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| Occupational Safety & Health Administration |

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| Fact Sheets (Program Highlights)01/01/1995 - Cotton Dust |
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| Fact Sheets (Program Highlights) - Table of Contents |
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| U.S. Department of LaborProgram HighlightsFact Sheet No. OSHA 95-23
**COTTON DUST**
Cotton dust is dust present in the air during the handling or processing of cotton.  This dust may contain a mixture of many substances including ground up plant matter, fiber, bacteria, fungi, soil, pesticides, non-cotton matter, and other contaminants.
**HEALTH EFFECTS**
Exposure to cotton dust can mean serious health problems.  The first symptoms of disease are difficulty in breathing or perhaps a tightness across the chest which is particularly noticeable on the first day back at work after a worker has been off for a few days.  Workers also cough up phlegm or mucous.
If exposure above the OSHA limit continues, workers may develop byssinosis, also known as "brown lung" disease.  While earlier breathing difficulties may be reversible, damage at the advanced stages of the disease is permanent and disabling.  Workers who develop brown lung may have to retire early because they are so short of breath they cannot do their normal jobs or even carry out simple tasks.  Exposure to cotton dust also leads to increased risk of chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
At the time the final standard was published, as many as 100,000 workers in the cotton industry were at risk from cotton dust exposure. An estimated 35,000 individuals are disabled from byssinosis as a result of exposure to cotton dust.
**WORKER PROTECTION**
To protect workers from disabling respiratory diseases, employers are required to limit the amount of respirable cotton dust in the air.  The limits--known as permissible exposure limits--are average exposures as measured over an eight-hour workday.  For yarn manufacturing the limit is 200 micrograms of cotton dust per cubic meter of air; for textile waste houses, 500 micrograms; for slashing and weaving operations, 750 micrograms; and for waste recycling and garnetting, 1000 micrograms.
Cottonseed processing operations are covered by the standard but there is no permissible exposure limit.
**DUST MEASUREMENT**
Employers must measure the workplace cotton dust level at least every six months, or whenever there are any changes in equipment or work practices which might increase the amount of cotton dust in the air.  The cotton dust must be measured with a vertical elutriator or an equivalent instrument.  Measurements must be representative of an eight-hour period and be performed for each shift and in each work area.  Employers must explain the procedure to their workers and permit them to observe the monitoring.  They must notify employees in writing of the findings within five days after measurement.  If the levels are above OSHA standards, employers must list in the notice to employees the steps they will take to correct problems.
**DUST CONTROLS**
Often employers can reduce dust levels by adjusting dust control equipment, such as ventilation systems, and by cleaning and repairing the equipment regularly.  An employer's dust control program must include, at a minimum, the following:  (1) cleaning floors with a vacuum or another method that cuts down the spreading of dust; (2) disposing of dust in such a way that as little dust scatters as possible; (3) using mechanical methods to stack, dump or otherwise handle cotton or cotton waste, when possible; (4) checking, cleaning, and repairing dust control equipment and ventilation systems.  Compressed air may not be used to clean clothing and floors and may only be used to clean equipment if no other methods are possible and workers involved in the cleaning wear respirators.  If these measures fail to reduce the cotton dust levels below the OSHA limits, employers must try additional engineering controls and work practices.
**RESPIRATORY PROTECTION**
Employers must supply employees with respirators, if other measures are not sufficient to reduce exposure to levels lower than or equal to the PEL.  If respirators are necessary, workers are to be fitted for them and instructed in using, cleaning, and maintaining them.  An employee who cannot wear a respirator for medical reasons must have the opportunity to transfer to another job where the level of cotton dust is within the OSHA limit, at no loss in pay, seniority, or other rights and benefits, if another position is available.
**MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS**
In addition to reducing the dust in the air, employers must provide free annual medical exams, including breathing tests, to workers employed in dust areas.  If workers show significant physical changes, more frequent exams must be made available to them.  Results are to be provided to workers, and workers may copy exam and test results if they wish. Employers are to maintain the records for 20 years and make them available to workers or to their designated representatives with the consent of the workers and to OSHA and NIOSH on request.
**TRAINING PROGRAM**
To insure that employees are aware of the hazards of cotton dust, employers are required to conduct a training program at least annually. Warning signs must be posted in work areas where the cotton dust level is higher than the OSHA limit.
For a copy of OSHA's cotton dust standard or other materials on the hazard, send a self-addressed label to OSHA Publications, Room N3101, Frances Perkins Building, 200 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC, 20210 or call (202) 219-4667.
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This is one of a series of fact sheets highlighting U.S. Department of Labor programs.  It is intended as a general description only and does not carry the force of legal opinion.  This information will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request.  Voice phone:  (202) 219-8151.  TDD message referral phone:  1-800-326-2577.Fact Sheets (Program Highlights) - Table of ContentsBack to Topwww.osha.govwww.dol.govContact Us |Freedom of Information Act |Customer SurveyPrivacy and Security Statement |DisclaimersOccupational Safety & Health Administration200 Constitution Avenue, NWWashington, DC 20210  |
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