Saturday, November 9, 2024

Short Takes – 11-9-24 – Space Geek Edition

An asteroid hit Earth just hours after being detected. It was the 3rd 'imminent impactor' of 2024. NewsBreak.com article.  Pull quote: “This asteroid, designated 2024 UQ, was first discovered on Oct. 22 by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) survey in Hawaii, a network of four telescopes that scan the sky for moving objects that might be space rocks on a collision course with Earth. Two hours later, the asteroid burned up over the Pacific Ocean near California, making it an "imminent impactor."”

Sierra Space expands spaceplane fleet with in-house mission control. SpaceNews.com article. Pull quote: “The inaugural flight will send the spaceplane Tenacity to the International Space Station atop a United Launch Alliance Vulcan Centaur expendable rocket. Tenacity is now at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida; Sierra Space spokesperson Alex Walker shared the new May 2025 estimate and said work on Reverence, also known as DC-102, will resume once the team returns to Colorado — but declined to clarify when that would happen. At that point, Walker said, it will likely be another 18 months before the second spaceplane is complete. In addition to the fleet of cargo-carrying craft, Sierra Space is also working on a crewed variant of the vessel, labeled the DC-200 series, and a national security DC-300 variant.”

Gilmour Space secures license for first orbital launch. Spacenews.com article. Pull quote: “The license was the final major milestone for the launch. “With this green light, we will soon attempt the first orbital test flight of an Australian-made rocket from Australian soil,” Adam Gilmour, chief executive of Gilmour Space, said in a statement.”

OMB Approves Methane Emission Reduction Final Rule

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had approved a final rule for the EPA on “Methane Emissions and Waste Reduction Incentive Program for Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems”. The rulemaking was sent to OIRA on September 9th, 2024. The notice of proposed rulemaking was published on January 26th, 2024.

According to the Spring 2024 Unified Agenda entry for this rulemaking:

“The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 adds section 136, Methane Emissions and Waste Reduction Incentive Program” to Title I of the Clean Air Act. This action would implement provisions of Clean Air Act section 136 that require the EPA to collect an annual Waste Emissions Charge (WEC) on methane emissions from oil and natural gas facilities that exceed specific levels of emissions and methane intensity specified in the IRA. The action would establish methodologies for calculating the amount by which a facility’s reported methane emissions are below or in exceedance of the waste emissions threshold, and the total WEC owed after accounting for netting of emissions from facilities under common ownership or control. It would also implement the three exemptions created by Congress for unreasonable delay of permitting, regulatory compliance, and plugged wells. This action would also establish reporting requirements for the WEC.”

I expect this final rule to be published in the Federal Register before November 20th, 2024, with the 60-day effective date to fall before Inauguration on January 20th. That would increase the hoops that the Trump EPA would have to jump through to erase the rule. Publishing after the 20th would allow Trump to negate the rule with a simple executive order.

OSHA Sends Infectious Disease NPRM to OMB

Yesterday, the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received a notice of proposed rulemaking from the DOL’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSAH) on “Infectious Diseases”. OSHA published a request for information on this rulemaking in 2010, and held stakeholder meetings in 2011.

According to the Spring 2024 Unified Agenda entry for this rulemaking:

“Employees in health care and other high-risk environments face long-standing infectious disease hazards such as tuberculosis (TB), varicella disease (chickenpox, shingles), Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), and measles, as well as new and emerging infectious disease threats, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), and pandemic influenza. OSHA is examining regulatory alternatives for control measures to protect employees from exposure to pathogens that can cause significant infectious disease. Workplaces where such control measures might be necessary include: health care, emergency response, correctional facilities, homeless shelters, drug treatment programs, and other occupational settings where employees can be at increased risk of exposure to individuals who are potentially infectious. A standard could also apply to laboratories, which handle materials that may be a source of pathogens, and to pathologists, coroners' offices, medical examiners, and mortuaries.”

Commentary:

It will be interesting to see if the NPRM is written broadly enough to apply to farm workers handling infected animals (cows and chickens predominantly) like we have been seeing in the current bird flu problem.

I will be surprised if this rulemaking is approved by OMB early enough to be published in the Federal Register before the Inauguration next January. Even if it were published, I would expect this rulemaking to languish in the Trump Administration.

Chemical Incident Reporting – Week of 11-2-24

NOTE: See here for series background.

High Point, NC – 10-31-24

Local News Report: Here, here, here and here.

There was an anhydrous ammonia leak at a dairy processing facility. One worker was transported to a local hospital.

Possible CSB reportable, if the worker was admitted to the hospital.

Sanger, CA – 11-4-24

Local News Reports: Here, here, here, and here.

There was anhydrous ammonia leak at a chicken processing facility. The facility was evacuated and a shelter-in-place order was recommended for nearby residents. No injuries have been reported.

Not CSB reportable.

Taft, CA – 11-6-24

Local News Reports: Here and here.

There was a small acrolein leak at a local manufacturing facility. One person self-transported to the hospital. There were no other reports of injuries. A local shelter-in-place advisory was issued for the area around the facility.

Acrolein - A colorless to yellow volatile liquid with a disagreeable choking odor. Flash point below 0°F. Initially irritating to the eyes and mucous membranes. Very toxic by inhalation. Less dense than water (7.0 lb / gal). Vapors heavier than air. Used to make other chemicals, plastics, and as a herbicide.

Probably not CSB reportable.

Colorado Springs, CO – 11-7-24

Local News Reports: Here, here, here, and here.

There was a chlorine leak in the basement of a hotel. The first floor was evacuated, higher floors were told to shelter in place. Three people were treated at the scene for chlorine inhalation.

Not CSB reportable.

Review – Public ICS Disclosures – Week of 11-2-24

This week we have 13 vendor disclosures from Cisco, Hitachi (2), HPE (3), Moxa, Palo Alto Networks (2), QNAP, SEL, Sick, and WatchGuard. We have a vendor update from FortiGuard. Finally, we have 11 researcher reports for vulnerabilities in products from ABB and Delta Electronics (10).

Advisories

Cisco Advisory - Cisco published an advisory that describes a command injection vulnerability in their Unified Industrial Wireless Software.

Hitachi Advisory #1 - Hitachi published an advisory that discusses four vulnerabilities in multiple Hitachi products.

Hitachi Advisory #2 - Hitachi published an advisory that discusses four vulnerabilities in their Cosminexus Developer's Kit for Java and Hitachi Developer's Kit products.

HPE Advisory #1 - HPE published an advisory that discusses the regreSSHion vulnerability. HPE provides a list of Cray products affected by the vulnerability.

HPE Advisory #2 - HPE published an advisory that discusses seven vulnerabilities (one with publicly available exploit) in their Unified OSS Console Assurance Monitoring (UOCAM) Software.

HPE Advisory #3 - HPE published an advisory that describes six vulnerabilities in their Aruba Networking Access Points.

Moxa Advisory - Moxa published an advisory that describes three vulnerabilities in their EDS-P510 Series products.

Palo Alto Networks Advisory #1 - Palo Alto Networks published an advisory that discusses 77 vulnerabilities in their Cortex XDR agent product.

Palo Alto Networks Advisory #2 - Palo Alto Networks published an advisory that discusses a claim of a remote code execution vulnerability via the PAN-OS management interface.

QNAP Advisory - QNAP published an advisory that describes an unidentified vulnerability in their QuRouter.

SEL Advisory - SEL published a new version notice for their Blueframe OS that reports that the latest version resolves two cybersecurity issues.

Sick Advisory - Sick published an advisory that discusses 10 vulnerabilities in their CDE-100 product. These are third-party vulnerabilities.

WatchGuard Advisory - WatchGuard published an advisory that describes an improper privilege management vulnerability in their Endpoint Protection product family.

Updates

FortiGuard Update - FortiGuard published an update for their FortiManager fgfmd daemon advisory that was originally published on October 23rd, 2024, and most recently updated on November 5th, 2024.

Researcher Reports

ABB Report - Zero Science published a report of an off-by-one error vulnerability (with publicly available exploit) in the ABB Cylon Aspect building energy management product.

Delta Reports - Zero Day Initiative published 10 reports describing vulnerabilities in the Delta DIAScreen, a component of the DIAStudio Smart Machine Suite.

 

For more information on these disclosures, including links to 3rd party advisories, researcher reports and exploits, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/public-ics-disclosures-week-of-11-062 - subscription required.

Friday, November 8, 2024

Short Takes – 11-8-24

New polymers to be tested in extreme conditions aboard the International Space Station. ChemistryWorld.com article. Pull quote: “During testing they will need to survive temperatures between -150ºC and 120ºC, space debris travelling seven times faster than a bullet, severe electromagnetic radiation and high vacuum atomic oxygen.”

Trump wins tip scales for GOP on government funding. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: ““It does not matter who is in the White House or who controls the House and the Senate. Close margins in the House next year—and the lack of a supermajority for Republicans in the Senate—mean Democrats and Republicans will still need to work together if we want to pass funding bills,” she [Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D,CT)] said. “Whether we do it now or wait until next year, no single chamber or political party can act alone to fund the programs and services hardworking Americans depend on. Leaving all our work for January is a mistake.” Everyone continues to assume that the new Senate will not change the cloture rule. I would not be surprised to see that changed to a 50-vote requirement (instead of the current 60-vote margin) for spending bills.

A space walking robot could build a giant telescope in space. Phys.org article. Pull quote: “"The capability to assemble complex systems in orbit using one or more robots will be an absolute requirement for supporting a resilient future orbital ecosystem," the authors write. "In the forthcoming decades, newer infrastructures in the Earth's orbits, which are much more advanced than the International Space Station, are needed for in-orbit servicing, manufacturing, recycling, orbital warehouse, Space-based Solar Power (SBSP), and astronomical and Earth-observational stations."” Discussed journal article here.

The chemical enterprise braces for a second Trump presidency. CEN.ACS.org article. Pull quote: “At an event convened by the law firm McDermott Will & Emery in Boston the day after the election, executives discussed whether the shift in power might enable the repeal or rewriting of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Biosecure Act, both of which have proved unpopular with biopharma executives. The IRA gives Medicare the power to negotiate the prices of certain drugs, while the Biosecure Act prevents biopharma companies from using certain manufacturers outside the US. One executive pointed out that Trump has historically been keen on undoing his predecessors’ legacies—but for legislation, that’s easier said than done.”

Antibody Testing Picks Up More H5N1 Cases in Dairy Farm Workers. MedPageToday.com article. Pull quote: “First, the agency expanded the recommendation for who should be tested to include people who were exposed but asymptomatic. "We in public health need to cast a wider net in terms of who is offered a test so that we can identify, treat, and isolate those individuals," Shah said.”

Availability of Five Draft Toxicological Profiles. Federal Register ATSD request for comments. Summary: “The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announces the opening of a docket to obtain comments on drafts of five updated toxicological profiles: benzene, carbon disulfide, cyanide, thallium, and chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins. This action is necessary as this is the opportunity for members of the public and organizations to submit comments on drafts of the profiles. The intended effect of this action is to ensure that the public can note any pertinent additional information or reports on studies about the health effects caused by exposure to the substances covered in these five profiles for review.” Comments due February 6th, 2025.

Starship’s Next Launch Could Be Just Two Weeks Away. Wired.com article. Pull quote: ““Hardware upgrades for this flight add additional redundancy to booster propulsion systems, increase structural strength at key areas, and shorten the timeline to offload propellants from the booster following a successful catch,” the company said. “Mission designers also updated software controls and commit criteria for the booster’s launch and return.””

Transportation Chemical Incidents – Week of 10-5-24

Reporting Background

See this post for explanation, with the most recent update here (removed from paywall).

Data from PHMSA’s online database of transportation related chemical incidents that have been reported to the agency. 

Incidents Summary

• Number of incidents – 539 (505 highway, 27 air, 7 rail, 0 water)

• Serious incidents – 3 (3 Bulk release, 0 evacuation, 0 injury, 0 death, 1 major artery closed, 0 fire/explosion, 33 no release)

• Largest container involved – 30,270-gal DOT 117R100W Railcar {Alcohols, N.O.S.} Bottom valve open and cover loose.

• Largest amount spilled – 8,400-gal Tank Truck { Gasohol Gasoline Mixed With Ethyl Alcohol, With Not More Than 10% Alcohol} Tank truck in roll-over truck accident, liquid contents leaked out through vent line.

NOTE: Links above are to Form 5800.1 for the described incidents.

Most Interesting Chemical: Ferric Chloride, Solution: A colorless to light brown aqueous solution that has a faint hydrochloric acid odor. Highly corrosive to most metals and probably corrosive to tissue. Noncombustible. Used in sewage treatment and water purification. (Source: CameoChemicals.NOAA.gov). This chemical is one of the frequent causes of chlorine gas releases at water treatment plants and wastewater treatment plants when it is added to bleach storage tanks by mistake.

 



 
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