This will bring together the regulations scattered throughout the OSHA construction standard governing silica. Construction activities with potential exposure to silica, such as jackhammering, rock drilling, abrasive blasting, concrete mixing, and slab cutting, may receive heightened inspections. Painting contractors continuing to use silica-containing abrasives, such as sand, may be subject to special scrutiny. Silica dust causes lung damage and a group of diseases collectively known as silicosis. Permanent lung damage and fatalities continue to occur.
Acute silicosis is caused by very high exposures to silica dust and is usually fatal within months.
Painting contractors should note that abrasive blasting without respiratory protection is a primary cause of acute silicosis. Chronic silicosis occurs more frequently than acute silicosis and can remain undetected for years. The human lung s reaction to inhaled silica is complex and not completely understood. Basically, the lungs will enclose the inhaled crystals in a fibrous type of tissue. As each silica crystal is surrounded by tissue, the lung loses that space as functional tissue for breathing.