OSHA requirements, lead

OSHA regulations limit the concentration of lead in workroom air to 50 ig/m3 for an 8-hour workday. If a worker has a blood lead level of 50 ig/dL, then OSHA requires that worker be removed from the workroom where lead exposure is occurring. 

OSHA requires employers of workers who are occupationally exposed to a toxic or hazardous substance to institute engineering controls and work practices that maintain or reduce their exposure to a level that is at or below the permissible exposure limit (PEL) established for the substance. For occupational exposures to lead, the employer must use engineering controls and work practices to achieve an occupational exposure of 50 pg/nr3 (0.006 ppm) or lower, based on an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA) (OSHA 1995). When employee exposures to lead can not be maintained at or below 50 pg/rn3... 

In 1998 a Californian (MMWR, 2001) mother requested a blood lead level determination for her 18-month-old child. The result was a blood lead level (BLL) of 26 LLg/dl, which was well above the Center for Disease Control s (CDC) recommended criterion for clinical case management. It was subsequently found that the father had a BLL of 46 ( lg/dl, which was above the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirement that workers with BLLs greater than 40 lg/dl receive additional medical examinations. Further testing found that his 4-month-old daughter had a BLL of 24 Rg/dl. This worker was employed in a company that refinished antique furniture, some of which was covered with lead-based paint. Subsequent testing of co-workers found that two refinishers had BLLs of 29 and 54 Rg/dl and four carpenters had BLLs of 46, 46, 47, and 56 ( lg/dl. A child in another family had a BLL of 16 ( lg/dl. What will be the long-term effects on the intellectual abilities of these children ... 

The Occupational Safety and Health Standards (29 CFR 1910.1025 [2005]) require employers to collect biomonitoring samples from workers who have been exposed to airborne lead above the current action level of 30 pg/m3. Employers must have the samples analyzed by laboratories that have met OSHA requirements for blood lead proficiency testing. State health departments often require that increased blood lead results be reported (OSHA 2005). 

Due to the unique problems presented in the workplace by lead, the sign and label requirements in OSHA s Lead standard, 1910.1025, differ significantly from those already discussed. The following sign must appear at each work area where the OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for lead is exceeded ... 

OSHA considers Lead to mean metallie lead, all inorganic lead compounds (lead oxides and lead salts), and a class of organic compounds called soaps all other lead compounds are excluded from this definition. The OSEIA PEL (8-hour TWA) is 0.050 mg/m other OSHA requirements can be found in 29 CFR 1910.1025. The OSEIA PEL (8 hour-TWA) for lead in non-ferrous foundries with less than 20 employees is 0.075 mg/m. ... 

The primary purpose of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (29 USC 655 et seq) is to ensure, to the extent possible, safe and healthful working conditions for every American worker over his or her working lifetime. OSHA s lead standard requires that a worker who has a single BLL over 60 pg/dL or three BLLs averaging over 50 pg/dL be removed from performing lead work until his or her BLL is under 40 p dL on two occasions. Thus, the current OSHA lead standard recognizes a level of concern for workers who have BLLs of 40-60 pg/dL or higher. The committee therefore focused its attention on whether lead... 

Explain that OSHA requires employers to provide lunchroom facihties or eating areas for employees whose airborne exposure to lead is above the PEL, without regard to the use of respirators. The employer shall assure that Irmchroom facihties or eating areas are as free as practicable from lead contamination and are readily accessible to employees. 

OSHA requires safety signs to indicate specific hazards that, without identification, may lead to accidental injury to workers and/or the public or to property damage. These signs must also be designed with rounded or blunt corners and must be free from sharp edges or other sharp projections. Examples of OSHA regu-... 

When to Re-Monitor. As a minimum, an operation should be resampled if it is moved or modified or you have other reason to suspect the exposure may have increased. Compounds for which OSHA requires initial sampling also have a provision for resampling (e.g., arsenic and lead) when the exposure exceeds the Action Level for the chemical. 

When it comes to working with hazardous materials, both OSHA and the EPA are actively involved in regulations. This chapter focuses on the OSHA requirements. It is unHkely that you will memorize them all, but you should become famiHar with the rules. The reading here is not particularly entertaining, but it is enlightening. At the very least, you need to learn your way around the facts so that you can stay out of trouble on a job site. The information that follows is based on OSHA s view of working with lead on construction sites. 

Chapter 4 OSHA Requirements for Lead Construction 49 TABLE 4.2 Required Action under the OSHA Standard by Exposure Level... 

With the exception of monitoring under paragraph (d)(3), where monitoring is required under this section, the employer shall collect personal samples representative of a full shift including at least one sample for each job classification in each work area either for each shift or for the shift with the highest exposure level. See Table 4.3 for an example of OSHA s lead hazard control assumed exposures. Full shift personal samples shall be representative of the monitored employee s regular, daily exposure to lead. 

Handrailing that is 42 inches high and contains a midrail and toeboard is an OSHA requirement. Employees expose themselves to a fall from the height of the mezzanine floor levels by allowing a section of guardrail to be removed or left open. Falls are the second leading cause of death in the workplace. Anytime a safeguard can be used to prevent a fall, the corrective process is well worth the effort. 

There is no requirement rmder OSHA s lead standard that blood lead laboratories report the OSHA levels at which additional employer obligations are triggered. Likewise, there is no requirement in the standard to report a blood lead level (BLL) of 40pg/dL as normal. The standard requires that blood lead level sampling and analysis be conducted by a laboratoiy licensed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) which has received a satisfactory grade in blood lead proficiency testing from CDC in the prior twelve months. 

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