Diane Trainor, Ph.D., CHCM Certified Hazard Control Manager & Workplace Safety Expert

Environmental Experience

• Environmental expert since 1975. Extensive experience as an environmental consultant.
• Performed air sampling surveys to evaluate indoor and outdoor levels of gases including:
• carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, oxygen, formaldehyde, lead, asbestos, silica, most metals, variety of pesticides (specifically chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides), organic vapors, dust, industrial solvents, including benzene, toluene, xylene, trichloroethylene, methyl ethyl ketone, and methylene chloride.
• Conducted indoor air quality surveys to evaluate employee complaints including:
• Molds, odors, exposure to dust, exposure to asbestos, poor air quality, sick building syndrome, metal exposure, and organic vapor exposure, specifically organic solvents.
• Performed water, wastewater, and soil sampling to determine compliance with local, state, and federal standards. Samples collected from a variety of industries. Both grab and composite sampling have been performed.
• Evaluated municipal incinerator ash for metal content and potential worker exposure.
• Prepared air permit applications for commercial printing presses, heating units, and photographic equipment.
• Conducted annual Right to Know surveys for a variety of different industries including: commercial printers, electroplaters, chemical plants, public schools, aircraft fabricators, electronics assembly, paint manufacturers, and steel plants.
• Performed hazardous waste compliance surveys in a variety of different industries.
• Conducted environmental audits at Fortune 500 companies to evaluate need for pollution liability insurance.
• Investigated pesticide misapplication and environmental contamination incidents involving chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides:
  • Air sampling - chlorinated pesticides (specifically termiticides, including chlordane, heptachlor, aldrin, dieldrin); formaldehyde in homes.
  • Environmental contamination of property and contents.
  • Methods of decontamination to be used to decontaminate private homes; performed decontamination of private homes and commercial buildings for pesticide contamination and heating oil spills.
  • Health effects of exposure to chlorinated pesticides.
  • Indoor air quality concerns.
• Prepared Phase I environmental site assessments (ESA’s) in accordance with American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM’s) standard for Phase I ESA’s.
• Performed stack sampling on commercial exhaust stacks.
• Performed noise surveys to evaluate production noise and compliance with Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and community noise standards.

Occupational Safety & Health

• 45 years of experience performing Occupational Safety & Health surveys in industrial settings including: steel plants, foundries, oil rigs (on land), oil refineries, chemical processing plants, flavor and fragrance plants, electronic assembly, recreational vehicle manufacturing, perfume fabricators, auto assembly, printing plants, newspaper printers, and explosive manufacturing.
• Evaluated potential hazardous occupational health exposures. In many cases, personal air sampling was conducted to quantify these exposures. Collected samples for a wide range of potential exposures including: asbestos, lead, silica, organic vapors, formaldehyde, mold, carbon monoxide, oxygen, and carbon dioxide.
• Evaluated compliance with the OSHA standards regarding the following:
• machine guarding, personal protective equipment, noise, ventilation, forklift safety, lockout/tagout programs, recordkeeping, training programs, fire extinguisher safety, bloodbourne pathogen programs, general safety conditions, and health hazard awareness.
• Trained workers in the following areas: Right to Know; lockout/tagout, forklift safety, bloodbourne pathogens, lifting, personal protective equipment, fire extinguishers, general safety, and health hazard awareness.
• Conducted Occupational Noise surveys to evaluate noise exposure levels.
• Evaluated ventilation systems for compliance with OSHA lab standard.
• Completed recordkeeping compliance surveys.
• Prepared control strategies for industries.

Ergonomics/human Factors

• Performed lifting analysis and training at commercial printing plants and newspapers.
• Performed repetitive motion analysis at printing plants, auto assembly and a major utility company.
• Conducted force measurement surveys at US Post Office and a major utility company.
• Conducted electromyography (EMG) studies on workers with musculoskeletal injuries to evaluate the extent of the injuries.
• Evaluated environmental factors, such as temperature, humidity, lighting, and ventilation in a variety of industrial environments.
• Performed specific repetitive motion analysis at a number of US Post office locations.
• Designed warning signs for hazardous equipment and work locations so that workers take appropriate actions to avoid injury.
• Evaluated workstation design to identify causes of postural stress and design changes to eliminate or reduce awkward postures that can lead to cumulative trauma disorders.
• Evaluated the visual demands of a task and provided appropriate recommendations to reduce postural stress.
• Evaluated dashboard design on buses to determine proper ergonomic placement of knobs, switches and dials.
• Evaluated visual perception of objects using contrast, proper lighting and control of glare.

Professional Experience

Provide technical investigations, analysis, reports, and testimony toward the resolution of litigation involving environmental and occupational safety and health, indoor air quality and ergonomics. Participated in depositions and trial testimony involving pesticide misapplications and indoor exposures, mold contamination and exposure, indoor oil spills and contamination.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2018 - Present Adjunct Professor
2012 - 2017 Professor
2001 - 2012 Chairperson – Department of Chemistry/Physics
1975 - 2001 Professor

 

 

Training Courses/Seminars Prepared & Presented

• Hazardous Waste Management
• Industrial Hygiene
• Community Sanitation
• Respiratory Protection
• Asbestos
• OSHA Law
• OSHA in the Chemical Industry
• Women in the Work Environment
• Chemical Hazards in the Workplace
• Occupational Health Hazards
• Right to Know
• Basic Principles of Industrial Hygiene for Insurance Underwriters
• Evaluation of Risks Associated with a Pollution Liability Program for Insurance Underwriters

Associated Academic Activities

• Shell sponsored Process Technology Teacher Workshop, Gulf of Mexico, 2008
• Shell sponsored Process Technology Teacher Workshop, Alaska, 2006
• National Science Foundation Chemical Process Technology Summer Workshop for high school girls, 2006 to 2009
• National Science Foundation STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) grant, Middlesex County College, 2004 to 2006
• Member of the National Science Foundation Visiting Committee – CAPT (Center of the Advancement of Process Technology), Houston, TX, 2003 to 2005
• Developed the following degree programs at Middlesex County College:
• Associate in Science in Earth Science
• Associate in Applied Science in Chemical Process Technology
• Associate in Science in Environmental Sustainability, Middlesex County College
• Chemical Hygiene Officer, Middlesex County College, 1994 to 2001
• Participant in a two year NSF grant to develop a 4 credit Math/Science course for Liberal Arts students, focusing on Environmental Science, 1996 to 1998
• 40 Hour Hazwoper Certification, 1997

Professional Credentials

Certified Hazard Control Manager. 1999

Education

• Ph.D., Occupational Safety and Health, Ergonomics, New York University, 1989
• M.A., Occupational Safety and Health, New York University, 1979
• M.S., Environmental Science, University of Minnesota, 1973

Professional Memberships & Affiliations

American Water Environment Association
North American Process Technology Association

v. 03/20/23