau of National Affairs
- BOMA
- Building Owners and Managers Association
- BRI
- building-related illness
- Btu
- British thermal unit(s); plural is also Btu; no “s” added
- CAA
- Clean Air Act
- CAD
- computer-aided design
- CAS
- Chemical Abstract Service
- CDC
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- CEPPO
- Chemical Emergency Preparedness and Prevention Office
- CERCLA
- Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
- CERCLIS
- CERCLA Information System
- CFC
- chlorofluorocarbon
- cfm
- cubic feet per minute
- CFR
- Code of Federal Regulations
- CPSC
- Consumer Product Safety Commission
- CSHO
- compliance safety and health officer
- CTD
- cumulative trauma disorder
- CWA
- Clean Water Act
- DfE
- Design for Environment
- DoD
- Department of Defense
- DOT
- Department of Transportation
- EBL
- elevated blood lead
- EHS
- Environmental Health and Safety
- EL
- excursion limit
- ELPAT
- Environmental Lead Proficiency Analytical Testing Program
- EMS
- environmental management system
- EPA
- Environmental Protection Agency
- EPCRA
- Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act
- ERMS
- Emission Reduction Market System
- ESA
- Environmental SITE Assessment Process
- ETS
- environmental tobacco smoke
- FDA
- Food and Drug Administration
- FEMA
- Federal Emergency Management Agency
- FESOP
- federally enforceable state operating permit
- FF
- fit factor
- FIFRA
- Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act
- GACT
- generally available control technology
- GFCI
- ground fault circuit interrupter
- H&S
- health and safety
- HAP
- hazardous air pollutant
- HASP
- health and safety plan
- HAZCOM
- Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910.1200); Also known as “Employee Right-to-Know”
- HAZWOPER
- Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard, 29 CFR 1910.120
- HCFC
- hydrochlorofluorocarbon
- HCS
- Hazard Communication Standard
- HEPA
- high efficiency particulate air
- HFS
- Human Factors Society
- HHS
- Health and Human Services Department
- HMIS®
- Hazardous Material Identification System®
- HSWA
- Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments
- HUD
- Department of Housing and Urban Development
- HVAC
- heating, ventilating, and air conditioning
- I&M
- inspection and maintenance
- IAQ
- indoor air quality
- IARC
- International Agency for Research on Cancer
- ICP
- inductively coupled plasma
- ICS
- incident command system
- IESNA
- Illuminating Engineering Society of North America
- IRS
- Internal Revenue Service
- ISO
- International Organization for Standardization
- LBP
- lead-based paint
- LBPPPA
- Lead-Based Paint Poisoning Prevention Act
- LEL
- lower explosive limit
- LEPC
- Local Emergency Planning Committee
- LFL
- lower flammable limit
- MACT
- maximum achievable control technology
- MAP
- Model Accreditation Program
- MCL
- maximum contaminant level
- MSDS
- Material Safety Data Sheet
- MSGP
- multi-sector general permit
- N.O.S.
- not otherwise specified
- NA
- U.S.-recognized letters for hazardous materials shipping between the U.S. and Canada
- NAAQS
- National Ambient Air Quality Standards
- NACM
- Non-asbestos-containing materials
- NAS
- National Academy of Sciences
- NBC
- nuclear, biological, or chemical
- NESHAP
- National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants
- NFPA
- National Fire Protection Association
- NIBS
- National Institute of Building Sciences
- NIOSH
- National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
- NIST
- National Institute for Standards and Technology
- NLLAP
- National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Program
- NOB
- nonfriable organically bound
- NOX
- all oxides of nitrogen
- NPCA
- National Paint and Coatings Association
- NPDES
- National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
- NRC
- Nuclear Regulatory Commission; National Response Center
- NSPS
- New Source Performance Standard
- NTP
- National Toxicology Program
- NVLAP
- National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program
- O&M
- operations and maintenance
- OPA
- Oil Pollution Act; not OPCA (Oil Pollution Control Act)
- OPIM
- other potentially infectious material
- OSHA
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration; not to be confused with the Act
- OVA
- Organic Vapor Analyzer
- PACM
- presumed asbestos-containing material
- PAPR
- powered air-purifying respirator
- PAT
- Proficiency Analytical Testing
- PCB
- polychlorinated biphenyl
- PCM
- phase contrast microscopy
- PCS
- performance characteristic sheets
- PEL
- permissible exposure limit
- PF
- protection factor
- pH
- a measure of acidity or alkalinity
- PID
- Photoionization Detector
- PLM
- polarized light microscopy
- PPA
- Pollution Prevention Act
- PPE
- personal protective equipment
- PRP
- potentially responsible parties
- PSD
- Prevention of Significant Deterioration
- psi
- pounds per square inch
- PSM
- Process Safety Management
- PTE
- potential to emit
- PVC
- polyvinyl chloride
- RACM
- regulated asbestos-containing material
- RAP
- remedial action plan
- RBCA
- risk-based corrective action or “Rebecca”
- RCRA
- Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
- RCRIS
- RCRA Information System
- REC
- recognized environmental condition
- RECLAIM
- Regional Clean Air Incentives Market
- RMP
- risk management program
- RQ
- reportable quantity
- RSI
- repetitive stress injury
- SAP
- sampling and analysis plan
- SARA
- Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act
- SBS
- sick building syndrome
- SCBA
- self-contained breathing apparatus
- SCUBA
- self-contained underwater breathing apparatus
- SDA
- Soap and Detergent Association
- SDWA
- Safe Drinking Water Act
- SERC
- State Emergency Response Plan Commission
- SIC
- Standard Industrial Classification
- SIP
- State Implementation Plan
- SNAP
- Significant New Alternatives Policy
- SOP
- standard operating procedure
- SPCC
- Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasures
- STEL
- short-term exposure limit
- SWPPP
- Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan
- TCLP
- toxicity characteristic leaching procedure
- TDI
- toluene disocyanate
- TDS
- time, distance, and shielding
- TEM
- Transmission Electron Microscopy
- TLV
- threshold limit value
- TOS
- thoracic outlet syndrome
- TPQ
- threshold planning quantities
- TRACEM
- thermal, radioactive, asphyxiation, chemical, etiological, and medical; harm resulting from a terrorist incident
- TRI
- Toxics Release Inventory
- TSCA
- Toxic Substances Control Act
- TSD
- treatment, storage, and disposal facility
- TSI
- thermal system insulation
- TWA
- time-weighted average
- UEL
- upper explosive limit
- UFL
- upper flammable limit
- UL
- Underwriter’s Laboratories Standard of Safety
- UN
- letters recognized for international shipping of hazardous materials
- UN
- United Nations
- USCG
- United States Coast Guard
- USGS
- U.S. Geological Survey
- UST
- underground storage tank
- UV
- ultraviolet
- VOC
- volatile organic compound
- VPP
- Voluntary Protection Program
- WSR
- waste shipment records
- XRF
- X-ray fluorescence
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This article is excerpted from the BOMI International course Environmental Health and Safety Issues, part of the RPA®, FMA®, and SMA® designation programs. More information regarding this course and BOMI International’s education programs is available by calling 1-800-235-2664. Visit BOMI International’s website, www.bomi.org