Participants: The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration, North Texas Exploration & Production Safety Network

Description: The department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration met with North Texas Exploration & Production Safety Network association during a formal ceremony at the University of Texas at Arlington March 18, to kick-start the group again. The group raises awareness and promotes safety and health practices at U.S. oil and gas exploration and production sites in North Texas. Following the presentations, participants shared best practices with the group as a way to promote ideas on identified hazards and finding solutions. The volunteer organization, established in 2008, will continue to meet the third Friday of each month in order to share safety and health information, show best practices and discuss a variety of topics present in the oil and gas industry that can be passed along to workers and contractors to reduce injuries and fatalities. The NTEPS group is a volunteer organization in North Texas that is an independent network of the STEPS group that was started by OSHA and the oil and gas industry in 2003 in an attempt to reduce injuries and fatalities. The STEPS organization has grown to include 22 of the independent networks serving 19 oil-and-gas-producing states. Many of the networks have signed formal alliances with OSHA.

Quote: "We are excited about working with NTEPS to be able to train and share information that will make it safer for workers in the oil and gas industry," said Jack Rector, OSHA's area director in the Fort Worth office. "It is the employer's responsibility to provide a safe workplace for their employees and to ensure they have the necessary training to identify hazards before someone is injured or killed; and NTEPS will serve as an excellent resource to communicate safety and health prevention information to the industry and save lives."

At the University of Texas at Arlington; Jack Rector, OSHA's area Director in Fort Worth met Russell Payton, North Texas Exploration & Production Safety Network to discuss ideas on how to save more lives in the Oil and Gas in North Texas