Document reVOrL7b11Zd8bxdjojkkZRJ7

22706 Federal Register / Vol. 51. No. 119 / Friday, June 20, 1986 / Rules and Regulations Although commenters were scaling the burden of compliance with themselves of the requirements of unanimous in recommending that OSHA the standard to the degree of hazard provisions that are triggered by the adopt a separate standard for associated with particular operations. action level or PEL since such worker construction, many participants Depending on the nature and extent of isolation techniques effectively reduce emphasized that there were significant exposure, certain provisions of the final airborne concentrations of asbestos to differences in exposures, degree of rule may not be applicable in certain below the revised level of 0.1 f/cc. hazard, work conditions, and applicable situations or may have limited The operations listed in paragraph controls associated with various types applicability. The applicability of many (a)(1) of the scope and application of asbestos construction work (Exs. 84- provisions of the standard is based on paragraph account for most of the 307, 84-457, 328. 330, Trs. 8/20, 7/12,). As the results of initial employee construction jobs likely to involve ihe described above in Section IX, monitoring conducted by the employer installation, handling, removal, and Standards Recommended to OSHA by or on the availability of other objective disposal of asbestos-containing Interested Parties, several participants data concerning employee exposures or material; however, OSHA is aware that suggested various methods of dealing product characteristics. For example, no such list can be all-inclusive. with these differences. For example, the paragraphs (k)(3)(i) and (m)(l)(i) are Paragraph (a)(1) makes clear that the Asbestos Information Association of triggered by employee exposures above revised standard applies to demolition North America (AIA/NA) recommended the action level, while other provisions,. or salvage operations where asbestos is the adoption of a certification program such as those in paragraphs (e)(1), (i)(l), present. Paragraph.(a)(2) includes in the involving the classification of asbestos- and (k)(l)(i) are triggered by exposures scope operations involving the removal containing materials according to their above the PEL or encapsulation of asbestos-containing potential for releasing airborne asbestos In addition, the revised standard for products. Such asbestos abatement fibers (Ex. 84-307). A similar scheme for construction recognizes that countless projects are typically associated with categorizing products was suggested by the BCTD (Ex. 84-424). The AGC stressed the variability in asbestos maintenance operations involving the handling of asbestos-containing materials are conducted in the United the highest asbestos exposures occurring in construction, and reflect an increasing national awareness of the construction tasks in a pre-hearing States daily, and that these operations, submittal that stated: which are small in scale and of short ... the vast majority of exposures are both short term and at low levels. Most exposures are incidental to other work . . . (and duration, are vastly dissimilar in degree of hazard to many other asbestosrelated construction operations such as Involve) asbestos products not readily asbestos abatement projects. friable. The risk of heavy exposure will Exemptions from many of the final rule's continue to attend abatement demolition, and similar kinds of construction activity. . . . OSHA should. . . [develop a standard that requires) a graduated response to the risk of exposure, one which varies with the risk. (Ex. 84-457) provisions [e.g., paragraphs (e)(6), (i)(4),. and (j)(l)(i) have accordingly been provided in the revised standard for "small scale, short-duration-operations. " Although OSHA finds it impossible to OSHA finds the record evidence compelling both as regards the promulgation of a separate standard for construction and as regards the specify with precision the exact size of a "small-scale" maintenance job or to pinpoint the time involved in a shortduration" task, the Agency believes that providing employers with examples of development of a standard tailored to the varying levels of risk associated the type of operations that OSHA considers to. be included in this class of with different construction activities. operations will provide employers with Accordingly, the final standard applies the guidance needed to use the final to all occupational exposures to rule's exemptions for such operations asbestos in the construction industry, appropriately. Paragraph (e)(6) but is tiered to apply increasingly enumerates several of these operations, stringent requirements to those work including: Pipe repair; valve ' operations associated with the. highest replacement; installation of telephone exposures. As the record demonstrates, circuits, electrical conduits, and drywall; employees engaged in asbestos removal, . and other general building maintenance demolition, and renovation operations and renovation tasks: For some of these hazards of exposure to asbestos. The volume of asbestos abatement work is increasing at a rapid rate, as more and more Federal agencies, local governments, end private-sector employers and building owners become aware of the hazards posed by the existence of asbestos-containing insulation materials and coatings in thejr facilities. The revised standard addresses the high hazard potential of work in the asbestos abatement portion of the construction industry by applying separate and stringent requirements to these operations. For example, employers engaged in such work are required to establish negative-pressure barriers enclosing the area where such work is taking place (paragraph (e)(6)) and to appoint a competent person to oversee the operation of this enclosure. These employers are also required to provide disposable work-suits for.all employees working within the abatement enclosure (paragraph (i)(4)j and to ensure that these employers observe strict decontamination procedures before they leave the work generally have the highest asbestos operations, the quantities of asbestos- site. exposures of all construction workers. containing material that will need to be The construction operations listed in The standard therefore includes specific ' handled will be small enough so as not paragraph (a)(3) include construction, paragraphs addressed to'these to result in employee exposures above alteration, repair, maintenance, or operations: for example, employers the action level or PEL; in these cases,. renovation of structures,, substrates. or conducting such abatement activities the employer will not need to comply portions thereof that contain asbestos. are required to establish temporary with the provisions that are triggered by These activities would involve minor - enclosures maintained under negative these exposure levels. For many other operations, such as replacement of a pressure and to ensure that their maintenance operations, employers can gasket made of asbestos-containing workers, where feasible, use the special choose to use exposure-control material, repair of a section of drywall, hygiene facilities and decontamination measures, such as glove bags, that or sanding down of old asbestos- procedures prescribed in paragraph effectively isolate the employee from the containing floor tiles. . (j)(2). OSHA believes.that this tiering asbestos-containing materials being The installation of new asbestos- approach willsimultaneously.ensure removed. Employers who use glove bags containing products, such as floor tiles' . maximum employee protection while and other similar techniques will avail and asbestos sheet and pipe, is called GLEASON-000954