Safety and Health Program- Lead Program

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Lead

PART 1

(a) Scope and Application. This Part 1 of this Chapter applies to all occupational exposures to lead, except Construction (see Part 2 of this Chapter for Construction Application)

(b) Definitions.

"Action level" means employee exposure, without regard to the use of respirators, to an airborne concentration of lead of 30 micrograms per cubic meter of air (30 µg/m 3 ) averaged over an 8-hour period.

"Assistant Secretary" means the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, U.S. Department of Labor, or designee.

"Director" means the Director, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, or designee.

"Lead" means metallic lead, all inorganic lead com-pounds, and organic lead soaps. Excluded from this definition are all other organic lead compounds.

(c) Permissible exposure limit (PEL).

(1) The Company shall assure that no employee is exposed to lead at concentrations greater than fifty micrograms per cubic meter of air (50 µg/m 3 ) averaged over an 8-hour period.

(2) If an employee is exposed to lead for more than 8 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/m 3 ) = 400 ÷ hours worked in the day.

(3) When respirators are used to supplement engineering and work practice controls to comply with the PEL and all the requirements of paragraph (f) have been met, employee exposure, for the purpose of determining whether the Company 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.

(d) Exposure monitoring.

(1) General.

(i) For the purposes of paragraph (d), employee exposure is that exposure which would occur if the employee were not using a respirator.

(ii) With the exception of monitoring under paragraph (d)(3), the Company shall collect full shift (for at least 7 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.

(2) Initial determination. Each Company 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.

(3) Basis of initial determination.

(i) The Company 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 Company reasonably believes are exposed to the greatest airborne concentrations of lead in the workplace.

(iii) Measurements of airborne lead made in the preceding 12 months may be used to satisfy the requirement to monitor under paragraph (d)(3)(i) if the sampling and analytical methods used meet the accuracy and confidence levels of paragraph (d)(9) of this section.

(4) Positive initial determination and initial monitoring.

(i) Where a determination conducted under paragraphs (d)(2) and (3) of this section shows the possibility of any employee exposure at or above the action level, the Company 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 12 months may be used to satisfy this requirement if the sampling and analytical methods used meet the accuracy and confidence levels of paragraph (d)(9) of this section.

(5) Negative initial determination. Where a determination, conducted under paragraphs (d)(2) and (3) of this section is made that no employee is exposed to airborne concentrations of lead at or above the action level, the Company shall make a written record of such determination. The record shall include at least the information specified in paragraph (d)(3) 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.

(6) 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 paragraph (d)(7) 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 Company shall repeat monitoring in accordance with this paragraph at least every 6 months. The Company shall continue monitoring at the required frequency until at least two consecutive measurements, taken at least 7 days apart, are below the action level at which time the Company may discontinue monitoring for that employee except as otherwise provided in paragraph (d)(7) of this section.

(iii) If the initial monitoring reveals that employee exposure is above the permissible exposure limit the Company shall repeat monitoring quarterly. The Company shall continue monitoring at the required frequency until at least two consecutive measurements, taken at least 7 days apart, are below the PEL but at or above the action level at which time the Company shall repeat monitoring for that employee at the frequency specified in paragraph (d)(6)(ii), except as otherwise provided in paragraph (d)(7) of this section.