Hazard Evaluation

The Dairy Safety Network project brings bilingual and bicultural safety materials and training opportunities to Northwest dairy owners and managers.

Through the Network, the online Dairy Safety Toolkit (DST) provides curated training materials and tools to be used for on-site training of dairy workers. Materials are in English and Spanish.

This portal also provides moderated discussion forums where users can share success stories and have questions answered by moderators.

This small pilot project assessed logging stakeholders’ interests in the use of exoskeletons to reduce musculoskeletal injuries. Due to COVID-19, this needs assessment was conducted through an online survey of Northwest logging workers, safety managers, and educators in Oregon, Idaho, and Washington.

Our survey demonstrates that the NW forestry industry is generally very interested in exoskeleton technologies and is willing to adopt exoskeletons should it be proven to be effective and safe in various logging environments.

This pilot project is developing a novel system, with a simulated environment, where workers identify potential safety concerns and assign a severity rating to the safety concerns. This system will uncover factors in risk decision making for new logging workers, informing future safety training programs.

Due to COVID-19, we had to modify the project’s approach to the simulated scenarios. This challenge led to a creative engagement format that now allows for broader participation.

The hazard of wildfire smoke exposure continues to increase in the Northwest and presents an important health risk to outdoor workers, including those in agriculture. This pilot seeks to develop wildfire decision aid tools driven by data from a high-density network of air quality monitoring sensors in Washington State.