The Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER) applies to five distinct groups of employers and their employees. These include any employees who are exposed or potentially exposed to hazardous substances — including hazardous waste — and who are engaged in one of the following operations:

• clean-up operations — required by a governmental body, whether federal, state, local, or other involving hazardous substances — that are conducted at uncontrolled hazardous waste sites;
• corrective actions involving clean-up operations at sites covered by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA) as amended (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.);
• voluntary clean-up operations at sites recognized by federal, state, local, or other governmental body as uncontrolled hazardous waste sites;
• operations involving hazardous wastes that are conducted at treatment, storage, and disposal facilities regulated by Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations Parts 264 and 265 pursuant to RCRA, or by agencies under agreement with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to implement RCRA regulations; and
• emergency response operations for releases of, or substantial threats of releases of, hazardous substances regardless of the location of the hazard.

(Further information can be obtained in osha documents as specified by 1910.120 and 1926.65)

OSHA has authorized several specific HAZMAT training courses know has the hazwoper training courses.These courses are comprised of the 40 hour hazwoper, 24 hour hazwoper and the 8 hour hazwoper refresher course. 

Many OSHA authorized sites like OSHAu.com offer hazwoper training courses online.  These courses can be taken in self-paced downloadable modules which allow the student to complete the required training at their leisure.  Online training also offers employers the benefit of allowing their employees to take the required training from any internet-based computer eliminating travel costs and while maintaining productivity. The benefits of online training are realized through increased safety and health of employees and an increased protection of our environment and it's resources. 

HazMat Training Tools - from BullEx

When you are asked to be the one to take photos of the wedding is a huge responsibility.If you've been approached to do it as a friend, or maybe asked to do it as a professional, here are 5 great tips to do the job right.

This tips are coming from first hand experience as a San Diego wedding photographer.You could be a seasoned pro, or you could be an amateur, but by following these tips, you will do the job smoothly without second guessing yourself.  You will be fully prepared for whatever may come.

Our first tip is pretty simple and that is to have the couple and their families make a list for you of shots they want to take.When you know the day will be hectic and chaotic, doing this will help you get the family and group shots later on in the day more smoothly.You will love how you can just go through your list and get all the shots you want without leaving anything out.

The second tip on our list is to not delete any shots.  In this day and age of digital cameras, most photographers use them.  Great as they are, they also are tempting to delete a shot since it is so easy to do.  Don't even look at the previews.What you think may be a great photo, can differ widely in what the couple considers a great photo.You never know, they might like all those so called un "professional shots.

For the the third tip, make sure you get candid shots during and after the wedding.A good wedding photographer doesn't look to just take your typical shots, like group shots, or wedding shots or your standard newly married shots.  But they will also try and capture the emotions of the day through the shots of all the people that were there.It could include things that don't go perfectly, like a flower girl not wanting to walk down the aisle or the ring bearer making a wrong turn.Every picture counts.

The fourth tip is which is often overlooked is to make sure you have several cameras and other equipment as backup.Do you even want to think of a moment like that of not having a working camera halfway through the wedding.  Plan for anything that could go wrong.  Being prepared will help you avoid that uncomfortable moment of not having a working camera to capture the rest of the day.

Last piece of advice, make sure you know the lighting of the wedding. The difference between the lighting in the church and the outside reception can throw you a curve ball, so just practice for all different lighting situations. Go see the locations and scout it out for the big day, by finding the best places to shoot as well as studying the lighting needs.

Doing these 5 tips will help you immensely.  It will prepare you for whatever might go wrong, it will prepare you for capturing what goes right, and it will prepare you to help contribute to this wonderful day by being the best photographer you can be.  Take it from my years of experience as a San Diego photographer.

Learn Wedding Photography - Natural Light Photography Tips by Davide Greene