Safety and Health Program- Workplace Hazards Upgrade Chapter

(Please click your "Back" button to return to the previous "Upgrade Page")

Prevention and Control of Workplace Hazards

Policy:

Section 19(a) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) requires that employees be provided with a safe and healthful place of employment. Identification of hazardous conditions may be accomplished at the planning and design stage, as a result of workplace inspections, or by employee reports.

All recognized safety and health hazards shall be eliminated or controlled as quickly as possible, subject to priorities based upon the degree of risk posed by the hazards. The preferred method of hazard abatement shall be through application of engineering controls or substitution of less hazardous processes or materials.

Total reliance on personal protective equipment is acceptable only when all other methods are proven to be technically and/or economically infeasible.

Principles:

Safety and Health Hazards shall be eliminated or controlled by one of the following methods:

Substitution-

The risk of injury or illness may be reduced by replacement of an existing process, material, or equipment with a similar item having more limited hazard potential Some examples include: brush painting instead of spray painting to reduce inhalation hazards, welding instead of riveting to reduce noise levels, use of safety cans instead of bottles to store flammable liquids, etc. Care must be exercised in any substitution to ensure that the substitute materials are technically acceptable and to avoid introducing a new or unforeseen hazards.

Isolation-

Hazards are controlled by isolation whenever an appropriate barrier or limitor is placed between the hazard and an individual who may be affected by the hazard. This isolation can be in the form of physical barriers, time separation, or distance. Examples include machine guards, electrical insulation, glove boxes, acoustical containment, and remote controlled equipment.

Ventilation-

The control of a potentially hazardous airborne substance by ventilation can be accomplished by one or two methods: diluting the concentration of the substance by mixing with uncontaminated air or capturing and removing the substance at its source or point of generation. Local exhaust ventilation is generally the preferred and more economical method of hazard control. However, dilution ventilation can be very effective for the removal of large volumes of heated air or for the removal of low concentrations of non-toxic or low toxicity contaminants from minor and decentralized sources.

Administrative Control-

This method of hazard mitigation depends on effective operating practices that reduce the exposure of individuals to chemical or physical hazards. These practices may take the form of limited access to high hazard areas, preventive maintenance programs to reduce the potential for leakage of hazardous substances, or adjusted work schedules which involve a regimen of work in high hazard and low hazard areas. Adjusted work schedules are appropriate only when the hazard is recognized as having a limit below which nearly all workers may be repeatedly exposed without adverse effect.