2. References to substance-specific
rules that may also apply to you and have additional
respirator
selection requirements. These references are found in the permissible
exposure limit (PEL) table.
A respirator must be provided to each employee when
such equipment is necessary to protect the health of the employee.
Select and provide, at no cost to employees, appropriate respirators
for routine use, infrequent use, and reasonably foreseeable
emergencies (such as escape, emergency, and spill response
situations) by completing the following process:
Respirator Selection Process
Step 1: If your only respirator use is
for escape, skip to Step 8 to select appropriate
respirators.
Step 2: If the respiratory hazard is a
biological aerosol, such as TB (tuberculosis), anthrax, psittacosis
(parrot fever), or hanta virus, select a respirator appropriate for
nonemergency activities recognized to present a health
risk to workers AND skip to Step 8.
(a) If respirator use will occur
during emergencies, skip to Step 8 and
document the analysis used to select the appropriate
respirator.
(b) Use
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) selection guidance for exposures to
specific biological agents when this guidance exists. Visit
http://www.cdc.gov.
Step 3: If the respiratory hazard is a
pesticide, follow the respirator specification on the pesticide label
AND skip to Step 9.
Step 4: Determine the expected exposure
concentration for each respiratory hazard of concern. Use the results
from the evaluation required by chapter 296-841 WAC, Airborne
contaminants.
Step 5: Determine if the respiratory
hazard is classified as IDLH; if it is NOT IDLH skip to Step
7.
The respiratory hazard IS classified as
IDLH if:
(a) The atmosphere
is oxygen deficient or oxygen enriched;
(b) You CANNOT measure or estimate
your expected exposure concentration; or
(c) Your measured or estimated
expected
exposure concentration is greater or equal to the IDLH value
in the
NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards.
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Note:
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DOSH uses the IDLH values in the 1990 edition
of the NIOSH Pocket Guide to Hazardous Chemicals to
determine the existence of IDLH conditions. You may use more recent
editions of this guide. Visitwww.cdc.gov/niosh for more
information.
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Step 6: Select an appropriate respirator
from one of the following respirators for IDLH conditions and skip to
Step 8:
(a)
Full-facepiece, pressure demand, self-contained breathing apparatus
(SCBA) certified by NIOSH for a minimum service life of thirty
minutes; or
(b)
Full-facepiece, pressure demand air-line
respirator equipped with an
auxiliary self-contained air supply.
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Exception:
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If the respiratory hazard is oxygen
deficiency AND you can show oxygen concentrations can be controlled
within the ranges listed in Table 4 under ALL foreseeable conditions,
you are allowed to select ANY type of SCBA or air-line
respirator:
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Table 4 Concentration Ranges for Oxygen
Deficiency
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Altitude (as ft. above sea
level)
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Oxygen Concentration Range (as
percent oxygen)
|
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Below 3,001
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16.0 - 19.5
|
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3,001 - 4,000
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16.4 - 19.5
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|
4,001 - 5,000
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17.1 - 19.5
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|
5,001 - 6,000
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17.8 - 19.5
|
|
6,001 - 7,000
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18.5 - 19.5
|
|
7,001 - 8,000
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19.3 - 19.5
|
| Above 8,000 feet the exception does
not apply. Oxygen-enriched breathing air must be supplied above
14,000 feet. |
Step 7: Select respirator types with
assigned protection factors (APFs) from Table 5 that are appropriate
to protect employees from the expected exposure concentration.
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Note:
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1. Appendix B, using assigned protection
factors (APFs) for respirator selection, found in this chapter, uses
the hazard-ratio approach established by ANSI Z88.2-1992 to determine
which respirator types can provide a sufficient level of
protection.
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2. If no permissible exposure limit (PEL) is
established for an airborne contaminant, use relevant available
information and informed professional judgment to determine an
acceptable exposure limit value to use for calculating hazard ratios.
For example, you may use exposure limit values established by the
American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists
(ACGIH).
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Step 8: Consider hazards that could
require selection of specific respirator types. For example, select
full-facepiece respirators to prevent eye irritation or abrasive
blasting helmets to provide particle rebound protection.
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Note:
|
Rules for specific substances have
additional selection specifications that apply to escape and other
types of respirators. Make sure you follow those additional
requirements before finalizing your selection.
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Step 9: Evaluate user and workplace
factors that might compromise respirator performance, reliability or
safety.
Examples:
(a) High humidity or temperature
extremes in the workplace.
(b) Necessary voice
communication.
(c) High
traffic areas and moving machinery.
(d) If respirator use is for escape
only, follow this step and then skip to Step
11.
(e) If the
respiratory hazard is a pesticide, follow the requirements on the
pesticide label and skip to Step 11.
(f) Time or distance for escape.
Step 10: Follow Table 6 requirements to
select an air-purifying respirator.
If Table 6 requirements cannot be met, you must
select an appropriate air-line respirator or an
SCBA.
Step 11: Make sure respirators you
select are certified by the National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health (NIOSH).
(a) Respirators provided
exclusively for escape from IDLH atmospheres must be NIOSH-certified
for escape from the atmosphere in which they will be used.
(b) To maintain certification, make
sure the
respirator is used according to cautions and limitations
specified on the
NIOSH approval label. This includes manufacturer
restrictions on cartridges and canisters.
For SCBAs, use only the respirator manufacturer's
NIOSH-approved breathing gas containers, marked and maintained in
accordance with the Quality Assurance 68 provisions of the NIOSH
approval for the SCBA as issued in accordance with the NIOSH
respirator certification standard at 42 C.F.R. Part 84.
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Note:
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While selecting respirators, you will need
to select a sufficient number of types, models or sizes to provide
for fit testing. You can also consider other respirator use issues,
such as accommodating facial hair with a loose fitting
respirator.
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Use Table 5 to identify the assigned protection
factor for different types of respirators.
(c) These assigned protection
factors are only effective when the employer implements a continuing,
effective respirator program as required by this chapter, including
training, fit testing, maintenance, and use requirements.
(d) You may select respirators
assigned for use in higher workplace concentrations of a hazardous
substance for use at lower concentrations of that substance, or when
required use is independent of concentration.
Table 5 Assigned Protection Factors (APF) for
Respirator Types
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If the respirator is a(n)
...
|
Then the APF is ...
|
|
Air-purifying respirator with a:
* Quarter-mask ............
* Half-facepiece. This category includes
filtering facepiece and elastomeric facepiece
models ..................
* Full-facepiece ...........
Powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR) with
a:
* Loose-fitting facepiece ...........
* Half-facepiece ...........
* Full-facepiece ...........
* Hood or helmet ..........
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5
10
50
25
50
1000
25/1000 (see note)
|
|
Note: PAPRs with helmets/hoods
may receive an APF of 1000 only when you have evidence that testing
of these respirators demonstrates performance at a level of
protection of 1,000 or greater. Such evidence must be provided by the
respirator manufacturer. This level of performance can best be
demonstrated by performing a workplace protection factor (WPF) or
simulated workplace protection factor (SWPF) study or equivalent
testing.
|
|
Air-line respirator with a:
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
demand mode ..
* Loose-fitting facepiece and designed to
operate in continuous flow mode ............
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
continuous-flow mode ...................
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode
....................
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
demand mode . . ..
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
continuous-flow mode ...................
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode
....................
* Helmet or hood and designed to operate in
continuous-flow mode ...................
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10
25
50
50
50
1000
1000
25/1000 (see note)
|
|
Note: Air-line respirators with
helmets/hoods designed to operate in continuous-flow mode may receive
an APF of 1000 when you have evidence that testing of these
respirators demonstrates performance at a level of protection of
1,000 or greater. Such evidence must be provided by the respirator
manufacturer. This level of performance can best be demonstrated by
performing a workplace protection factor (WPF) or simulated workplace
protection factor (SWPF) study or equivalent testing.
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|
Self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA)
with a tight fitting:
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
demand mode ..
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
demand mode . . ..
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
pressure-demand or other positive pressure mode (e.g., open/closed
circuit) . ..
* Helmet or hood and designed to operate in
demand mode. ..
* Helmet or hood and designed to operate in
pressure-demand or other positive-pressure mode (e.g., open/closed
circuit) . . ..
Combination respirators:
* When using a combination respirator, such
as an air-line respirator with an air-purifying filter, you must make
sure the APF is appropriate to the mode of operation in which the
respirator is used ..............
Escape respirators:
* APFs in this table do not apply to
respirators used solely for escape. To select escape respirators, go
to Step 8 of this section .....................
|
10
50
10,000
50
10,000
|
Use Table 6 to select air-purifying respirators for
particle, vapor, or gas contaminants.
Table 6 Requirements for Selecting Any
Air-purifying Respirator
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If the contaminant is a
...
|
Then ...
|
|
* Gas OR vapor
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*Provide a respirator with canisters or
cartridges equipped with a NIOSH-certified, end-of-service-life
indicator (ESLI)
OR
*If a canister or cartridge with an ESLI is
NOT available, develop a cartridge change schedule to make sure the
canisters or cartridges are replaced before they are no longer
effective
OR
* Select an atmosphere-supplying
respirator
|
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* Particle, such as a dust, spray, mist, fog,
fume, or aerosol
|
* Select respirators with filters certified
to be at least 95% efficient by NIOSH
- For example, N95s, R99s, P100s, or High
Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters
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