Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 194 / Tuesday, October 7, 1997 / Notices 52343

Dated: October 1, 1997.

Carolyn J. Russell,

Director, Management Analysis and Services

Office Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC).

[FR Doc. 97–26496 Filed 10–6–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4163–70–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Agency for Toxic Substances and

Disease Registry

Citizens Advisory Committee on Public

Health Service (PHS) Activities and

Research at Department of Energy

(DOE) Sites: Hanford Health Effects

Subcommittee (HHES); Meeting

Cancellation

This notice announces the

cancellation of a previously announced

meeting.

Federal Notice Citation of Previous

Announcement: 62 FR 6539, February

12, 1997.

Previously Announced Times and

Dates: 9 a.m.–5 p.m., and 6:30 p.m.–8:30

p.m., December 11, 1997; 9:30 a.m.–3:30

p.m., December 12, 1997.

Change in the Meeting: This meeting

has been cancelled.

Contact Person for More Information:

James K. Carpenter, Executive Secretary,

Citizens Advisory Committee on PHS

Activities and Research at DOE Sites:

HHES, ATSDR, 1600 Clifton Road, NE,

M/S E–32, Atlanta, Georgia 30333,

telephone 404/639–6027.

Dated: October 1, 1997.

Carolyn J. Russell,

Director, Management Analysis and Services

Office, Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC).

[FR Doc. 97–26497 Filed 10–6–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4163–70–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention

National Institute for Occupational

Safety and Health; Occupational

Exposure to Inorganic Lead: Request

for Comments and Information

AGENCY: National Institute for

Occupational Safety and Health

(NIOSH), Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention (CDC), Department of

Health and Human Services (DHHS).

ACTION: Request for Comments and

Information Relevant to Occupational

Exposure to Inorganic Lead.

SUMMARY: NIOSH is reviewing its

recommendations contained in the

document Criteria for a Recommended

Standard....Occupational Exposure to

Inorganic Lead, Revised Criteria—1978

[NIOSH 1978]. The evaluation of recent

literature indicates that the NIOSH

recommended exposure limit (REL) of

100 g/m3 as an 8-hour time-weighted

average (TWA) in that document does

not sufficiently protect workers from the

adverse effects of exposure to inorganic

lead. NIOSH is requesting comments

and information relevant to the

evaluation of the potential health risks

associated with occupational exposure

to inorganic lead, as well as case reports

or other data that demonstrate adverse

health effects in workers exposed to

inorganic lead at or below the OSHA

permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 50

g/m3 as an 8-hour TWA and any

information pertinent to evaluating the

technical feasibility of establishing a

more protective REL for inorganic lead.

NIOSH is also soliciting information on

worker blood lead levels (BLLs)

including data on methodologies used

in measuring BLLs in the workplace and

information that can be used for

comparing airborne inorganic lead

concentrations to observed BLLs.

NIOSH intends to analyze the

feasibility of developing preventive

measures including an REL that would

provide better protection for workers. In

the interim, NIOSH plans to adopt the

more protective current OSHA PEL as

its REL.

DATES: Written comments to this notice

should be submitted to Diane Manning,

NIOSH Docket Office, 4676 Columbia

Parkway, M/S C–34, Cincinnati, Ohio

45226, on or before December 8, 1997.

Comments may also be faxed to Diane

Manning at (513) 533–8285 or submitted

by email to dmm2@cdc.gov as

WordPerfect 6.0/6.1 files.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Technical information may be obtained

from Dr. Henryka Nagy, NIOSH, CDC,

4676 Columbia Parkway, M/S C–32,

Cincinnati, Ohio 45226, telephone (513)

533–8369.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NIOSH

has conducted a literature review of the

health effects data on inorganic lead

exposure and finds evidence that some

adverse effects on the adult

reproductive, cardiovascular, and

hematologic systems, and on the

development of children of exposed

workers can occur at BLLs as low as 10

g/dl with no apparent threshold. At

BLLs below 40 g/dl, many of the health

effects associated with lead exposure

would not necessarily be evident by

routine physical examinations, but

represent early stages in a continuum of

disease development. The risk of

developing adverse health effects

appears to increase as BLLs rise above

40 g/dl.

In the NIOSH 1978 criteria document

entitled Occupational Exposure to

Inorganic Lead [NIOSH 1978], NIOSH

recommended that exposure to

inorganic lead be limited to 100 g/m3 as

an 8-hour TWA. This exposure limit

was expected to maintain BLLs below

60 g/dl and to prevent clinical health

effects to the hematologic system, the

central and peripheral nervous systems,

the reproductive system, and the

kidneys. NIOSH also expressed concern

about possible health effects that may

occur below 60 g/dl:‘‘In adhering to the

60 g/dl figure, NIOSH has not

relinquished its concerns for possible

effects that may occur below 60 g/dl.

Adherence to this 60 g/dl figure should

not be interpreted as a firm NIOSH

opposition to establishing a lower blood

lead standard. In fact, NIOSH endorses

a lower blood lead standard as a future

goal to provide greater assurance of

safety.

In 1978, the Occupational Safety and

Health Administration (OSHA)

promulgated an occupational inorganic

lead standard for general industry that

incorporates a PEL of 50 g/m3 which is

intended to maintain worker BLLs

below 40 g/dl. OSHA also included

provisions for reducing the PEL for

work shifts that exceed 8 hours, medical

monitoring of workers exposed to

airborne inorganic lead concentrations

at or above the action level of 30 g/m3,

and medical removal of workers with

BLLs greater than 50 g/dl. Workers are

permitted to return to jobs involving

inorganic lead exposure only after their

BLLs have declined to 40 g/dl.

OSHA concluded in 1978 that a PEL

of 50 g/m3 represented the lowest level

for which there was evidence of

feasibility in most industries. OSHA

also acknowledged that, based on the

scientific data, the PEL of 50 g/m3 did

not provide protection from all adverse

health effects of inorganic lead toxicity

because the hematologic system, the

nervous system, the kidneys, and the

fetus can be adversely affected by

exposures to inorganic lead resulting in

BLLs below 40 g/dl (43 FR 52952,

November 14, 1978). In May 1993,

OSHA published the Interim Final Lead

in Construction Standard (58 FR 26590,

May 4, 1993). This standard extended

the general industry standard for

inorganic lead to include workers in the

construction industry. No additional

analysis of the health data was

performed by OSHA in adopting this

standard for the construction industry.