1986L0188 — EN — 25.05.1998 — 001.001 — 1
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►B COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
of 12May 1986
on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to noise at work
(86/188/EEC)
(OJ L 137, 24.5.1986, p. 28)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Directive 98/24/EC of 7 April 1998 L 131 11 5.5.1998
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COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
of 12May 1986
on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to
noise at work
(86/188/EEC)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic
Community, and in particular Article 100 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, drawn up after
consulting the Advisory Committee on Safety, Hygiene and HealthProtection at Work (
1);
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (2),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (3),
Whereas the Council resolutions of 29 June 1978 and 27 February 1984
on action programmes of the European Communities on safety andhealth at work (
4) provide for the implementation of specific harmon-
ized procedures for the protection of workers exposed to noise; whereasthe measures adopted in this field vary from State to State and it isrecognized that they urgently need to be approximated and improved;
Whereas exposure to high noise levels is encountered in a large number
of situations and therefore many workers are exposed to a potentialsafety and health hazard;
Whereas a reduction of exposure to noise reduces the risk of hearing
impairment caused by noise;
Whereas, where the noise level at the workplace involves a risk for the
health and safety of workers, limiting exposure to noise reduces thatrisk without prejudice to the applicable provisions on the limitation ofnoise emission;
Whereas the most effective way of reducing noise levels at work is to
incorporate noise prevention measures into the design of installationsand to choose materials, procedures and working methods whichproduce less noise; whereas the priority aim must be to achieve the saidreduction at source;
Whereas the provision and use of personal ear protectors is a necessary
complementary measure to the reduction of noise at source, whereexposure cannot reasonably be avoided by other means;
Whereas noise is an agent to which Council Directive 80/1107/EEC of
27 November 1980 on the protection of workers from the risks relatedto exposure to chemical, physical and biological agents at work (
5)
applies; whereas Articles 3 and 4 of the said Directive provide for thepossibility of laying down limit values and other special measures inrespect of the agents being considered;
Whereas certain technical aspects must be defined and may be reviewed
in the light of experience and progress made in the technical andscientific field;
Whereas the current situation in the Member States does not make it
possible to fix anoise-exposure va lue below which there is no longerany risk to workers’ hearing;
(1) OJ No C 289, 5. 11. 1982, p. 1; OJ No C 214, 14. 8. 1984, p. 11.
(2) OJ No C 46, 20. 2. 1984, p. 130; OJ No C 117, 30. 4. 1984, p. 5.
(3) OJ No C 23, 30. 1. 1984, p. 36.
(4) OJ No C 165, 11. 7. 1978, p. 1; OJ No C 67, 8. 3. 1984, p. 2.
(5) OJ No L 327, 3. 12. 1980, p. 8.
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Whereas current scientific knowledge about the effects that exposure to
noise may have on health, other than on hearing, does not enableprecise safety levels to be set; whereas, however, reduction of noise willlower the risk of illnesses unrelated to auditory complaints; whereas thisDirective contains provisions which will be reviewed in the light ofexperience and developments in scientific and technical knowledge inthis field,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Article 1
1. This Directive, which is the third individual Directive
►M1 ◄has as its aim the protection of workers against
risks to their hearing and, in so far as this Directive expressly soprovides, to their health and safety, including the prevention of suchrisks arising or likely to arise from exposure to noise at work.
2. This Directive shall apply to all workers, including those exposed
to radiation covered by the scope of the EAEC Treaty, with the excep-tion of workers engaged in sea transport and in air transport.
For the purpose of this Directive, the expression ‘workers engaged in
sea transport and in air transport' shall refer to personnel on board.
On a proposal from the Commission the Council shall examine, before
1 January 1990, the possibility of applying this Directive to workersengaged in sea transport and in air transport.
3. This Directive shall not prejudice the right of Member States to
apply or introduce, subject to compliance with the Treaty, laws, regula-tions or administrative provisions ensuring, where possible, greaterprotection for workers and/or intended to reduce the level of noiseexperienced at work by taking action at source, particularly in order toachieve exposure values which prevent unnecessary nuisance.
Article 2
For the purposes of this Directive, the following terms shall have the
meaning hereby assigned to them:
1.Daily personal noise exposure of a worker L
EP, d
The daily personal noise exposure of a worker is expressed in dB (A)
using the formula:
where:
Te= daily duration of a worker’s personal exposure to noise,
To=8h=2 8 8 0 0s ,
Po=2 0 µPa,
PA= ‘A'-weightedinstantaneous sound pressure in pascals to which
is exposed, in air at atmospheric pressure, a person who might ormight not move from one place to another while at work; it isdetermined from measurements made at the position occupied by theperson’s ears during work, preferably in the person’s absence, usingatechnique which minimizes the effect on the sound field.
If the microphone has to be located very close to the person’s body,
appropriate adjustments should be made to determine an equivalentundisturbed field pressure.
The daily personal noise exposure does not take account of the effect
of any personal ear protector used.
2.Weekly average of the daily values L
EP, w
The weekly average of the daily values is found using the following
formula:
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where (LEP, d)kare the values of LEP, dfor each of the m working days
in the week being considered.
Article 3
1. Noise experienced at work shall be assessed and, when necessary,
measured in order to identify the workers and workplaces referred to inthis Directive and to determine the conditions under which the specificprovisions of this Directive shall apply.
2. The assessment and measurement mentioned in paragraph 1 shall
be competently planned and carried out at suitable intervals under theresponsibility of the employers.
Any sampling must be representative of the daily personal exposure of a
worker to noise.
The methods and apparatus used must be adapted to the prevailing
conditions in the light, particularly, of the characteristics of the noise tobe measured, the length of exposure, ambient factors and the character-istics of the measuring apparatus.
These methods and this apparatus shall make it possible to determine
the parameters defined in Article 2 and to decide whether, in a givencase, the values fixed in this Directive have been exceeded.
3. Member States may lay down that personal exposure to noise shall
be replaced by noise recorded at the workplace. In that event thecriterion of personal exposure to noise shall be replaced, for thepurposes of Articles 4 to 10, by that of noise exposure during the dailywork period, such period being at least eight hours, at the places wherethe workers are situated.
Member States may also lay down that, when the noise is measured,
special consideration shall be given to impulse noise.
4. The workers and/or their representatives in the undertaking or
establishment shall be associated, according to national law and prac-tice, with the assessment and measurement provided for in paragraph 1.These shall be revised where there is reason to believe that they areincorrect or that a material change has taken place in the work.
5. The recording and preservation of the data obtained pursuant to
this Article shall be carried out in a suitable form, in accordance withnational law and practice.
The doctor and/or the authority responsible and the workers and/or their
representatives in the undertaking shall have access to these data, inaccordance with national law and practice.
Article 4
1. Where the daily personal exposure of a worker to noise is likely to
exceed 85 dB (A) or the maximum value of the unweighted instanta-neous sound pressure is likely to be greater than 200 Pa (
1), appropriate
measures shall be taken to ensure that:
(a) workers and/or their representatives in the undertaking or establish-
ment receive adequate information and, when relevant, trainingconcerning:
(1) 140 dB in relation to 20 µPa.
If the maximum value of the ‘A'-weighted sound pressure level, measuredwith a sound-level meter using the time characteristic I (according to IEC651) does not exceed 130 dB (AI), the maximum value of the unweightedinstantaneous sound pressure can be assumed not to exceed 200 Pa
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— potential risks to their hearing arising from noise exposure,
— the measures taken in pursuance of this Directive,— the obligation to comply with protective and preventive meas-
ures, in accordance with national legislation,
— the wearing of personal ear protectors and the role of checks on
hearing in accordance with Article 7;
(b) workers and/or their representatives in the undertaking or establish-
ment have access to the results of noise assessments and measure-ments made pursuant to Article 3 and can be given explanations ofthe significance of those results.
2. At workplaces where the daily personal noise exposure of a
worker is likely to exceed 85 dB (A), appropriate information must beprovided to workers as to where and when Article 6 applies.
At workplaces where the daily personal noise exposure of a worker is
likely to exceed 90 dB (A) or where the maximum value of theunweighted instantaneous sound pressure is likely to exceed 200 Pa, theinformation provided for in the first subparagraph must, where reason-ably practicable, take the form of appropriate signs. The areas in ques-tion must also be delimited and access to them must be restricted, wherethe risk of exposure so justifies and where these measures are reason-ably practicable.
Article 5
1. The risks resulting from exposure to noise must be reduced to the
lowest level reasonably practicable, taking account of technical progressand the availability of measures to control the noise, in particular atsource.
2. Where the daily personal noise exposure of a worker exceeds 90
dB (A), or the maximum value of the unweighted instantaneous soundpressure is greater than 200 Pa:
(a) the reasons for the excess level shall be identified and the employer
shall draw up and apply a programme of measures of a technicalnature and/or of organization of work with a view to reducing as faras reasonably practicable the exposure of workers to noise;
(b) workers and their representatives in the undertaking or establish-
ment shall receive adequate information on the excess level and onthe measures taken pursuant to subparagraph (a).
Article 6
1. Without prejudice to Article 5, where the daily personal noise
exposure of a worker exceeds 90 dB (A) or the maximum value of theunweighted instantaneous sound pressure is greater than 200 Pa,personal ear protectors must be used.
2. Where the exposure referred to in paragraph 1 is likely to exceed
85 dB (A), personal ear protectors must be made available to workers.
3. Personal ear protectors must be supplied in sufficient numbers by
the employer, the models being chosen in association, according tonational law and practice, with the workers concerned.
The ear protectors must be adapted to the individual worker and to his
working conditions, taking account of his safety and health. They aredeemed, for the purposes of this Directive, suitable and adequate if,when properly worn, the risk to hearing can reasonably be expected tobe kept below the risk arising from the exposure referred to in para-graph 1.
4. Where application of this Article involves a risk of accident, such
risk must be reduced as far as is reasonably practicable by means ofappropriate measures.
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Article 7
1. Where it is not reasonably practicable to reduce the daily personal
noise exposure of aworker to below 85 dB (A), the worker exposedshall be able to have his hearing checked by a doctor or on theresponsibility of the doctor and, if judged necessary by the doctor, by aspecialist.
The in which this check is carried out shall be established by the
Member States in accordance with national law and practice.
2. The purpose of the check shall be the diagnosis of any hearing
impairment by noise and the preservation of hearing.
3. The results of checks on workers’ hearing shall be kept in accord-
ance with national law and practice.
Workers shall have access to the results which apply to them in so far
as national law and practice allow.
4. Member States shall take the necessary measures with a view to
the doctor and/or the authority responsible giving, as part of the check,appropriate indications on any individual protective or preventive meas-ures to be taken.
Article 8
1. Member States shall take appropriate measures to ensure that:
(a) the design, building and/or construction of new plant (new factories,
plant or machinery, substantial extensions or modifications toexisting factories or plant and replacement of plant or machinery)comply with Article 5 (1);
(b) where a new article (tool, machine, apparatus, etc.) which is
intended for use at work is likely to cause, for a worker who uses itproperly for a conventional eight-hour period, a daily personal noiseexposure equal to or greater than 85 dB (A) or an unweightedinstantaneous sound pressure the maximum value of which is equalto or greater than 200 Pa, adequate information is made availableabout the noise produced in conditions of use to be specified.
2. The Council shall establish, on a proposal from the Commission,
requirements according to which, so far as is reasonably practicable, thearticles referred to in paragraph 1 (b), when properly used, do notproduce noise likely to constitute arisk to hea ring.
Article 9
1. In the case of workplaces where the noise exposure of a worker
varies markedly from one working day to the next, Member States may,for workers performing special operations, exceptionally grant deroga-tions from Article 5 (2), Article 6 (1) and Article 7 (1), but only oncondition that the average weekly noise exposure of a worker, as shownby adequate monitoring, complies with the value laid down in theseprovisions.
2. (a) In exceptional situations where it is not reasonably practicable,
by technical measures or organization of work, to reduce dailypersonal noise exposure to below 90 dB (A) or to ensure that thepersonal ear protectors provided for in Article 6 of this Directiveare suitable and adequate within the meaning of the secondsubparagraph of Article 6 (3), the Member States may grantderogations from this provision for limited periods, such deroga-tions being renewable.
In such a case, however, personal ear protectors affording the
highest degree of protection which is reasonably practicable mustbe used.
(b) In addition, for workers performing special operations, Member
States may exceptionally grant derogations from Article 6 (1) ifits application involves an increase in the overall risk to thehealth and/or safety of the workers concerned and if it is notreasonably practicable to reduce this risk by any other means.
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(c) The derogations referred to in (a) and (b) shall be subject to
conditions which, in view of the individual circumstances, ensurethat the risks resulting from such derogations are reduced to aminimum. The derogations shall be reviewed periodically and berevoked as soon as is reasonably practicable.
(d) Member States shall forward to the Commission every two years
an adequate overall account of the derogations referred to in (a)and (b). The Commission shall inform the Member States thereofin an appropriate manner.
Article 10
The Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission, shall re-
examine this Directive before 1 January 1994, taking into account inparticular progress made in scientific knowledge and technology as wellas experience gained in the application of this Directive, with a view toreducing the risks arising from exposure to noise.
In the context of this re-examination, the Council, acting on a proposal
from the Commission, shall endeavour to lay down indications formeasuring noise which are more precise than those given in Annex I.
Article 11
Member States shall see to it that workers’ and employers’ organ-
izations are consulted before the provisions for the implementation ofthe measures referred to in this Directive are adopted, and that whereworkers’ representatives exist in the undertaking or establishments theycan check that such provisions are applied or can be involved in theirapplication.
Article 12
1. For the measurement of noise and checking workers’ hearing, any
methods may be used which at least satisfy the provisions contained inArticles 3 and 7.
2. Indications for measuring noise and for checking workers’ hearing
are given in Annexes I and II.
▼
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Annexes I and II shall be adapted to technical progress in accordancewith the procedure laid down in Article 17 of Council Directive 89/391/EEC of 12 June 1989 on the introduction of measures to encourageimprovements in the safety and health of workers at the workplace (
1).
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Article 13
1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 1January 1990. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.
However, in the case of the Hellenic Republic and the Portuguese
Republic the relevant date shall be 1 January 1991.
2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the provi-
sions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by thisDirective. The Commission shall inform the other Member Statesthereof.
Article 14
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
(1) OJ L 183, 29. 6. 1989, p. 1.
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ANNEX I
INDICATIONS FOR MEASURING NOISE
A. 1. General
The quantities defined in Article 2 can be either:
(i) measured directly by integrating sonometers, or
(ii) calculated from measurements of sound pressure and exposure dura-
tion.
Measurements may be made at the work place(s) occupied by workers,
or by using instruments attached to the person.
The location and duration of the measurements must be sufficient to
ensure that exposure to noise during the working day can be recorded.
2.Instrumentation
2.1. If integrating averaging sonometers are used, they shall comply with
IEC standard 804.
If sonometers are used, they shall comply with IEC standard 651.
Instruments incorporating an overload indication are preferred.
If data are stored on tape as an intermediate step of the measurement
procedure, potential errors caused by the process of sorting and replayshall be taken into account when analyzing the data.
2.2. An instrument used to measure directly the maximum (peak) value of
the unweighted instantaneous sound pressure shall have an onset timeconstant not exceeding 100 µs.
2.3. All equipment shall be calibrated in a laboratory at suitable intervals.
3.Measurement
3.1. An on-site check shall be made at the beginning and end of each day of
measurement.
3.2. Measurement of workplace sound pressure should preferably be made in
the undisturbed sound field in the workplace (i. e. with the personconcerned being absent) and with the microphone located at the position(s) normally occupied by the ear exposed to the highest value ofexposure.
If it is necessary for the person to be present, either:
(i) the microphone should be located at a distance from the person’s
head which will reduce, as far as possible, the effects of diffractionand distance on the measured value (a suitable distance is 0,10 m),or
(ii) if the microphone must be located very close to the person’s body,
appropriate adjustments should be made to determine an equivalentundisturbed pressure field.
3.3. Generally, time weightings ‘S'and ‘F'are valid as long as the measure-
ment time interval is long compared with the time constant of theweighting chosen, but they are not suitable for determining L
Aeq,Tewhen
the noise level fluctuates very rapidly.
3.4.Indirect measurement of exposure
The result of the direct measurement of LAeq,Tecan be approximated
with a knowledge of the exposure time and the measurement of clearlydistinguishable sound-pressure-level ranges; a sampling method and astatistical distribution may be useful.
4.Accuracy of measuring noise and determining the exposure
The type of the instrument and the standard deviation of the results
influence the accuracy of measurement. For comparison with a noiselimit, the measuring accuracy determines the range of readings where nodecision can be made as to whether the value is exceeded; if no decisioncan be taken, the measurement must be repeated with a higher accuracy.
Measurements of the highest accuracy enable a decision to be taken in
all cases.
B. Short-term measurements with ordinary sonometers are quite satisfactory
for workers performing, at a fixed location, repetitive activities whichgenerate roughly the same levels of broad-band noise throughout the day.But when the sound pressure to which aworker is exposed shows fluctu-ations spread over a wide range of levels and/or of irregular time character-istics, determining the daily personal noise exposure of a worker becomesincreasingly complex; the most accurate method of measurement is there-
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fore to monitor exposure throughout the entire shift, using an integrating
averaging sonometer.
When an integrating averaging sonometer conforming to IEC standard 804
(which is well suited for measurement of the equivalent continuous soundpressure level of impulse noise) complies at least with the specifications oftype 1 and has recently been fully calibrated in a laboratory, and themicrophone is properly located (see 3.2 above), the results make it possible,with certain exceptions to determine whether a given exposure has beenexceeded (see 4) even in complex situations; that method is thus generallyapplicable, and is well suited for reference purposes.
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ANNEX II
INDICATIONS FOR CHECKING WORKERS’ HEARING
In the framework of checking workers’ hearing the following points are taken
into consideration:
1. The check should be carried out in accordance with occupational medical
practice and should comprise:
— where appropriate, an initial examination, to be carried out before or at
the beginning of exposure to noise,
— regular examinations at intervals which are commensurate with the seri-
ousness of the risk and are determined by the doctor.
2. Each examination should consist of at least an otoscopy combined with an
audiometric test including pure-tone airconduction threshold audiometry inaccordance with 6 below.
3. The initial examination should include a medical history; the initial otoscopy
and the audiometric test should be repeated within a period of 12 months.
4. The regular examination should be carried out at least every five years where
the worker’s daily personal noise exposure remains less than 90 dB (A).
5. The examinations should be carried out by suitably qualified persons in
accordance with national law and practice and may be organized in successivestages (screening, specialist examination).
6. The audiometric test should comply with the specifications of ISO standard
6189-1983, supplemented as follows:
Audiometry also covers the frequency of 8 000 Hz; the ambient sound level
enables a hearing-threshold level equal to 0 dB in relation to ISO standard389-1975 to be measured.
However, other methods may be used if they give comparable results.