California Code of Regulations › Title 8 - Industrial Relations › Division 1 - Department of Industrial Relations › Chapter 4 - Division of Industrial Safety › Subchapter 4 - Construction Safety Orders › Article 4 - Dusts, Fumes, Mists, Vapors, and Gases › Appendix H - Substance Technical Information for Asbestos Non-Mandatory

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
I. Substance Identification
A. Substance: "Asbestos" is the name of a class of
						magnesium-silicate minerals that occur in fibrous form. Minerals that are
						included in this group are chrysotile, crocidolite, amosite, anthophyllite
						asbestos, tremolite asbestos, and actinolite asbestos.
B. Asbestos is used in the manufacture of heat-resistant
						clothing, automotive brake and clutch linings, and a variety of building
						materials including floor tiles, roofing felts, ceiling tiles, asbestos-cement
						pipe and sheet, and fire-resistant drywall. Asbestos is also present in pipe
						and boiler insulation materials, and in sprayed-on materials located on beams,
						in crawlspaces, and between walls.
C. The potential for an asbestos-containing product to
						release breathable fibers depends on its degree of friability. Friable means
						that the material can be crumbled with hand pressure and is therefore likely to
						emit fibers. The fibrous fluffy sprayed-on materials used for fireproofing,
						insulation, or sound proofing are considered to be friable, and they readily
						release airborne fibers if disturbed. Materials such as vinyl-asbestos floor
						tile or roofing felt are considered non-friable if intact and generally do not
						emit airborne fibers unless subjected to sanding, sawing and other aggressive
						operations. Asbestos-cement pipe or sheet can emit airborne fibers if the
						materials are cut or sawed, or if they are broken.
D. Permissible exposure: Exposure to airborne asbestos
						fibers may not exceed 0.1 fibers per cubic centimeter of air (0.1 f/cc)
						averaged over the 8-hour workday, and 1 fiber per cubic centimeter of air (1.0
						f/cc) averaged over a 30 minute work period.
II. Health Hazard Data
A. Asbestos can cause disabling respiratory disease and
						various types of cancers if the fibers are inhaled. Inhaling or ingesting
						fibers from contaminated clothing or skin can also result in these diseases.
						The symptoms of these diseases generally do not appear for 20 or more years
						after initial exposure.
B. Exposure to asbestos has been shown to cause lung
						cancer, mesothelioma, and cancer of the stomach and colon. Mesothelioma is a
						rare cancer of the thin membrane lining of the chest and abdomen. Symptoms of
						mesothelioma include shortness of breath, pain in the walls of the chest,
						and/or abdominal pain.
III. Respirators and Protective Clothing
A. Respirators: You are required to wear a respirator
						when performing tasks that result in asbestos exposure that exceeds the
						permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 0.1 f/cc and when performing certain
						designated operations. Air-purifying respirators equipped with a
						high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter can be used where airborne
						asbestos fiber concentrations do not exceed 1.0 f/cc; otherwise, more
						protective respirators such as air-supplied, positive-pressure, full facepiece
						respirators must be used. Disposable respirators or dust masks are not
						permitted to be used for asbestos work. For effective protection, respirators
						must fit your face and head snugly. Your employer is required to conduct fit
						tests when you are first assigned a respirator and annually thereafter.
						Respirators should not be loosened or removed in work situations where their
						use is required.
B. Protective Clothing: You are required to wear
						protective clothing in work areas where asbestos concentrations exceed the
						permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 0.1 f/cc.
IV. Disposal Procedures and Clean-up
A. Wastes that are generated by processes where asbestos
						is present include:
1. Empty asbestos shipping containers.
2. Process wastes such as cuttings, trimmings, or reject
						material.
3. Housekeeping waste from wet-sweeping or
						HEPA-vacuuming.
4. Asbestos fireproofing or insulating material that is
						removed from buildings.
5. Asbestos-containing building products removed during
						building renovation or demolition.
6. Contaminated disposable protective clothing.
B. Empty shipping bags can be flattened under exhaust
						hoods and packed into airtight containers for disposal. Empty shipping drums
						are difficult to clean and should be sealed.
C. Vacuum bags or disposable paper filters should not be
						cleaned, but should be sprayed with a fine water mist and placed into a labeled
						waste container.
D. Process waste and housekeeping waste should be wetted
						with water or a mixture of water and surfactant prior to packaging in
						disposable containers.
E. Asbestos-containing material that is removed from
						buildings must be disposed of in leak-tight 6-mil plastic bags, plastic-lined
						cardboard containers, or plastic-lined metal containers. These wastes, which
						are removed while wet, should be sealed in containers before they dry out to
						minimize the release of asbestos fibers during handling.
V. Access to Information
A. Each year, your employer is required to inform you of
						the information contained in this standard and appendices for asbestos. In
						addition, your employer must instruct you in the proper work practices for
						handling asbestos-containing materials, and the correct use of protective
						equipment.
B. Your employer is required to determine whether you are
						being exposed to asbestos. Your employer must treat exposure to thermal system
						insulation and sprayed-on and troweled-on surfacing material as asbestos
						exposure, unless results of laboratory analysis show that the material does not
						contain asbestos. You or your representative has the right to observe employee
						measurements and to record the results obtained. Your employer is required to
						inform you of your exposure, and, if you are exposed above the permissible
						exposure limit, he or she is required to inform you of the actions that are
						being taken to reduce your exposure to within the permissible limit.
C. Your employer is required to keep records of your
						exposures and medical examinations. These exposure records must be kept for at
						least thirty (30) years, Medical records must be kept for the period of your
						employment plus thirty (30) years.
D. Your employer is required to release your exposure and
						medical records to your physician or designated representative upon your
						written request.
1. New
						Appendix H to section
						1529 filed 2-15-91; operative
						2-15-91 pursuant to Government Code section
						11346.2(d)
						(Register 91, No. 19).
2. Editorial correction of HISTORY 1.
						(Register 91, No. 45).
3. Amendment of appendix and NOTE filed
						5-3-96; operative 7-3-96 (Register 96, No. 18).
4. Change without
						regulatory effect amending section III.A. of appendix H filed 12-23-99 pursuant
						to section 100, title 1, California Code of
						Regulations (Register 99, No. 52).
Note: Authority cited: Section
						  142.3, Labor
						  Code. Reference: Section
						  142.3, Labor
						  Code.