OSHA & Silica: Make Headway, Miss a Fine?

WASHINGTON —The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will help out workplaces making a reasonable effort to comply with new crystalline-silica exposure levels … at least until July 23.

While the new today standard for silica in general industry and maritime went into effect on June 23, the agency will go easy on shops working to meet new levels for the first 30 days.

In a memo sent to the agency’s regional administrators last month, Deputy Assistant Secretary Galen Blanton said OSHA “will assist employers that are making good-faith efforts to meet the new standard requirements.”

If an employer “is not making any effort to comply,” Blanton added, OSHA compliance officers should conduct air monitoring and consider issuing citations for non-compliance. However, he added, “Any proposed citations related to inspections conducted in this 30-day time period will require National Office review prior to issuance.”

OSHA intends to issue interim enforcement guidance until a compliance directive on the new standards is finalized. 

OSHA’s Small Entity Compliance Guide for the Respirable Crystalline Silica Standard for General Industry and Maritime discusses methods of compliance, such as using engineering and work practice controls, assessing exposure levels, respirator use, medical surveillance and written exposure plans.

The standard establishes a new 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA) permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 50 µg/m3, an action level (AL) of 25 µg/m3, and associated ancillary requirements.

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