296-62-07517 Reserved. 296-62-07519 Thiram. 296-62-07521 Lead.
296-62-07523 Benzene. (This section has been moved to WAC
296-849 Benzene, effective March 1, 2005) 296-62-07531
Appendix D-Sampling and analytical methods for benzene monitoring
and measurement procedures 296-62-07540
Formaldehyde. 296-62-07542
Appendix A-Substance technical guidelines for formalin. 296-62-07544
Appendix B-Sampling strategy and analytical methods for formaldehyde. 296-62-07546
Appendix C-Medical surveillance-Formaldehyde. 296-62-07548
Appendix D-Nonmandatory medical disease questionnaire-Formaldehyde. 296-62-076
Methylenedianiline (MDA). 296-62-07601
Scope and application-MDA. 296-62-07603
Definitions-MDA. 296-62-07605
Permissible exposure limits (PEL)-MDA. 296-62-07607
Emergency situations-MDA. 296-62-07609
Exposure monitoring-MDA. 296-62-07611
Regulated areas-MDA. 296-62-07613
Methods of compliance-MDA. 296-62-07615
Respiratory protection-MDA. 296-62-07617
Protective work clothing and equipment-MDA. 296-62-07619
Hygiene facilities and practices-MDA. 296-62-07621
Communication of hazards to employees-MDA. 296-62-07623
Housekeeping-MDA. 296-62-07625
Medical surveillance-MDA. 296-62-07627
Medical removal-Temporary medical removal of an employee-MDA. 296-62-07629
Medical removal protection benefits-MDA. 296-62-07631
Recordkeeping-MDA. 296-62-07633
Observation of monitoring-MDA. 296-62-07637
Appendices-MDA. 296-62-07654
Appendix A to WAC 296-62-076-Substance data sheet for 4,4'-methylenedianiline. 296-62-07656
Appendix B to WAC 296-62-076-Substance technical guidelines for
MDA. 296-62-07658
Appendix C to WAC 296-62-076-Medical surveillance guidelines for
MDA. 296-62-07660
Appendix D to WAC 296-62-076-Sampling and analytical methods for
MDA monitoring and measurement procedures.
(1) Scope and application. This section applies to occupational
exposure to thiram (tetramethylthiuram disulfide), in addition
to those requirements listed in WAC 296-62-07515. Nothing in this
section shall preclude the application of other appropriate standards
and regulations to minimize worker exposure to thiram.
(2) Definitions. The following definitions are applicable to
this section:
(a) Clean - the absence of dirt or materials which may
be harmful to a worker's health.
(b) Large seedlings - those seedlings of such size,
either by length or breadth, that it is difficult to avoid contact
of the thiram treated plant with the mouth or face during planting
operations.
(3) General requirements.
(a) Workers should not be allowed to work more than five days
in any seven day period with or around the application of thiram
or thiram treated seedlings.
(b) Washing and worker hygiene.
(i) Workers shall wash their hands prior to eating or smoking
at the close of work.
(ii) Warm (at least 85°F, 29.4°C) wash water and single use
hand wiping materials shall be provided for washing.
(iii) The warm water and hand wiping materials shall be at
fixed work locations or at the planting unit.
(iv) Where warm water is not available within 15 minutes
travel time, nonalcoholic based waterless hand cleaner shall
be provided.
(v) Every planter or nursery worker shall be advised to bathe
or shower daily.
(vi) The inside of worker carrying vehicles shall be washed
or vacuumed and wiped down at least weekly during the period
of thiram use.
(c) Personal protective measures.
(i) Clothing shall be worn by workers to reduce skin contact
with thiram to the legs, arms and torso.
(ii) For those workers who have thiram skin irritations,
exposed areas of the body shall be protected by a suitable
barrier cream.
(iii) Clothing worn by workers shall be washed or changed
at least every other day.
(iv) Only impervious gloves may be worn by workers.
(v) Workers hands should be clean of thiram before placing
them into gloves.
(vi) Thiram applicators shall be provided with and use respiratory
protection in accordance with WAC 296-62-071, disposable coveralls
or rubber slickers or other impervious clothing, rubberized
boots, head covers and rubberized gloves.
(vii) Nursery workers, other than applicators, who are likely
to be exposed to thiram shall be provided with and use disposable
coveralls or rubber slickers or other impervious clothing,
impervious footwear and gloves, and head covers in accordance
with WAC 296-800-160, unless showers have been provided and
are used.
(viii) Eye protection according to WAC 296-800-160, shall
be provided and worn by workers who may be exposed to splashes
of thiram during spraying, plug bundling, belt line grading
and plugging or other operations.
(ix) Item (viii) of this subdivision need not be complied
with where pressurized emergency eye wash fountains are within
10 seconds travel time of the work location. (Approved respirator
- see WAC 296-62-071.)
(x) A dust mask shall be worn, when planting large seedlings,
to avoid mouth and face contact with the thiram treated plant
unless equally effective measures or planting practices have
been established.
(d) Food handling.
(i) Food snacks, beverages, smoking materials, or any other
item which is consumed shall not be stored or consumed in
the packing area of the nursery.
(ii) Worker carrying vehicles shall have a clean area for
carrying lunches.
(iii) The clean area of the vehicle shall be elevated from
the floor and not used to carry other than food or other consumable
items.
(iv) The carrying of lunches, food or other consumable items
in tree planting bags is prohibited.
(v) Care shall be taken to insure that worker exposure to
thiram spray, including downwind driftings, is minimized or
eliminated.
(vi) When bags that contained thiram or thiram treated seedlings
are burned, prevent worker exposure to the smoke.
(e) Thiram use and handling.
(i) Thiram treated seedlings shall be allowed to dry or stabilize
prior to packing.
(ii) Seedlings shall be kept moist during packing and whenever
possible during planting operations.
(iii) Floors, where thiram is used, shall not be dry swept
but instead vacuumed, washed or otherwise cleaned at least
daily.
(iv) Silica chips used to cover thiram treated seedling plugs
shall be removed at the nursery.
(f) Training.
(i) Each worker engaged in operations where exposure to thiram
may occur shall be provided training on the hazards of thiram,
as well as the necessary precautions for its safe use and
handling.
(ii) The training shall include instruction in:
(A) The nature of the health hazard(s) from exposure to
thiram including specifically the potential for alcohol
intolerance, drug interaction, and skin irritation;
(B) The specific nature of operations which could result
in exposure to thiram and the necessary protective steps;
(C) The purpose for, proper use, and limitations of protective
devices including respirators and clothing;
(D) The necessity for and requirements of good personal
hygiene; and
(E) A review of the thiram rules at the worker's first
training and indoctrination, and annually thereafter.
(4) Effective date. This standard shall become effective 30 days
after being filed with the code reviser.
(a) This section applies to all occupational exposure to lead,
except as provided in subdivision (1)(b).
(b) This section does not apply to the construction industry
or to agricultural operations covered by chapter 296-307 WAC.
(2) Definitions as applicable to this part.
(a) “Action level” - employee exposure,
without regard to the use of respirators, to an airborne concentration
of lead of thirty micrograms per cubic meter of air (30 µg/m3)
averaged over an eight-hour period.
(b) “Director” - the director of the department
of labor and industries.
(c) “Lead” - metallic lead, all inorganic
lead compounds, and organic lead soaps. Excluded from this definition
are all other organic lead compounds.
(3) General requirements.
(a) Employers will assess the hazards of lead in the work place
and provide information to the employees about the hazards of
the lead exposures to which they may be exposed.
(iv) Personnel protective equipment and housekeeping;
(v) Medical surveillance and examinations;
(vi) Training requirements;
(vii) Recordkeeping requirements.
(4) Permissible exposure limit (PEL).
(a) The employer shall assure that no employee is exposed to
lead at concentrations greater than fifty micrograms per cubic
meter of air (50 µg/m3) averaged over an eight-hour
period.
(b) If an employee is exposed to lead for more than eight hours
in any work day, the permissible exposure limit, as a time weighted
average (TWA) for that day, shall be reduced according to the
following formula:
Maximum permissible limit (in µg/m3) = 400 ÷ hours
worked in the day.
(c) When respirators are used to supplement engineering and
work practice controls to comply with the PEL and all the requirements
of subsection (7) have been met, employee exposure, for the
purpose of determining whether the employer has complied with
the PEL, may be considered to be at the level provided by the
protection factor of the respirator for those periods the respirator
is worn. Those periods may be averaged with exposure levels
during periods when respirators are not worn to determine the
employee's daily TWA exposure.
(5) Exposure monitoring.
(a) General.
(i) For the purposes of subsection (5), employee exposure
is that exposure which would occur if the employee were not
using a respirator.
(ii) With the exception of monitoring under subdivision (5)(c),
the employer shall collect full shift (for at least seven
continuous hours) personal samples including at least one
sample for each shift for each job classification in each
work area.
(iii) Full shift personal samples shall be representative
of the monitored employee's regular, daily exposure to lead.
(b) Initial determination. Each employer who has a workplace
or work operation covered by this standard shall determine if
any employee may be exposed to lead at or above the action level.
(c) Basis of initial determination.
(i) The employer shall monitor employee exposures and shall
base initial determinations on the employee exposure monitoring
results and any of the following, relevant considerations:
(A) Any information, observations, or calculations which
would indicate employee exposure to lead;
(B) Any previous measurements of airborne lead; and
(C) Any employee complaints of symptoms which may be attributable
to exposure to lead.
(ii) Monitoring for the initial determination may be limited
to a representative sample of the exposed employees who the
employer reasonably believes are exposed to the greatest airborne
concentrations of lead in the workplace.
(iii) Measurements of airborne lead made in the preceding
twelve months may be used to satisfy the requirement to monitor
under item (5)(c)(i) if the sampling and analytical methods
used meet the accuracy and confidence levels of subdivision
(5)(i) of this section.
(d) Positive initial determination and initial monitoring.
(i) Where a determination conducted under subdivision (5)(b)
and (5)(c) of this section shows the possibility of any employee
exposure at or above the action level, the employer shall
conduct monitoring which is representative of the exposure
for each employee in the workplace who is exposed to lead.
(ii) Measurements of airborne lead made in the preceding
twelve months may be used to satisfy this requirement if the
sampling and analytical methods used meet the accuracy and
confidence levels of subdivision (5)(i) of this section.
(e) Negative initial determination. Where a determination,
conducted under subdivisions (5)(b) and (5)(c) of this section
is made that no employee is exposed to airborne concentrations
of lead at or above the action level, the employer shall make
a written record of such determination. The record shall include
at least the information specified in subdivision (5)(c) of
this section and shall also include the date of determination,
location within the worksite, and the name and social security
number of each employee monitored.
(f) Frequency.
(i) If the initial monitoring reveals employee exposure to
be below the action level the measurements need not be repeated
except as otherwise provided in subdivision (5)(g) of this
section.
(ii) If the initial determination or subsequent monitoring
reveals employee exposure to be at or above the action level
but below the permissible exposure limit the employer shall
repeat monitoring in accordance with this subsection at least
every six months. The employer shall continue monitoring at
the required frequency until at least two consecutive measurements,
taken at least seven days apart, are below the action level
at which time the employer may discontinue monitoring for
that employee except as otherwise provided in subdivision
(5)(g) of this section.
(iii) If the initial monitoring reveals that employee exposure
is above the permissible exposure limit the employer shall
repeat monitoring quarterly. The employer shall continue monitoring
at the required frequency until at least two consecutive measurements,
taken at least seven days apart, are below the PEL but at
or above the action level at which time the employer shall
repeat monitoring for that employee at the frequency specified
in item (5)(f)(ii), except as otherwise provided in subdivision
(5)(g) of this section.
(g) Additional monitoring. Whenever there has been a production,
process, control or personnel change which may result in new
or additional exposure to lead, or whenever the employer has
any other reason to suspect a change which may result in new
or additional exposures to lead, additional monitoring in accordance
with this subsection shall be conducted.
(h) Employee notification.
(i) Within five working days after the receipt of monitoring
results, the employer shall notify each employee in writing
of the results which represent that employee's exposure.
(ii) Whenever the results indicate that the representative
employee exposure, without regard to respirators, exceeds
the permissible exposure limit, the employer shall include
in the written notice a statement that the permissible exposure
limit was exceeded and a description of the corrective action
taken or to be taken to reduce exposure to or below the permissible
exposure limit.
(i) Accuracy of measurement. The employer shall use a method
of monitoring and analysis which has an accuracy (to a confidence
level of ninety-five percent) of not less than plus or minus
twenty percent for airborne concentrations of lead equal to
or greater than 30 µg/m3.
(6) Methods of compliance.
(a) Engineering and work practice controls.
(i) Where any employee is exposed to lead above the permissible
exposure limit for more than thirty days per year, the employer
shall implement engineering and work practice controls (including
administrative controls) to reduce and maintain employee exposure
to lead in accordance with the implementation schedule in
Table I below, except to the extent that the employer can
demonstrate that such controls are not feasible. Wherever
the engineering and work practice controls which can be instituted
are not sufficient to reduce employee exposure to or below
the permissible exposure limit, the employer shall nonetheless
use them to reduce exposures to the lowest feasible level
and shall supplement them by the use of respiratory protection
which complies with the requirements of subsection (7) of
this section.
(ii) Where any employee is exposed to lead above the permissible
exposure limit, but for thirty days or less per year, the
employer shall implement engineering controls to reduce exposures
to 200 µg/m3, but thereafter may implement any
combination of engineering, work practice (including administrative
controls), and respiratory controls to reduce and maintain
employee exposure to lead to or below 50 µg/m3.
TABLE
1
Industry
Compliance
dates1 (50 mg/m3)
Lead chemicals,
secondary copper smelting
July 19,
1996
Nonferrous
foundries
July
19, 19962
Brass and
bronze ingot manufacture.
6 years3
1Calculated by counting from the date the stay on
implementation of subsection (6)(a) was lifted by the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the District of Columbia, the number of years specified
in the 1978 lead standard and subsequent amendments for compliance
with the PEL of 50 µg/m3 for exposure to airborne concentrations
of lead levels for the particular industry.
2 Large nonferrous foundries (20 or more employees)
are required to achieve the PEL of 50 µg/m3 by means
of engineering and work practice controls. Small nonferrous foundries
(fewer than 20 employees) are required to achieve an 8-hour TWA
of 75 µg/m3 by such controls.
3Expressed as the number of years from the date on
which the Court lifts the stay on the implementation of subsection
(6)(a) for this industry for employers to achieve a lead in air
concentration of 75 µg/m3. Compliance with subsection
(6) in this industry is determined by a compliance directive that
incorporates elements from the settlement agreement between OSHA
and representatives of the industry.
(b) Respiratory protection. Where engineering and work practice
controls do not reduce employee exposure to or below the 50
µg/m3 permissible exposure limit, the employer shall
supplement these controls with respirators in accordance with
subsection (7).
(c) Compliance program.
(i) Each employer shall establish and implement a written
compliance program to reduce exposures to or below the permissible
exposure limit, and interim levels if applicable, solely by
means of engineering and work practice controls in accordance
with the implementation schedule in subdivision (6)(a).
(ii) Written plans for these compliance programs shall include
at least the following:
(A) A description of each operation in which lead is emitted;
e.g., machinery used, material processed, controls in place,
crew size, employee job responsibilities, operating procedures
and maintenance practices;
(B) A description of the specific means that will be employed
to achieve compliance, including engineering plans and studies
used to determine methods selected for controlling exposure
to lead;
(C) A report of the technology considered in meeting the
permissible exposure limit;
(D) Air monitoring data which documents the source of lead
emissions;
(E) A detailed schedule for implementation of the program,
including documentation such as copies of purchase orders
for equipment, construction contracts, etc.;
(F) A work practice program which includes items required
under subsections (8), (9) and (10) of this regulation;
(G) An administrative control schedule required by subdivision
(6)(f), if applicable; and
(H) Other relevant information.
(iii) Written programs shall be submitted upon request to
the director, and shall be available at the worksite for examination
and copying by the director, any affected employee or authorized
employee representatives.
(iv) Written programs shall be revised and updated at least
every six months to reflect the current status of the program.
(d) Mechanical ventilation.
(i) When ventilation is used to control exposure, measurements
which demonstrate the effectiveness of the system in controlling
exposure, such as capture velocity, duct velocity, or static
pressure shall be made at least every three months. Measurements
of the system's effectiveness in controlling exposure shall
be made within five days of any change in production, process,
or control which might result in a change in employee exposure
to lead.
(ii) Recirculation of air. If air from exhaust ventilation
is recirculated into the workplace, the employer shall assure
that (A) the system has a high efficiency filter with reliable
back-up filter; and (B) controls to monitor the concentration
of lead in the return air and to bypass the recirculation
system automatically if it fails are installed, operating,
and maintained.
(e) Administrative controls. If administrative controls are
used as a means of reducing employees TWA exposure to lead,
the employer shall establish and implement a job rotation schedule
which includes:
(i) Name or identification number of each affected employee;
(ii) Duration and exposure levels at each job or work station
where each affected employee is located; and
(iii) Any other information which may be useful in assessing
the reliability of administrative controls to reduce exposure
to lead.
(7) Respiratory protection.
(a) General. For employees who use respirators required by
this section, the employer must provide respirators that comply
with the requirements of this subsection. Respirators must be
used during:
(i) Periods necessary to install or implement engineering
or work-practice controls;
(ii) Work operations for which engineering and work-practice
controls are not sufficient to reduce exposures to or below
the permissible exposure limit;
(iii) Periods when an employee requests a respirator.
(b) Respirator program.
(i) The employer must develop, implement and maintain a respiratory
protection program as required by Chapter
296-842 WAC, Respirators.
(ii) If an employee has difficulty breathing during fit testing
or respirator use, the employer must provide the employee
with a medical examination as required by subsection (11)(c)(ii)(C)
of this section to determine whether or not the employee can
use a respirator while performing the required duty.
(c) Respirator selection. The employer must:
(i) Select and provide to employees appropriate respirators
according to this section and WAC 296-842-13005, found in
the respirator rule.
(ii) Provide employees with a powered air-purifying respirator
(PAPR) instead of a negative-prerssure respirator selected
when an employee chooses to use a PAPR and it provides adequate
protection to the employee.
(iii) Provide employees with full-facepiece respirators instead
of half-facepiece respirators for protection against lead
aerosols that cause eye or skin irritation at the use concentration.
(v) Provide HEPA filters or N-, R-, or P-100 filters for
powered air-purifying respirators (PAPRs) and negative-pressure
air-purifying respirators.
(8) Protective work clothing and equipment.
(a) Provision and use. If an employee is exposed to lead above
the PEL, without regard to the use of respirators or where the
possibility of skin or eye irritation exists, the employer shall
provide at no cost to the employee and assure that the employee
uses appropriate protective work clothing and equipment such
as, but not limited to:
(i) Coveralls or similar full-body work clothing;
(ii) Gloves, hats, and shoes or disposable shoe coverlets;
and
(iii) Face shields, vented goggles, or other appropriate
protective equipment which complies with WAC 296-800-160.
(b) Cleaning and replacement.
(i) The employer shall provide the protective clothing required
in subdivision (8)(a) of this section in a clean and dry condition
at least weekly, and daily to employees whose exposure levels
without regard to a respirator are over 200 µg/m3
of lead as an eight-hour TWA.
(ii) The employer shall provide for the cleaning, laundering,
or disposal of protective clothing and equipment required
by subdivision (8)(a) of this section.
(iii) The employer shall repair or replace required protective
clothing and equipment as needed to maintain their effectiveness.
(iv) The employer shall assure that all protective clothing
is removed at the completion of a work shift only in change
rooms provided for that purpose as prescribed in subdivision
(10)(b) of this section.
(v) The employer shall assure that contaminated protective
clothing which is to be cleaned, laundered, or disposed of,
is placed in a closed container in the change-room which prevents
dispersion of lead outside the container.
(vi) The employer shall inform in writing any person who
cleans or launders protective clothing or equipment of the
potentially harmful effects of exposure to lead.
(vii) The employer shall assure that the containers of contaminated
protective clothing and equipment required by subdivision
(8)(b)(v) are labeled as follows:
CAUTION: CLOTHING CONTAMINATED WITH LEAD.
DO NOT REMOVE DUST
BY BLOWING OR SHAKING.
DISPOSE OF LEAD CONTAMINATED WASH WATER
IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE
LOCAL, STATE, OR FEDERAL REGULATIONS.
(viii) The employer shall prohibit the removal of lead from
protective clothing or equipment by blowing, shaking, or any
other means which disperses lead into the air.
(9) Housekeeping.
(a) Surfaces. All surfaces shall be maintained as free as practicable
of accumulations of lead.
(b) Cleaning floors.
(i) Floors and other surfaces where lead accumulates may
not be cleaned by the use of compressed air.
(ii) Shoveling, dry or wet sweeping, and brushing may be
used only where vacuuming or other equally effective methods
have been tried and found not to be effective.
(c) Vacuuming. Where vacuuming methods are selected, the vacuums
shall be used and emptied in a manner which minimizes the reentry
of lead into the workplace.
(10) Hygiene facilities and practices.
(a) The employer shall assure that in areas where employees
are exposed to lead above the PEL, without regard to the use
of respirators, food or beverage is not present or consumed,
tobacco products are not present or used, and cosmetics are
not applied, except in change rooms, lunchrooms, and showers
required under subdivision (10)(b) through (10)(d) of this section.
(b) Change rooms.
(i) The employer shall provide clean change rooms for employees
who work in areas where their airborne exposure to lead is
above the PEL, without regard to the use of respirators.
(ii) The employer shall assure that change rooms are equipped
with separate storage facilities for protective work clothing
and equipment and for street clothes which prevent cross-contamination.
(c) Showers.
(i) The employer shall assure that employees who work in
areas where their airborne exposure to lead is above the PEL,
without regard to the use of respirators, shower at the end
of the work shift.
(ii) The employer shall provide shower facilities in accordance
with WAC 296-800-230.
(iii) The employer shall assure that employees who are required
to shower pursuant to item (10)(c)(i) do not leave the workplace
wearing any clothing or equipment worn during the work shift.
(d) Lunchrooms.
(i) The employer shall provide lunchroom facilities for employees
who work in areas where their airborne exposure to lead is
above the PEL, without regard to the use of respirators.
(ii) The employer shall assure that lunchroom facilities
have a temperature controlled, positive pressure, filtered
air supply, and are readily accessible to employees.
(iii) The employer shall assure that employees who work in
areas where their airborne exposure to lead is above the PEL
without regard to the use of a respirator wash their hands
and face prior to eating, drinking, smoking or applying cosmetics.
(iv) The employer shall assure that employees do not enter
lunchroom facilities with protective work clothing or equipment
unless surface lead dust has been removed by vacuuming, downdraft
booth, or other cleaning method.
(e) Lavatories. The employer shall provide an adequate number
of lavatory facilities which comply with WAC 296-800-230.
(11) Medical surveillance.
(a) General.
(i) The employer shall institute a medical surveillance program
for all employees who are or may be exposed above the action
level for more than thirty days per year.
(ii) The employer shall assure that all medical examinations
and procedures are performed by or under the supervision of
a licensed physician.
(iii) The employer shall provide the required medical surveillance
including multiple physician review under item (11)(c)(iii)
without cost to employees and at a reasonable time and place.
(b) Biological monitoring.
(i) Blood lead and ZPP level sampling and analysis. The employer
shall make available biological monitoring in the form of
blood sampling and analysis for lead and zinc protoporphyrin
levels to each employee covered under item (11)(a)(i) of this
section on the following schedule:
(A) At least every six months to each employee covered
under item (11)(a)(i) of this section;
(B) At least every two months for each employee whose last
blood sampling and analysis indicated a blood lead level
at or above 40 µg/100 g of whole blood. This frequency shall
continue until two consecutive blood samples and analyses
indicate a blood lead level below 40 µg/100 g of whole blood;
and
(C) At least monthly during the removal period of each
employee removed from exposure to lead due to an elevated
blood lead level.
(ii) Follow-up blood sampling tests. Whenever the results
of a blood lead level test indicate that an employee's blood
lead level exceeds the numerical criterion for medical removal
under item (12)(a)(i)(A), the employer shall provide a second
(follow-up) blood sampling test within two weeks after the
employer receives the results of the first blood sampling
test.
(iii) Accuracy of blood lead level sampling and analysis.
Blood lead level sampling and analysis provided pursuant the
this section shall have an accuracy (to a confidence level
of ninety-five percent) within plus or minus fifteen percent
or 6 µg/100 ml, whichever is greater, and shall be conducted
by a laboratory licensed by the Center for Disease Control
(CDC), United States Department of Health, Education and Welfare
or which has received a satisfactory grade in blood lead proficiency
testing from CDC in the prior twelve months.
(iv) Employee notification. Within five working days after
the receipt of biological monitoring results, the employer
shall notify in writing each employee whose blood lead level
exceeds 40 µg/100 g: (A) of that employee's blood lead level
and (B) that the standard requires temporary medical removal
with medical removal protection benefits when an employee's
blood lead level exceeds the numerical criterion for medical
removal under item (12)(a)(i) of this section.
(c) Medical examinations and consultations.
(i) Frequency. The employer shall make available medical
examinations and consultations to each employee covered under
item (11)(a)(i) of this section on the following schedule:
(A) At least annually for each employee for whom a blood
sampling test conducted at any time during the preceding
twelve months indicated a blood lead level at or above 40
µg/100 g;
(B) Prior to assignment for each employee being assigned
for the first time to an area in which airborne concentrations
of lead are at or above the action level;
(C) As soon as possible, upon notification by an employee
either that the employee has developed signs or symptoms
commonly associated with lead intoxication, that the employee
desires medical advice concerning the effects of current
or past exposure to lead on the employee's ability to procreate
a healthy child, or that the employee has demonstrated difficulty
in breathing during a respirator fitting test or during
use; and
(D) As medically appropriate for each employee either removed
from exposure to lead due to a risk of sustaining material
impairment to health, or otherwise limited pursuant to a
final medical determination.
(ii) Content. Medical examinations made available pursuant
to subitems (11)(c)(i)(A) through (B) of this section shall
include the following elements:
(A) A detailed work history and a medical history, with
particular attention to past lead exposure (occupational
and nonoccupational), personal habits (smoking, hygiene),
and past gastrointestinal, hematologic, renal, cardiovascular,
reproductive and neurological problems;
(B) A thorough physical examination, with particular attention
to teeth, gums, hematologic, gastrointestinal, renal, cardiovascular,
and neurological systems. Pulmonary status should be evaluated
if respiratory protection will be used;
(C) A blood pressure measurement;
(D) A blood sample and analysis which determines:
(I) Blood lead level;
(II) Hemoglobin and hematocrit determinations, red cell
indices, and examination of peripheral smear morphology;
(III) Zinc protoporphyrin;
(IV) Blood urea nitrogen; and
(V) Serum creatinine;
(E) A routine urinalysis with microscopic examination;
and
(F) Any laboratory or other test which the examining physician
deems necessary by sound medical practice.
The content of medical examinations made available pursuant
to subitems (11)(c)(i)(C) through (D) of this section shall
be determined by an examining physician and, if requested
by an employee, shall include pregnancy testing or laboratory
evaluation of male fertility.
(iii) Multiple physician review mechanism.
(A) If the employer selects the initial physician who conducts
any medical examination or consultation provided to an employee
under this section, the employee may designate a second
physician:
(I) To review any findings, determinations or recommendations
of the initial physician; and
(II) To conduct such examinations, consultations, and
laboratory tests as the second physician deems necessary
to facilitate this review.
(B) The employer shall promptly notify an employee of the
right to seek a second medical opinion after each occasion
that an initial physician conducts a medical examination
or consultation pursuant to this section. The employer may
condition its participation in, and payment for, the multiple
physician review mechanism upon the employee doing the following
within fifteen days after receipt of the foregoing notification,
or receipt of the initial physician's written opinion, whichever
is later:
(I) The employee informing the employer that he or she
intends to seek a second medical opinion, and
(II) The employee initiating steps to make an appointment
with a second physician.
(C) If the findings, determinations or recommendations
of the second physician differ from those of the initial
physician, then the employer and the employee shall assure
that efforts are made for the two physicians to resolve
any disagreement.
(D) If the two physicians have been unable to quickly resolve
their disagreement, then the employer and the employee through
their respective physicians shall designate a third physician:
(I) To review any findings, determinations or recommendations
of the prior physicians; and
(II) To conduct such examinations, consultations, laboratory
tests and discussions with the prior physicians as the
third physician deems necessary to resolve the disagreement
of the prior physicians.
(E) The employer shall act consistent with the findings,
determinations and recommendations of the third physician,
unless the employer and the employee reach an agreement
which is otherwise consistent with the recommendations of
at least one of the three physicians.
(iv) Information provided to examining and consulting physicians.
(A) The employer shall provide an initial physician conducting
a medical examination or consultation under this section
with the following information:
(I) A copy of this regulation for lead including all
appendices;
(II) A description of the affected employee's duties
as they relate to the employee's exposure;
(III) The employee's exposure level or anticipated exposure
level to lead and to any other toxic substance (if applicable);
(IV) A description of any personal protective equipment
used or to be used;
(V) Prior blood lead determinations; and
(VI) All prior written medical opinions concerning the
employee in the employer's possession or control.
(B) The employer shall provide the foregoing information
to a second or third physician conducting a medical examination
or consultation under this section upon request either by
the second or third physician, or by the employee.
(v) Written medical opinions.
(A) The employer shall obtain and furnish the employee
with a copy of a written medical opinion from each examining
or consulting physician which contains the following information:
(I) The physician's opinion as to whether the employee
has any detected medical condition which would place the
employee at increased risk of material impairment of the
employee's health from exposure to lead;
(II) Any recommended special protective measures to be
provided to the employee, or limitations to be placed
upon the employee's exposure to lead;
(III) Any recommended limitation upon the employee's
use of respirators, including a determination of whether
the employee can wear a powered air purifying respirator
if a physician determines that the employee cannot wear
a negative pressure respirator; and
(IV) The results of the blood lead determinations.
(B) The employer shall instruct each examining and consulting
physician to:
(I) Not reveal either in the written opinion, or in any
other means of communication with the employer, findings,
including laboratory results, or diagnoses unrelated to
an employee's occupational exposure to lead; and
(II) Advise the employee of any medical condition, occupational
or nonoccupational, which dictates further medical examination
or treatment.
(vi) Alternate physician determination mechanisms. The employer
and an employee or authorized employee representative may
agree upon the use of any expeditious alternate physician
determination mechanism in lieu of the multiple physician
review mechanism provided by this subsection so long as the
alternate mechanism otherwise satisfies the requirements contained
in this subsection.
(d) Chelation.
(i) The employer shall assure that any person whom he retains,
employs, supervises or controls does not engage in prophylactic
chelation of any employee at any time.
(ii) If therapeutic or diagnostic chelation is to be performed
by any person in item (11)(d)(i), the employer shall assure
that it be done under the supervision of a licensed physician
in a clinical setting with thorough and appropriate medical
monitoring and that the employee is notified in writing prior
to its occurrence.
(12) Medical removal protection.
(a) Temporary medical removal and return of an employee.
(i) Temporary removal due to elevated blood lead levels.
(A) The employer shall remove an employee from work having
an exposure to lead at or above the action level on each
occasion that a periodic and a follow-up blood sampling
test conducted pursuant to this section indicate that the
employee's blood lead level is at or above 60 µg/100 g of
whole blood; and
(B) The employer shall remove an employee from work having
an exposure to lead at or above the action level on each
occasion that the average of the last three blood sampling
tests conducted pursuant to this section (or the average
of all blood sampling tests conducted over the previous
six months, whichever is longer) indicates that the employee's
blood lead level is at or above 50 µg/100 g of whole blood;
provided, however, that an employee need not be removed
if the last blood sampling test indicates a blood lead level
at or below 40 µg/100 g of whole blood.
(ii) Temporary removal due to a final medical determination.
(A) The employer shall remove an employee from work having
an exposure to lead at or above the action level on each
occasion that a final medical determination results in a
medical finding, determination, or opinion that the employee
has a detected medical condition which places the employee
at increased risk of material impairment to health from
exposure to lead.
(B) For the purposes of this section, the phrase “final
medical determination” shall mean the outcome of the
multiple physician review mechanism or alternate medical
determination mechanism used pursuant to the medical surveillance
provisions of this section.
(C) Where a final medical determination results in any
recommended special protective measures for an employee,
or limitations on an employee's exposure to lead, the employer
shall implement and act consistent with the recommendation.
(iii) Return of the employee to former job status.
(A) The employer shall return an employee to his or her
former job status:
(I) For an employee removed due to a blood lead level
at or above 60 µg/100 g, or due to an average blood lead
level at or above 50 µg/100 g, when two consecutive blood
sampling tests indicate that the employee's blood lead
level is at or below 40 µg/100 g of whole blood;
(II) For an employee removed due to a final medical determination,
when a subsequent final medical determination results
in a medical finding, determination, or opinion that the
employee no longer has a detected medical condition which
places the employee at increased risk of material impairment
to health from exposure to lead.
(B) For the purposes of this section, the requirement that
an employer return an employee to his or her former job
status is not intended to expand upon or restrict any rights
an employee has or would have had, absent temporary medical
removal, to a specific job classification or position under
the terms of a collective bargaining agreement.
(iv) Removal of other employee special protective measure
or limitations. The employer shall remove any limitations
placed on an employee or end any special protective measures
provided to an employee pursuant to a final medical determination
when a subsequent final medical determination indicates that
the limitations or special protective measures are no longer
necessary.
(v) Employer options pending a final medical determination.
Where the multiple physician review mechanism, or alternate
medical determination mechanism used pursuant to the medical
surveillance provisions of this section, has not yet resulted
in a final medical determination with respect to an employee,
the employer shall act as follows:
(A) Removal. The employer may remove the employee from
exposure to lead, provide special protective measures to
the employee, or place limitations upon the employee, consistent
with the medical findings, determinations, or recommendations
of any of the physicians who have reviewed the employee's
health status.
(B) Return. The employer may return the employee to his
or her former job status, end any special protective measures
provided to the employee, and remove any limitations placed
upon the employee, consistent with the medical findings,
determinations, or recommendations of any of the physicians
who have reviewed the employee's health status, with two
exceptions. If:
(I) The initial removal, special protection, or limitation
of the employee resulted from a final medical determination
which differed from the findings, determinations, or recommendations
of the initial physician; or
(II) The employee has been on removal status for the
preceding eighteen months due to an elevated blood lead
level, then the employer shall await a final medical determination.
(b) Medical removal protection benefits.
(i) Provision of medical removal protection benefits. The
employer shall provide to an employee up to eighteen months
of medical removal protection benefits on each occasion that
an employee is removed from exposure to lead or otherwise
limited pursuant to this section.
(ii) Definition of medical removal protection benefits. For
the purposes of this section, the requirement that an employer
provide medical removal protection benefits means that the
employer shall maintain the earnings, seniority and other
employment rights and benefits of an employee as though the
employee had not been removed from normal exposure to lead
or otherwise limited.
(iii) Follow-up medical surveillance during the period of
employee removal or limitation. During the period of time
that an employee is removed from normal exposure to lead or
otherwise limited, the employer may condition the provision
of medical removal protection benefits upon the employee's
participation in follow-up medical surveillance made available
pursuant to this section.
(iv) Workers' compensation claims. If a removed employee
files a claim for workers' compensation payments for a lead-related
disability, then the employer shall continue to provide medical
removal protection benefits pending disposition of the claim.
To the extent that an award is made to the employee for earnings
lost during the period of removal, the employer's medical
removal protection obligation shall be reduced by such amount.
The employer shall receive no credit for workers' compensation
payments received by the employee for treatment related expenses.
(v) Other credits. The employer's obligation to provide medical
removal protection benefits to a removed employee shall be
reduced to the extent that the employee receives compensation
for earnings lost during the period of removal either from
a publicly or employer-funded compensation program, or receives
income from employment with another employer made possible
by virtue of the employee's removal.
(vi) Employees whose blood lead levels do not adequately
decline within eighteen months of removal. The employer shall
take the following measures with respect to any employee removed
from exposure to lead due to an elevated blood lead level
whose blood lead level has not declined within the past eighteen
months of removal so that the employee has been returned to
his or her former job status:
(A) The employer shall make available to the employee a
medical examination pursuant to this section to obtain a
final medical determination with respect to the employee;
(B) The employer shall assure that the final medical determination
obtained indicates whether or not the employee may be returned
to his or her former job status, and if not, what steps
should be taken to protect the employee's health;
(C) Where the final medical determination has not yet been
obtained, or once obtained indicates that the employee may
not yet be returned to his or her former job status, the
employer shall continue to provide medical removal protection
benefits to the employee until either the employee is returned
to former job status, or a final medical determination is
made that the employee is incapable of ever safely returning
to his or her former job status.
(D) Where the employer acts pursuant to a final medical
determination which permits the return of the employee to
his or her former job status despite what would otherwise
be an unacceptable blood lead level, later questions concerning
removing the employee again shall be decided by a final
medical determination. The employer need not automatically
remove such an employee pursuant to the blood lead level
removal criteria provided by this section.
(vii) Voluntary removal or restriction of an employee. Where
an employer, although not required by this section to do so,
removes an employee from exposure to lead or otherwise places
limitations on an employee due to the effects of lead exposure
on the employee's medical condition, the employer shall provide
medical removal protection benefits to the employee equal
to that required by item (12)(b)(i) of this section.
(13) Employee information and training.
(a) Training program.
(i) Each employer who has a workplace in which there is a
potential exposure to airborne lead at any level shall inform
employees of the content of Appendices A and B of this regulation.
(ii) The employer shall institute a training program for
and assure the participation of all employees who are subject
to exposure to lead at or above the action level or for whom
the possibility of skin or eye irritation exists.
(iii) The employer shall provide initial training by one
hundred eighty days from the effective date for those employees
covered by item (13)(a)(ii) on the standard's effective date
and prior to the time of initial job assignment for those
employees subsequently covered by this subsection.
(iv) The training program shall be repeated at least annually
for each employee.
(v) The employer shall assure that each employee is informed
of the following:
(A) The content of this standard and its appendices;
(B) The specific nature of the operations which could result
in exposure to lead above the action level;
(C) The purpose, proper use, limitations, and other training
requirements for respiratory protection as required by chapter
296-62 WAC, Part E;
(D) The purpose and a description of the medical surveillance
program, and the medical removal protection program including
information concerning the adverse health effects associated
with excessive exposure to lead (with particular attention
to the adverse reproductive effects on both males and females);
(E) The engineering controls and work practices associated
with the employee's job assignment;
(F) The contents of any compliance plan in effect; and
(G) Instructions to employees that chelating agents should
not routinely be used to remove lead from their bodies and
should not be used at all except under the direction of
a licensed physician.
(b) Access to information and training materials.
(i) The employer shall make readily available to all affected
employees a copy of this standard and its appendices.
(ii) The employer shall provide, upon request, all materials
relating to the employee information and training program
to the director.
(iii) In addition to the information required by item (13)(a)(v),
the employer shall include as part of the training program,
and shall distribute to employees, any materials pertaining
to the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the regulations
issued pursuant to the act, and this lead standard, which
are made available to the employer by the director.
(14) Signs.
(a) General.
(i) The employer may use signs required by other statutes,
regulations or ordinances in addition to, or in combination
with, signs required by this subsection.
(ii) The employer shall assure that no statement appears
on or near any sign required by this subsection which contradicts
or detracts from the meaning of the required sign.
(i) The employer shall post the following warning signs in
each work area where the PEL is exceeded:
WARNING
LEAD WORK AREA
POISON
NO SMOKING OR EATING
(ii) The employer shall assure that signs required by this
subsection are illuminated and cleaned as necessary so that
the legend is readily visible.
(15) Recordkeeping.
(a) Exposure monitoring.
(i) The employer shall establish and maintain an accurate
record of all monitoring required in subsection (5) of this
section.
(ii) This record shall include:
(A) The date(s), number, duration, location and results
of each of the samples taken, including a description of
the sampling procedure used to determine representative
employee exposure where applicable;
(B) A description of the sampling and analytical methods
used and evidence of their accuracy;
(C) The type of respiratory protective devices worn, if
any;
(D) Name, social security number, and job classification
of the employee monitored and of all other employees whose
exposure the measurement is intended to represent; and
(E) The environmental variables that could affect the measurement
of employee exposure.
(iii) The employer shall maintain these monitoring records
for at least forty years or for the duration of employment
plus twenty years, whichever is longer.
(b) Medical surveillance.
(i) The employer shall establish and maintain an accurate
record for each employee subject to medical surveillance as
required by subsection (11) of this section.
(ii) This record shall include:
(A) The name, social security number, and description of
the duties of the employee;
(B) A copy of the physician's written opinions;
(C) Results of any airborne exposure monitoring done for
that employee and the representative exposure levels supplied
to the physician; and
(D) Any employee medical complaints related to exposure
to lead.
(iii) The employer shall keep, or assure that the examining
physician keeps, the following medical records:
(A) A copy of the medical examination results including
medical and work history required under subsection (11)
of this section;
(B) A description of the laboratory procedures and a copy
of any standards or guidelines used to interpret the test
results or references to that information; and
(C) A copy of the results of biological monitoring.
(iv) The employer shall maintain or assure that the physician
maintains those medical records for at least forty years,
or for the duration of employment plus twenty years, whichever
is longer.
(c) Medical removals.
(i) The employer shall establish and maintain an accurate
record for each employee removed from current exposure to
lead pursuant to subsection (12) of this section.
(ii) Each record shall include:
(A) The name and social security number of the employee;
(B) The date on each occasion that the employee was removed
from current exposure to lead as well as the corresponding
date on which the employee was returned to his or her former
job status;
(C) A brief explanation of how each removal was or is being
accomplished; and
(D) A statement with respect to each removal indicating
whether or not the reason for the removal was an elevated
blood lead level.
(iii) The employer shall maintain each medical removal record
for at least the duration of an employee's employment.
(d) Availability.
(i) The employer shall make available upon request all records
required to be maintained by subsection (15) of this section
to the director for examination and copying.
(ii) Environmental monitoring, medical removal, and medical
records required by this subsection shall be provided upon
request to employees, designated representatives, and the
assistant director in accordance with WAC 296-62-05201 through
296-62-05209 and 296-62-05213 through 296-62-05217. Medical
removal records shall be provided in the same manner as environmental
monitoring records.
(iii) Upon request, the employer shall make an employee's
medical records required to be maintained by this section
available to the affected employee or former employee or to
a physician or other individual designated by such affected
employee or former employees for examination and copying.
(e) Transfer of records.
(i) Whenever the employer ceases to do business, the successor
employer shall receive and retain all records required to
be maintained by subsection (15) of this section.
(ii) Whenever the employer ceases to do business and there
is no successor employer to receive and retain the records
required to be maintained by this section for the prescribed
period, these records shall be transmitted to the director.
(iii) At the expiration of the retention period for the records
required to be maintained by this section, the employer shall
notify the director at least three months prior to the disposal
of such records and shall transmit those records to the director
if requested within the period.
(iv) The employer shall also comply with any additional requirements
involving transfer of records set forth in WAC 296-62-05215.
(16) Observation of monitoring.
(a) Employee observation. The employer shall provide affected
employees or their designated representatives an opportunity
to observe any monitoring of employee exposure to lead conducted
pursuant to subsection (5) of this section.
(b) Observation procedures.
(i) Whenever observation of the monitoring of employee exposure
to lead requires entry into an area where the use of respirators,
protective clothing or equipment is required, the employer
shall provide the observer with and assure the use of such
respirators, clothing and such equipment, and shall require
the observer to comply with all other applicable safety and
health procedures.
(ii) Without interfering with the monitoring, observers shall
be entitled to:
(A) Receive an explanation of the measurement procedures;
(B) Observe all steps related to the monitoring of lead
performed at the place of exposure; and
(C) Record the results obtained or receive copies of the
results when returned by the laboratory.
(17) Appendices. The information contained in the appendices
to this section is not intended by itself, to create any additional
obligations not otherwise imposed by this standard nor detract
from any existing obligation.
(a) Appendix A. Substance Data Sheet for Occupational Exposure
to Lead.
(i) Substance identification.
(A) Substance. Pure lead (Pb) is a heavy metal at room
temperature and pressure and is a basic chemical element.
It can combine with various other substances to form numerous
lead compounds.
(B) Compounds covered by the standard. The word “lead”
when used in this standard means elemental lead, all inorganic
lead compounds (except those which are not biologically
available due to either solubility or specific chemical
interaction), and a class of organic lead compounds called
lead soaps. This standard does not apply to other organic
lead compounds.
(C) Uses. Exposure to lead occurs in at least 120 different
occupations, including primary and secondary lead smelting,
lead storage battery manufacturing, lead pigment manufacturing
and use, solder manufacturing and use, shipbuilding and
ship repairing, auto manufacturing, and printing.
(D) Permissible exposure. The Permissible Exposure Limit
(PEL) set by the standard is 50 micrograms of lead per cubic
meter of air (50 µg/m3), averaged over an eight-hour
work day.
(E) Action level. The standard establishes an action level
of 30 micrograms per cubic meter of air (30 µg/m3)
time weighted average, based on an eight-hour work day.
The action level initiates several requirements of the standard,
such as exposure monitoring, medical surveillance, and training
and education.
(ii) Health hazard data.
(A) Ways in which lead enters your body.
(I) When absorbed into your body in certain doses lead
is a toxic substance. The object of the lead standard
is to prevent absorption of harmful quantities of lead.
The standard is intended to protect you not only from
the immediate toxic effects of lead, but also from the
serious toxic effects that may not become apparent until
years of exposure have passed.
(II) Lead can be absorbed into your body by inhalation
(breathing) and ingestion (eating). Lead (except for certain
organic lead compounds not covered by the standard, such
as tetraethyl lead) is not absorbed through your skin.
When lead is scattered in the air as a dust, fume or mist,
it can be inhaled and absorbed through your lungs and
upper respiratory tract. Inhalation of airborne lead is
generally the most important source of occupational lead
absorption. You can also absorb lead through your digestive
system if lead gets into your mouth and is swallowed.
If you handle food, cigarettes, chewing tobacco, or make-up
which have lead on them or handle them with hands contaminated
with lead, this will contribute to ingestion.
(III) A significant portion of the lead that you inhale
or ingest gets into your blood stream. Once in your blood
stream lead is circulated throughout your body and stored
in various organs and body tissues. Some of this lead
is quickly filtered out of your body and excreted, but
some remains in your blood and other tissue. As exposure
to lead continues, the amount stored in your body will
increase if you are absorbing more lead than your body
is excreting. Even though you may not be aware of any
immediate symptoms of disease, this lead stored in your
tissues can be slowly causing irreversible damage, first
to individual cells, then to your organs and whole body
systems.
(I) Short-term (acute) overexposure. Lead is a potent,
systemic poison that serves no known useful function once
absorbed by your body. Taken in large enough doses, lead
can kill you in a matter of days. A condition affecting
the brain called acute encephalopathy may arise which
develops quickly to seizures, coma, and death from cardiorespiratory
arrest. A short-term dose of lead can lead to acute encephalopathy.
Short-term occupational exposures of this magnitude are
highly unusual, but not impossible. Similar forms of encephalopathy
may, however arise from extended, chronic exposure to
lower doses of lead. There is no sharp dividing line between
rapidly developing acute effects of lead, and chronic
effects which take longer to acquire. Lead adversely affects
numerous body systems, and causes forms of health impairment
and disease which arise after periods of exposure as short
as days or as long as several years.
(II) Long-term (chronic) overexposure.
a) Chronic overexposure to lead may result in severe
damage to your blood-forming, nervous, urinary and reproductive
systems. Some common symptoms of chronic overexposure
include loss of appetite, metallic taste in the mouth,
anxiety, constipation, nausea, pallor, excessive tiredness,
weakness, insomnia, headache, nervous irritability,
muscle and joint pain or soreness, fine tremors, numbness,
dizziness, hyperactivity and colic. In lead colic there
may be severe abdominal pain.
b) Damage to the central nervous system in general
and the brain (encephalopathy) in particular is one
of the most severe forms of lead poisoning. The most
severe, often fatal, form of encephalopathy may be preceded
by vomiting, a feeling of dullness progressing to drowsiness
and stupor, poor memory, restlessness, irritability,
tremor, and convulsions. It may arise suddenly with
the onset of seizures, followed by coma, and death.
There is a tendency for muscular weakness to develop
at the same time. This weakness may progress to paralysis
often observed as a characteristic “wrist drop”
or “foot drop” and is a manifestation of
a disease to the nervous system called peripheral neuropathy.
c) Chronic overexposure to lead also results in kidney
disease with few, if any, symptoms appearing until extensive
and most likely permanent kidney damage has occurred.
Routine laboratory tests reveal the presence of this
kidney disease only after about two-thirds of kidney
function is lost. When overt symptoms of urinary dysfunction
arise, it is often too late to correct or prevent worsening
conditions, and progression of kidney dialysis or death
is possible.
d) Chronic overexposure to lead impairs the reproductive
systems of both men and women. Overexposure to lead
may result in decreased sex drive, impotence and sterility
in men. Lead can alter the structure of sperm cells
raising the risk of birth defects. There is evidence
of miscarriage and stillbirth in women whose husbands
were exposed to lead or who were exposed to lead themselves.
Lead exposure also may result in decreased fertility,
and abnormal menstrual cycles in women. The course of
pregnancy may be adversely affected by exposure to lead
since lead crosses the placental barrier and poses risks
to developing fetuses. Children born of parents either
one of whom were exposed to excess lead levels are more
likely to have birth defects, mental retardation, behavioral
disorders or die during the first year of childhood.
e) Overexposure to lead also disrupts the blood-forming
system resulting in decreased hemoglobin (the substance
in the blood that carries oxygen to the cells) and ultimately
anemia. Anemiais characterized by weakness, pallor and
fatigability as a result of decreased oxygen carrying
capacity in the blood.
(III) Health protection goals of the standard.
a) Prevention of adverse health effects for most workers
from exposure to lead throughout a working lifetime
requires that worker blood lead (PbB) levels be maintained
at or below forty micrograms per one hundred grams of
whole blood (40 µg/100g). The blood lead levels of workers
(both male and female workers) who intend to have children
should be maintained below 30 µg/100g to minimize adverse
reproductive health effects to the parents and to the
developing fetus.
b) The measurement of your blood lead level is the
most useful indicator of the amount of lead absorbed
by your body. Blood lead levels (PbB) are most often
reported in units of milligrams (mg) or micrograms (µg)
of lead (1 mg = 1000 µg)
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