OSHA’s Final Standards for General Industry, Construction, and Shipyards

1. Occupational Exposure to Hexavalent Chromium (CrVI) OSHA’s Final Standards for General Industry, Construction, and Shipyards

2. Occupational exposure to hexavalent chromium (CrVI) • Overview • Major uses of CrVI • Major industries covered by the final standard • Major health effects from exposure to CrVI • Discussion of some of selected provisions and major changes made to the final standard

3. OSHA’s new standard for occupational exposure to hexavalent chromium (CrVI) • Published Feb. 28, 2006 • Sets a new permissible exposure limit of 5 µg/m3 • Covers ~ 558,000 workers in general industry, construction and shipyards • Will result in 40-145 avoided lung cancers per year among exposed workers • Cost employers ~ $282 million per year

4. OSHA’s previous standards for CrVI • General Industry • PEL of 52 µg/m3 as a ceiling concentration • Adopted in 1971 from a 1943 ANSI standard • No ancillary provisions • Construction • PEL of 52 µg/m3 as an 8-hour TWA • Adopted in 1971 from 1970 ACGIH TLV • No ancillary provisions

5. What is hexavalent chromium ? • Stable form of chromium metal that is generally man-made • Exists as many different types of CrVI compounds that vary in their solubility and use • Used in many industrial applicationsprimarily for its anti-corrosive properties • Created during certain “hot” work processeswhere the original form of chromium was not hexavalent

6. Chromic acid Electroplating Wood preservatives Potassium dichromate Catalysts Sodium dichromate Pigments, dyes Glass and plastic colorants Strontium chromate Anticorrosive coatings Some major types of CrVI compounds and their uses

7. Electroplating Welding on stainless steel or Cr(VI) painted surfaces Painting Aerospace Autobody repair Chromate pigmentand chemical production Chromium dye and catalyst production Glass manufacturing Plastic colorant production Construction Traffic painting Refractory brick restoration Paintremoval from bridges Major industries or operations covered by the final Cr(VI) standard

8. Major Health Effects • Lung cancer • Nasal septum ulcerations and perforations • Asthma • Skin ulcers • Allergic and irritant contact dermatitis

9. Three Separate Final CrVI Standards • 1910.1026 General Industry • 1926.1126 Construction • 1915.1026 Shipyards

10. Scope Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) Exposure Determination Regulated areas** Methods of Compliance Respiratory Protection Protective Work Clothing and Equipment ** General industry only Hygiene Areas and Practices Housekeeping ** Medical Surveillance Communication of Hazards Recordkeeping Dates Major Provisions of the Final Rules

11. Major differences between the proposed and final CrVI standards • Proposed PEL was 1 µg/m3. The final PEL is 5 µg/m3. • Expanded the exclusion for portland cement to general industry and shipyards • Added an exemption for employers who can demonstrate that exposures are below 0.5 µg/m3 under any condition of use • Added exposure determination provisions for construction and shipyards including a performance-oriented option for all industry sectors • Added an engineering control limit of 25 µg/m3 for certain aerospace painting operations • Increased time for employers to comply with the final standards

12. New Permissible Exposure Limit • 5 micrograms per cubic meter air (5 µg/m3) as a 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA) • All CrVI compounds • Action level: 2.5 µg/m3

13. Scope: What types of exposures are covered by the final standards? • All occupational exposures to CrVI compounds except: • Exposures that occur in the application of pesticides • Exposures to portland cement • Exposures where employers have objective data demonstrating that a material containing chromium or a process involving chromium cannot release CrVI in concentrations at or above 0.5 µg/m3 under any expected condition of use

14. Exposure Determination : What are employers’ requirements for monitoring employee exposures? • Two options allowed for characterizing employee exposures: • Scheduled monitoring option • Performance-oriented option

15. Scheduled monitoring option • Lays out a set schedule for conducting initial and periodic monitoring • Initial monitoring to determine if exposures are below or above the action level (AL) • If initial monitoring indicates exposures are: • Below the AL: monitoring can be discontinued • At or above theAL : monitor every 6 months • Above the PEL: monitor every 3 months

16. Performance-oriented option • Exposures characterized using any combination of air monitoring data, historical monitoring data or objective data • No fixed schedule for performing periodic monitoring

17. Methods of Compliance: What methods must employers use to achieve the new PEL? • Establishes engineering and work practice controls as the primary means of achieving the PEL • Exceptions: • Painting aircraft or large aircraft parts : • Use engineering and work practice controls to achieve 25 µg/m3 and supplement with respirators to achieve the PEL • Tasks or operations that do not result in exposures above the PEL for 30 or more days per year : • Use of respirators alone allowed to achieve the PEL

18. When must employers comply with provisions of the final standards? • Effective date: May 30, 2006 • Start-up dates: • All provisions except engineering controls • For employers with 19 or fewer employees: May 30, 2007 • For all others: Nov. 27, 2006 • Engineering Controls • For all employers : May 31, 2010

19. Questions? Safety and Health Add Value •To Your Business • To Your Workplace • To Your Life