|
Crystalline Silica Rule Pending at OIRA
The Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica proposed rule was received by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs on Feb. 14. If the NPRM is published in April as planned, the agency will be trying to lower its PELS for general industry, construction, and maritime.
April 2011 will be a significant month on OSHA's rulemaking calendar if two economically significant proposed rules stay on track. The Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica proposed rule, which was received by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs on Feb. 14, is listed there with April as the date for issuing the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. And April also is the date given for OSHA to initiate a Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) review of a proposed combustible dust standard for general industry.
The two rules have been on the agency's agenda for some time. OSHA's PEL (8-hour TWA) for crystalline silica as respirable quartz is 10 mg/m3 divided by the value "%SiO2 + 2." The OSHA PEL (8-hour TWA) for crystalline silica as total quartz is 30 mg/m3 divided by the value "%SiO2 + 2." The NIOSH recommended exposure limit is far lower -- TWA 0.05 mg/m3 -- yet twice as high as the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH)'s recommended level of TWA 0.025 mg/m3.
NIOSH and OSHA have estimated in recent years that from 1.7 million to 2 million U.S. workers are exposed to crystalline silica. Exposures at high levels can cause silicosis, a potentially fatal disease.
Employees can be exposed during work in foundries, industries that have abrasive blasting operations, paint manufacture, glass and concrete product manufacture, brick making, china and pottery manufacture, the manufacture of plumbing fixtures, and many construction activities, including highway repair, masonry, concrete work, rock drilling, and tuckpointing, OSHA says. The agency plans to lower the PELs for general industry, construction, and maritime.
Unlike crystalline silica, OSHA has no existing standard that addresses combustible dust hazards. OSHA published an ANPRM in October 2009, held three stakeholder meetings soon after, and held a webchat for combustible dust on June 28, 2010.
The SBREFA process works this way: OSHA convenes a panel of officials from its staff, the Small Business Administration's Chief Counsel for Advocacy, and the Office of Management and Budget's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, which already has the crystalline silica rule. The panel hears comments from representatives of small businesses and reviews the draft proposed rule and OSHA impact analyses. The panel is supposed to send a written report to OSHA within 60 days. OSHA reviews the report, revises the rule if necessary, and publishes the proposed rule with the panel's report in the Federal Register.
NIOSH Publishes Beryllium Alert
The document explains in English and Spanish what workers and employers should do to prevent sensitization and diseases related to beryllium exposure.
NIOSH has published a new Alert devoted to beryllium. Titled "Preventing Sensitization and Disease from Beryllium Exposure," the document warns that cases of beryllium sensitization and chronic beryllium disease have been reported from exposures below the current OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit of 2.0 micrograms per cubic meter (?g/m3) of air and the current NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit (REL) of 0.5 ?g/m3. A safe exposure limit for beryllium has not been determined, it says.
Workers have been studied who were exposed to beryllium dust, fumes, or mists -- it is both a respiratory and a skin hazard -- in industries including nuclear weapons production, ceramics, mining, ore milling, precision machining, construction, and aluminum smelting, according to the document.
"Workers in various sectors of the beryllium industry are at risk of developing serious respiratory disease following exposure to beryllium," it states. "More action is needed to (1) identify workers exposed to beryllium who may not know that they are exposed, (2) improve protective measures for exposed workers, (3) reduce/minimize both overall exposures and, when possible, the number of exposed workers, (4) educate workers about the hazards of working with beryllium, (5) determine the characteristics of exposures (e.g., particle size, shape, surface area, and chemical form) that are associated with increased risk, and (6) identify industrial and occupational sectors that use beryllium and target them for prevention efforts."
The document explains in English and Spanish what workers and employers should do to prevent sensitization and diseases related to beryllium exposure, discussing housekeeping, respiratory protection, PPE, HEPA-filtered vacuums, medical surveillance, and more.
New Standard Offers Test Method for Apparel Resistance
The ASTM F2878 standard addresses the mechanics of hypodermic needle punctures in protective clothing.
A new ASTM International standard will help risk managers and end users protect workers in various industries from the dangers of needlesticks. The risk of infection from bloodborne pathogens is real for health care workers, law enforcement officers, and sanitation workers, among others. The new ASTM F2878, Test Method for Protective Clothing Material Resistance to Hypodermic Needle Puncture, was developed by Subcommittee F23.20 on Physical, part of ASTM International Committee F23 on Personal Protective Clothing and Equipment.
"Over the past several years, a number of new protective equipment technologies have been developed to prevent needlestick. However, there has been no standardized test method available for technology developers and users to reference when conducting comparative analysis," said John Cronin, product manager at Warwick Mills Inc. and an F23 member. "With the publication of ASTM F2878, there is now an appropriate method for conducting comparative analysis of hypodermic needle puncture resistance."
This test method is used to determine the force required to cause a sharp-edged puncture probe (hypodermic needle) to penetrate through protective clothing material. The standard says three test probes may be used: 21-, 25-, or 28-gauge needles.
Needlesticks can occur in various dynamic environments, so no single standard can fully replicate the conditions where the apparel will be exposed to them, he said. "However, ASTM F2878 addresses a critical gap in users' ability to look at overall personal protective equipment performance in a comprehensive way," Cronin said. "Users of needle-resistant personal protective equipment can now make an apples-to-apples performance comparison when evaluating various forms of protection."
To purchase this or other ASTM standards, visit www.astm.org and search by the standard designation number or contact ASTM Customer Relations at 610-832-9585 or service@astm.org.
Gas Station Fire Safety Tips
Since 1980, the number of vehicle fires at service stations has more than doubled, partly because of the increase in the number of vehicles on the road, while structure fires and other fires decreased by 10 percent. Starting in the late 1990s, NFPA and other organizations have received isolated reports of flash fires, apparently caused by static electricity, while patrons were pumping gasoline.
Facts and figures
| * |
An estimated 7,400 fires and explosions occurred at public service stations per year from 1994 through 1998. That means that, on average, one in every 13 service stations experienced a fire. These 7,400 fires caused an annual average of two civilian deaths, 70 civilian injuries and $18 million in property damage.
|
| * |
Of those 7,400 fires, nearly two-thirds (4,620) involved vehicles. Vehicle fires led to an annual average of one civilian death, 37 civilian injuries and $7.7 million in property damage.
|
| * |
Mechanical or electrical problems caused three out of four vehicle fires at public service stations.
|
Safety tips
| * |
Turn off your vehicle's engine when refueling.
|
| * |
Keep gasoline and other fuels out of children's sight and reach. Gasoline is highly toxic in addition to being a fire hazard. NEVER allow a child to pump gas.
|
| * |
Don't smoke, light matches or use lighters while refueling.
|
| * |
Pay attention to what you're doing. Pumping gas is the transfer of a hazardous substance; don't engage in other activities.
|
| * |
If you must use any electronic device, such as cell phones, computers or portable radios while refueling, follow manufacturer's instructions.
|
| * |
Use only the refueling latch on the gasoline dispenser nozzle, if there is one. Do not jam the latch with an object to hold it open.
|
| * |
To avoid spills, do not top off or overfill your vehicle.
|
| * |
After pumping gasoline, leave the nozzle in the tank opening for a few seconds to avoid drips when you remove it.
|
| * |
If a fire starts while you're refueling, don't remove the nozzle from the vehicle or try to stop the flow of gasoline. Leave the area immediately and call for help.
|
| * |
Don't get in and out of your vehicle while refueling. A static electric charge can develop on your body as you slide across the seat, and when you reach for the pump, a spark can ignite gasoline vapor.
|
| * |
If you must get into the vehicle during refueling, discharge any static electricity by touching metal on the outside of the vehicle, away from the filling point, before removing the nozzle from your vehicle.
|
| * |
Use only approved portable containers for transporting or storing gasoline. Make sure the container is in a stable position.
|
| * |
Never fill a portable container when it is in or on the vehicle. Always place the container on the ground first. Fires caused by static charges have occurred when people filled portable containers in the back of pick-up trucks, particularly those with plastic bed liners. Removing the container will also prevent a dangerous spill of gasoline.
|
| * |
When filling a portable container, keep the nozzle in direct contact with the container. Fill it only about 95 percent full to leave room for expansion.
|
|
