Hazardous waste operations and emergency response standard HAZWOPER

The Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER), 29 CFR Part 1910.120, applies to five distinct groups of employers and their employees. This includes any employees who are exposed or potentially exposed to hazardous substances—including hazardous waste—and who are engaged in one of the following operations as specified by 1910.120 ... 

The Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER 29 CFR 1910.120) was issued by OSHA in March 1990. These regulations serve as a guide to a safety and health plan for hazardous waste operations. 

The term HAZWOPER is used to describe OSHA s hazardous waste operations and emergency response standard. HAZWOPER is broken down into the following areas ... 

The acronym HAZWOPER is often used when referring to OSHA s Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response standard. The standard covers two important parts... 

OSHA issued a special regulation dealing with chemical spills. The standard, 29 CFR 1910.120, is called the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response, or HAZWOPER. The standard covers two important parts of a plant s operation emergency response and hazardous waste operations. Emergency response roles consist of five levels—first responder awareness level, first responder operations level, hazardous materials technician, specialist level, and incident commander. Hazardous waste operations consists of the incident command system, scene safety and control, spill control and containment, decontamination procedures, and the all clear. 

The mission of the OSHA is to save lives, prevent injuries, and protect the health of employees in the workplace.25 OSHA accomplishes these goals through several regulatory requirements including the hazard communication standard (HCS) and the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Worker Protection Standard (HAZWOPER). 

In addition to federal regulations, additional state, county, and local regulations may also apply. In no way should the above discussion on governmental regulation be considered inclusive and the reader is referred to other sources, particularly those found in the Code of Federal Regulations available on the Internet, These include 29 CFR 1910,120 Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER), Respiratory Standards are found in 29 CFR 1910,134, and 42 CFR 84 is the location of the new NIOSH CBRN standards, and a fisting of NIOSH-approved CBRN equipment,... 

Examples of the OSHA standards requiring hazard analyses, either directly or indirectly, include 29 CFR 1910.119 and 29 CFR 1926.64 [Process Safety Management], 29 CFR 1910.120 and 29 CFR 1926.65 [Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER)], 29 CFR 1910.1200 and 29 CFR 1926.59 [Hazard Commurrication], 29 CFR 1910.1450 [Occupational... 

Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER)—An OSHA standard that addresses chemical spills and releases. 

HazWoper—The OSHA standard on hazardous waste operations and emergency response (29 CFR 1910.120) paragraph (q) of the standard covers employers whose employees are engaged in emergency response to hazardous substance releases. 

DOE-STD-1120 provides guidance for preparing a DSA for decommissioning of nuclear facilities, as well as environmental restoration activities that involve work not done within a permanent structure (DOE-STD-1120-2005). Methodologies provided in this standard are compliant with 10 CFR 830, Subpart B—Safety Basis Requirements. The standard is written to make the maximum utilization of the provisions of 29 CFR 1910.120 or 29 CFR 1926.65— Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER). Derivation of controls is also necessary for facility decommissioning projects that involve more than "low level residual fixed radioactivity."... 

HAZWOPER Acronym for the OSHA standard entitled Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response. Codified as 29 CFR 1910.120. Designed to protect the health and safety of individuals treating hazardous wastes, or performing environmental cleanups or emergency response actions. 

For many years, I have worked with companies that required yearly physicals from all field workers as mandated by the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) standard. If a worker left the company, he or she was expected to get an exit physical. The worker could take the results from this exit physical and go to the new employer, present the exit physical, and use this as a preemployment physical for the new job. Likewise, the companies I have worked for have routinely accepted the exit physical from competitors as preemployment physicals for our new employees. This appeared to be a sound practice because it worked out seemingly well for many years. 

OSHA also has a special regulation dealing specifically with spills of hazardous chemicals. This regulation, called the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) standard, is found at 29 CFR 1910.120 and has direct applicability to the chemical industry workplaces where hazardous chemicals are used. 

The committee was informed that operating and maintenance personnel from at least two plants are trained to Level 1 of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration s (OSHA) Hazardous Waste and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER). Emergency responders also receive HAZWOPER training, which is required for cleanup operations at RCRA-permitted sites. 

Any site-related activities such as bench-scale laboratory and R D activities should comply with the OSHA Laboratory Standard (29 CER 1910.1450). R D activities involving pilot- or full-scale field operations should comply with HAZWOPER when there is reasonable possibility for worker exposure to hazardous wastes or substances or emergency response. 

---