Reducing silica exposure on the job

Respirable crystalline silica, a common mineral found in materials such as stone, artificial stone, and sand, has been classified as a human lung carcinogen. Additionally, breathing crystalline silica dust can cause silicosis, a disabling and sometimes fatal disease.

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), exposure to respirable crystalline silica, or silica, is a serious threat to approximately 300,000 workers in over 75,000 U.S. general industry and maritime workplaces. Approximately one-third of these workers are in high-exposure-risk jobs, such as operations using sand products and certain product manufacturing operations.

What are typical work situations that involve silica?

Situations that include exposure to silica dust:

• Abrasive blasting with sand
• Use of industrial sand in foundry work and hydraulic fracturing
• Manufacture of products such as glass, pottery, ceramics
• Manufacture of stone countertops, brick, concrete, artificial stone

OSHA requirements

The OSHA silica rule for general industry found at 29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1910.1053 (OSHA silica rule) sets forth requirements employers must take to significantly reduce the amount of silica dust that workers can be exposed to in the workplace. These include engineering controls, work practice controls, and respiratory controls. All are described in detail in the OSHA silica rule.

Employees should be sure to review their employer’s written exposure control plan and the OSHA silica rule to identify the protections their employer must provide to lessen their exposure to silica dust. OSHA requires employers to make both the written exposure control plan and the OSHA silica rule readily available to employees for examination and copying upon request.

What measures can you take to avoid inhalation of silica?

Worker’s right to know

The federal hazard communication, or worker right-to-know, rule says employees have a right to know about the potential health and physical hazards of silica and silica-containing materials through signage, information, product labels, and safety data sheets (SDSs) provided by their employer.

• Regulated areas are areas in your workplace where exposures to silica dust are, or can reasonably be expected to be, above the permissible exposure limit (PEL) for silica. A sign, with the information specified in the OSHA silica rule, must be posted at each entrance to a regulated area.
• Labels should identify the type of hazard associated with the material—they include pictograms that provide a quick reference to the potential health hazards of the product.
• An SDS provides a more detailed explanation of the hazards and measures to take to protect yourself, including required personal protective equipment (PPE). Always read the SDS before starting to work with a silica-containing material.
  Be sure to heed the labels, SDSs, and regulated area signs that communicate silica dust hazards.

Housekeeping

To reduce or prevent exposure to silica dust, certain housekeeping or cleaning methods must be avoided unless there are no workable or safer alternatives for the task at hand.

Avoid dry sweeping to reduce the chance silica dust will go airborne, and don’t use compressed air when cleaning up or preparing a work area unless the compressed air or dry sweeping is used together with a ventilation system to capture the dust. Because both activities stir up large amounts of dust into the air, use a wet sweeping method instead, and use a vacuum with high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters whenever possible.

Personal hygiene

Another step to take to reduce your risk of exposure to harmful silica dust is following good hygiene practices:

• Use disposable clothes while working on tasks involving silica dust, or keep a set of washable work clothes at the site.
• Before removing work clothes after your shift, vacuum them very carefully to safely remove silica particles.
• Shower to remove any contaminants from your skin before putting on your street clothes.
• If you’ve been working in an area where there’s silica dust, wash your hands before eating, drinking, or smoking, and never bring food, beverages, or cigarettes into an area that has silica dust.

These actionable practices that employers can put in place can reduce exposure to silica, leading to a healthier and safer workplace.