For some, it means the realization of a dream they never thought would come true, and we join the members of the American Society of Safety Engineers in congratulating President-Elect Barack Obama on his election and applaud his and Senator John McCain’s campaigns for the debate about the future of our nation.

Some occupational, health and safety (OHS) issues the nation faces include updating Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs), the consensus-based limits that indicate how long an individual can be exposed to a particular substance without experiencing harmful effects.

Many PELs have not been updated since the 1960s and 1970s, and the American Industrial Hygiene Association says science in this area has matured, but the PELs have not. AIHA says continued work with OSHA, Congress and others is needed to reach a consensus on the best way to update the PELs.

In its biennial survey, AIHA members also included MSDS, global harmonization and nanotechnology in a list of issues facing the OHS industry. AIHA says it supports efforts to improve the accuracy of MSDS and to improve hazard communication. Such efforts are also a crucial element in protecting workers and others in case of national emergencies. A major part of improving hazard communication is adoption of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Interestingly, emergency preparedness and response did not appear as a top public policy issue in the survey, and we find this concerning.

“The issue of emergency preparedness and response was previously one of the top issues. This latest survey did not find this anywhere near the top,” said Aaron Trippler, AIHA director of Government Affairs. “Obviously, the further we move away from 9/11 the less importance for this issue, or our members believe the issue has been sufficiently addressed.”

We hope so, and urge the Obama administration to be vigilant in the War on Terror. Though a disastrous economy and two wars will be at the top of his priority list, there is also work to be done to protect U.S. workers.

ASSE says it expects that with Obama’s leadership, creative and meaningful ways to confront long-standing occupational safety and health issues can be resolved by encouraging the safety and health community to work with an Obama Administration and Congress to save lives and prevent injuries and illnesses.

“We fully support President-Elect Obama in saying that this is not the time to fall back on the same partisanship, which, as in other issues facing this nation, has marked the occupational safety and health debate in recent years,” said ASSE.

So do we. Thanks, and good luck.