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U.S. regulators finalize new silica limits for construction, other industries
Source: Reuters
World | Thu Mar 24, 2016 12:44pm EDT
U.S. regulators finalize new silica limits for construction, other industries
BY ROBERT IAFOLLA AND DANIEL WIESSNER
Capping a decades-long effort, U.S. workplace regulators on Thursday announced a final rule to boost protections against occupational exposure to crystalline silica, a carcinogenic dust ubiquitous in construction, foundries and fracking.
Some industry groups have vowed to fight it in court and in the U.S. Congress, calling it unnecessary and warning that compliance will cost billions of dollars.
Issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the rule lowers the exposure limit for silica dust for the first time since 1971 to 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air. The levels had been set at 250 micrograms for construction and 100 micrograms for other industries.
It also requires employers to monitor silica in the workplace, use specific methods to reduce exposure and provide medical exams to workers, among other measures.
U.S. Labor Secretary Thomas Perez at a news conference at the International Masonry Institute in Bowie, Maryland on Thursday called the deaths of thousands of workers over the last century from silica-related illnesses "a scourge to our nation's history."
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U.S. regulators finalize new silica limits for construction, other industries
BY ROBERT IAFOLLA AND DANIEL WIESSNER
Capping a decades-long effort, U.S. workplace regulators on Thursday announced a final rule to boost protections against occupational exposure to crystalline silica, a carcinogenic dust ubiquitous in construction, foundries and fracking.
Some industry groups have vowed to fight it in court and in the U.S. Congress, calling it unnecessary and warning that compliance will cost billions of dollars.
Issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the rule lowers the exposure limit for silica dust for the first time since 1971 to 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air. The levels had been set at 250 micrograms for construction and 100 micrograms for other industries.
It also requires employers to monitor silica in the workplace, use specific methods to reduce exposure and provide medical exams to workers, among other measures.
U.S. Labor Secretary Thomas Perez at a news conference at the International Masonry Institute in Bowie, Maryland on Thursday called the deaths of thousands of workers over the last century from silica-related illnesses "a scourge to our nation's history."
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-labor-silica-idUSKCN0WQ1X7
