Rhode Island Code of Regulations › Title 216 - Department of health › Chapter 50 - Environmental health › Subchapter 15 - HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT › Part 12 - Lead Safe Work Practices › Section 216-RICR-50-15-12.2 - Definitions

Current through June 14, 2024
A. Wherever used in this Part, the terms
				  listed below shall be construed in the following manner:
1. "Abrasive blasting" means the procedure of
				  removing paint from a surface by using mechanical force to apply an abrasive
				  material (e.g. sand, grit, or other similar material) to the painted
				  surface.
2. "Act" means R.I. Gen.
				  Laws Chapter 23-24.6, Lead Poisoning Prevention.
3. "Certificate of Lead Conformance (Form
				  LHM- 2-1) " means a certificate issued by a Lead Inspector or Lead Assessor
				  which certifies that a single family house, dwelling unit and common areas, or
				  premises has passed a Lead Hazard Mitigation (LHM) Inspection.
4. "Child care facility" means any building
				  and/or area whose primary purpose is or will be to educate or care for children
				  younger than six (6) years of age, including but not limited to, child day care
				  centers, nursery schools, preschools, Kindergarten classrooms, public and
				  private elementary schools. Child care facilities located in public or
				  commercial buildings encompass only those common areas that are routinely used
				  by children, such as restrooms and cafeterias. Common areas that children only
				  pass through, such as hallways, staircases, and garages are not included. The
				  child care facility also encompasses the exterior sides of the building that
				  are immediately adjacent to the child care facility and the exterior common
				  areas or play areas routinely used by children.
5. "Cleaning verification card" or "CV card"
				  means a card developed and distributed, or otherwise approved, by EPA for the
				  purpose of determining, through comparison of wet and dry disposable cleaning
				  cloths with the card, whether post-renovation cleaning has been properly
				  completed.
6. "Cleaning
				  verification procedure" or "CV" means the EPA procedure for determining whether
				  post-renovation cleaning has been properly completed through comparison of wet
				  and dry disposable cleaning cloths with an EPA-approved cleaning verification
				  card.
7. "Clearance inspection"
				  means a visual assessment and lead testing, as applicable, done at the
				  conclusion of a renovation, repair, and painting (RRP), lead hazard control
				  (LHC), or lead hazard reduction (LHR) project to determine compliance with
				  § 5.8.4 of this Subchapter.
8.
				  "Common area(s)" means a portion of a residential property that is available
				  for shared use by occupants of more than one (1) dwelling unit, such as
				  hallways, stairways, lobbies, community rooms, recreational rooms, laundry
				  rooms, garages, playgrounds, and boundary fences; in general, any area not kept
				  locked.
9. "Component or building
				  component" means specific design or structural elements or fixtures of a
				  building or residential dwelling that are distinguished from each other by
				  form, function, and location. These include, but are not limited to, interior
				  components such as: ceilings, crown molding, walls, chair rails, doors, door
				  trim, floors, fireplaces, radiators and other heating units, shelves, shelf
				  supports, stair treads, stair risers, stair stringers, newel posts, railing
				  caps, balustrades, windows and trim (including sashes, window heads, jambs,
				  sills or stools and wells or troughs), built in cabinets, columns, beams,
				  bathroom vanities, counter tops, and air conditioners; and exterior components
				  such as: painted roofing, chimneys, flashing, gutters and downspouts, ceilings,
				  soffits, fascias, rake boards, corner boards, bulkheads, doors and door trim,
				  fences, floors, joists, lattice work, railings, and railing caps, siding,
				  handrails, stair risers and treads, stair stringers, columns, balustrades,
				  window sills or stools and wells or troughs, casings, sashes, and air
				  conditioners.
10. "Conditional
				  Lead-Safe Certificate (Form PBLC-15)" means a certificate issued by a Lead
				  Inspector, typically at the conclusion of a lead hazard control (LHC)or lead
				  hazard reduction (LHR) project, which certifies that a child care center,
				  single-family house, dwelling unit and common areas, or premises had a
				  Comprehensive Environmental Lead Inspection and meets the conditional lead safe
				  standards for paint, dust, soil, and water in §
											12.7   of this Part and §
											5.8   of this Subchapter.
				  Routine maintenance and renewal inspections every two (2) years are required to
				  re-certify conditional compliance.
11. "Conditionally lead safe" means intact
				  lead-based paint and/or covered soil for which the lead concentrations are
				  above the lead-safe thresholds in §
											12.7   of this Part and §
											5.8   of this Subchapter. See
				  "lead safe".
12. "Containment or
				  containment barriers" means physical measures taken to ensure that a process
				  for protecting workers, residents, and the environment by controlling lead
				  exposures with a system of temporary barriers, typically plastic sheeting or
				  other impenetrable material, used to isolate a work area so that no dust, paint
				  chips, or other debris escapes while work that will disturb known or assumed
				  lead-based paint is being performed.
13. "DEM" means the Rhode Island Department
				  of Environmental Management.
14.
				  "Demolition" means, for the purposes of this Part, the removal of any
				  structural member, architectural component, or fixture by destruction, as
				  distinguished from removing the component whole or piece by piece.
15. "Department" means the Rhode Island
				  Department of Health.
16.
				  "Director" means the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Health or
				  his/her agents, subordinates to whom the Director has delegated the powers and
				  duties vested in the Director by these Regulations.
17. "DOT" means the Rhode Island Department
				  of Transportation.
18. "Dry
				  disposable cleaning cloth" means a commercially available dry,
				  electrostatically charged, white disposable cloth designed to be used for
				  cleaning hard surfaces such as uncarpeted floors or counter tops.
19. "Dust wipe sample" means a sample
				  collected by wiping a representative surface of a measured area, as determined
				  by ASTM E1728, Standard Practice for Field Collection of Settled Dust Samples
				  Using Wipe Sampling Methods for Lead Determination by Atomic Spectrometry
				  Techniques, or an equivalent method approved in writing by the
				  Department.
20. "Dwelling" or
				  "dwelling unit" means, as defined by R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 42-128.1, an
				  enclosed space used for living and sleeping by human occupants as a place of
				  residence, including, but not limited to: a house, an apartment, or
				  condominium, but for the purpose of this Chapter, shall not include hotels or
				  temporary housing.
21.
				  "Encapsulation" means any covering or coating that acts as a barrier between
				  lead-based paint and the environment which relies for its durability on
				  adhesion between the encapsulant and the existing painted surface, and on the
				  integrity of the bonds between the paint layers with each other and with the
				  substrate. Encapsulation may be used as an abatement method only if it is
				  designed and guaranteed to be "permanent."
22. "Enclosure" means the use of rigid,
				  durable construction materials which are mechanically fastened to the
				  substrate, and sealed or caulked, in order to act as a barrier between
				  lead-based paint and the environment. Enclosure may be used as an abatement
				  method only if it is designed to be "permanent."
23. "EPA" means the United States
				  Environmental Protection Agency.
24. "Feathering" means light sanding of
				  interior surfaces, performed after damaged material has been removed by
				  scraping, to soften abrupt transitions between bare substrate and remaining
				  intact paint; or exposed layers of intact paint; or patching materials and the
				  surrounding surface. Proper feathering will produce a surface which, after
				  painting, has no edges that can be lifted with a fingernail.
25. "First-draw water sample" means a sample
				  of tap water collected after the household water has been unused for at least
				  six (6) hours.
26. "Flushed water
				  sample" means a sample of tap water collected after the tap has been allowed to
				  run at its maximum flow rate until cold, or at least one (1) minute, before the
				  sample collection.
27. "Friction
				  surface" means a surface that is subject to abrasion, such as certain door,
				  window, floor, and stair surfaces, that may generate dust from abrasion during
				  normal use.
28. "Full Lead-Safe
				  Certificate (Form PBLC-21)" means a certificate issued by a Lead Inspector,
				  typically at the conclusion of a lead hazard control (LHC) or lead hazard
				  reduction (LHR) project, which certifies that a child care center,
				  single-family house, dwelling unit and common areas, or premises had a
				  Comprehensive Environmental Lead Inspection and meets the lead-safe standards
				  for paint, dust, soil, and water in §
											12.7   of this Part. A Full
				  Lead-Safe Certificate does not expire.
29. "HEPA filter" means a high-efficiency
				  particulate air filter, used in respirators and vacuum systems, capable of
				  capturing particles of 0.3 microns with 99.97% efficiency.
30. "HEPA vacuum" means a vacuum cleaner
				  which has been designed with a HEPA filter as the last filtration stage. The
				  vacuum cleaner must be designed so that all the air drawn into the machine is
				  expelled through the HEPA filter with none of the air leaking past it. HEPA
				  vacuums must be operated and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer's
				  instructions.
31. "Impact surface"
				  means a surface that either moves or meets with a moveable surface and is
				  subject to damage by repeated sudden force, impact, or contact, such as doors
				  and windows with certain parts of their frames.
32. "Interim controls" means a set of
				  measures designed to temporarily reduce human exposure to lead hazards,
				  including specialized cleaning, repairs, maintenance, painting, non-permanent
				  encapsulation or enclosure, and ongoing monitoring of lead-based paint or
				  potential lead hazards, and the establishment and operation of management and
				  resident education programs.
33.
				  "Lead assessor" means a person, either authorized to act as an enforcing
				  officer under the housing code or a designated employee of a Federal, State or
				  municipal agency with jurisdiction over housing, occupational health, child
				  welfare and/or environmental standards who successfully completed a Lead
				  Assessor training course and obtained a license, pursuant to Part 11 of this
				  Subchapter, to conduct lead inspections within the purview of their
				  employment.
34. "Lead-based paint"
				  means any paint or other surface coating that contains lead in excess of the
				  Lead-Safe thresholds specified in §
											5.8   of this
				  Subchapter.
35. "Lead contractor"
				  means, any person or entity engage in lead hazard reduction as a business and
				  licensed pursuant to Part 11 of this Subchapter.
36. "Lead free" means paint below the
				  Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) limit on lead in paint (16 C.F.R. §
												1303.1) and plumbing materials
				  which meet the lead-free definition under the EPA Safe Drinking Water Act (  40
				  C.F.R. Part 141 ).
37. "Lead
				  hazard" means a condition that presents a clear and significant health risk to
				  occupants of a child care center, single-family house, dwelling unit and common
				  areas, or premises, particularly where children reside. Lead concentrations in
				  damaged paint, interior dust, bare soil, and/or drinking water which exceed the
				  Lead-Safe thresholds in §
											5.8   of this Subchapter are an
				  immediate lead exposure hazard requiring corrective action at a regulated
				  facility.
38. "Lead hazard control"
				  or "LHC" means any window replacement and/or interim controls intended to
				  correct lead hazards identified in a lead inspection report or standard
				  treatments to remove lead-based paint and/or minimize lead exposure, which may
				  include measures to reduce the concentration of lead in paint, dust, soil,
				  and/or water using approved treatment methods specified in this Part.
39. "Lead hazard control project" or "LHC
				  project" means a project being done by a Lead Renovation Firm for the purpose
				  of controlling lead hazards. An LHC Clearance Inspection is required at the
				  conclusion of an LHC project.
40.
				  "Lead hazard mitigation" or "LHM" means spot removal or minor repair and
				  maintenance activities by a property owner or designated person at a
				  residential rental unit intended to correct lead hazards, which may include
				  measures to reduce friction, stabilize paint, and cover bare soil for the
				  purpose of obtaining a Certificate of Lead Conformance (FormLHM- 2-1).
41. "Lead hazard mitigation
				  project" or "LHM Project" means a project being done by an owner or designated
				  person for the purpose of mitigating lead hazards. An LHM Clearance Inspection
				  is required at the conclusion of an LHM project to obtain a Certificate of Lead
				  Conformance (FormLHM- 2-1), required for non-exempt residential rental
				  units.
42. "Lead hazard reduction"
				  means, as defined by R.I. Gen. Laws §
											23-24.6-4, any action or actions
				  designed to reduce exposure to toxic levels of lead which impose an
				  unacceptable risk of exposure in any dwelling or dwelling unit where a child
				  under the age of six (6) years with environmental intervention blood lead
				  levels or greater resides, or on any premises and may include, but is not
				  limited to: repair, enclosure, encapsulation, or removal of lead based paint
				  and/or lead contaminated dust, soil or drinking water relocation of occupants;
				  and cleanup measure or ongoing maintenance measures which may include,
				  activities and/or measures that do not present an undue risk to children under
				  age six (6).
43. "Lead hazard
				  reduction project" or "LHR project" means a project being done by a Lead
				  Contractor for the purpose of reducing lead hazards. An LHR Clearance
				  Inspection is required at the conclusion of an LHR project.
44. "Lead inspection" means any type of
				  physical investigation of a child care center, single-family house, dwelling
				  unit, or premises to identify the presence of environmental lead, lead hazards,
				  or compliance with the cleaning requirements and lead standards in §
											5.8   of this Subchapter for
				  paint, dust, soil, and/or water.
45. "Lead inspection report" means a written
				  report, on forms provided or approved by the Department, which documents the
				  results of a lead inspection, conducted pursuant to Part 5 of this Subchapter,
				  and includes the visual assessment, field testing, sample analysis results,
				  summary of findings, and, for regulated facilities and target housing, lead
				  hazard reduction or lead hazard control requirements and site-specific
				  recommendations, as applicable.
46.
				  "Lead inspector" means an individual, who successfully completed a certified
				  Lead Inspector training course, passed the Lead Inspector Department
				  examination, completed a supervised field apprenticeship, and obtained a
				  license, pursuant to Part 11 of this Subchapter, to conduct lead
				  inspections.
47. "Lead
				  professional" means an occupational grouping of individuals and organizations
				  licensed or certified pursuant to Part 11 of this Subchapter.
48. "Lead renovation firm" means any person
				  or organization engaged in renovation, repair, and painting (RRP) or lead
				  hazard control (LHC) as a business and licensed pursuant to Part 11 of this
				  Subchapter.
49. "Lead renovator"
				  means an individual who successfully completed a certified Lead Renovator
				  training course and obtained a valid training certificate, pursuant to Part 11
				  of this Subchapter, to perform renovation, repair, and painting (RRP) and lead
				  hazard control (LHC) work.
50.
				  "Lead safe" means paint, dust, soil, and/or water for which the lead
				  concentrations are below the lead safe thresholds in §
											12.7   of this Part. A lead
				  safe concentration does not require corrective action and would be expected to
				  persist indefinitely unless additional lead is added. See "conditionally lead
				  safe."
51. "Lead supervisor" means
				  an individual who successfully completed a certified Lead Supervisor training
				  course, passed the Lead Supervisor Department examination, and obtained a
				  license, pursuant to Part 11 of this Subchapter, to perform and/or supervise
				  lead hazard reduction (LHR) work.
52. "Lead worker" means an individual who
				  successfully completed a certified Lead Worker training course and obtained a
				  license, pursuant to Part 11 of this Subchapter, to perform lead hazard
				  reduction work.
53. "Mechanical
				  paint removal" means the use of any mechanical force to remove paint from a
				  surface, including, but not limited to, electrical or other power equipment or
				  abrasive blasting.
54. "Minor
				  repair and maintenance" means work activities, including minor heating,
				  ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) work, electrical work, or plumbing
				  work that disturbs less than six square feet (6 ft2)
				  of lead-based paint per room for interior activities or less than twenty square
				  feet (20 ft2) of lead based-paint for exterior
				  activities where none of the work practices prohibited or restricted by this
				  Part are used and where the work does not involve window replacement or
				  demolition of painted surfaces. For the purposes of this Part, the term minor
				  repair and maintenance shall be synonymous with spot removal. See "Spot
				  removal."
55. "Occupant" means, as
				  defined by R.I. Gen. Laws §
											23-24.6-4, any person who legally
				  resides in, or regularly uses, a dwelling, dwelling unit, or structure;
				  provided, however, that a guest of any age shall not be considered an occupant
				  for the purposes of this Chapter.
56. "OSHA" means the United States
				  Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
57. "Owner" means any person who, alone or
				  jointly or severally with others:
a. Shall
				  have legal title to any dwelling or dwelling unit with or without accompanying
				  actual possession of it; or
b.
				  Shall have charge, care, or control of any dwelling or dwelling unit as owner
				  or agent of the owner or an executor, administrator, trustee, or guardian of
				  the estate of the owner. Any person representing the actual owner shall be
				  bound to comply with the provisions of this chapter and with Rules and
				  Regulations adopted pursuant to this Chapter to the same extent as if that
				  person were the owner. An agent of the owner excludes real estate and property
				  management functions where the agent is only responsible for the property
				  management and does not have authority to fund capital and/or major property
				  rehabilitation on behalf of the owner.
c. For purposes of publicly owned property
				  only, the owner shall be defined to be the Chief Executive Officer of the
				  municipal or State agency which owns, leases or controls the use of the
				  property.
58. "Paint"
				  means any substance applied to a surface as a surface coating, including, but
				  not limited to, household paints, varnishes and stains.
59. "Paint removal" means a method of
				  abatement that permanently eliminates lead-based paint from surfaces; or
				  surface preparation by stripping, scraping or sanding, as part of paint
				  stabilization, or prior to encapsulation.
60. "Paint stabilization" means repairing any
				  physical defects in the substrate of a painted surface that is causing paint
				  deterioration, removing loose paint and other material from the surface to be
				  treated, and applying a new protective coating or paint to achieve intact
				  status.
61. "Paint stripper" means
				  any chemical and/or caustic substance applied to a surface for the purpose of
				  removing paint.
62. "Painted
				  surface" means a component surface covered in whole or in part with paint or
				  other surface coatings.
63.
				  "Painted surface to be disturbed" means a painted surface that is to be
				  stripped, scraped, sanded, cut, penetrated or otherwise affected by renovation
				  or rehabilitation work in a manner that could potentially create a lead hazard
				  by generating dust, fumes, or paint chips.
64. "Permanent" means an expected design life
				  of at least twenty (20) years.
65.
				  "Personal protective equipment" or "PPE" means any equipment such as disposable
				  gloves, eye, face, foot or hair coverings, respirators, as well as outerwear
				  which is either disposable or which must be laundered separately, worn to
				  protect workers from lead exposure.
66. "Premises" means, as defined by R.I. Gen.
				  Laws §
											23-24.6-4, a platted lot or part
				  thereof or unplatted lot or parcel of land, occupied by a dwelling or structure
				  and includes any building, accessory structure or other structure thereon which
				  is or will be frequently used by children under the age of six (6)
				  years.
67. "Regulated facility"
				  means any child care facility, single-family house, dwelling unit and common
				  areas, or premises, as specified in § 3.2.2 of this Subchapter, which is
				  subject to the requirements of this Part.
68. "Renovation" means the modification of
				  any existing structure, or portion thereof that results in the disturbance of
				  lead-painted surfaces, unless that activity is performed as part of a lead
				  hazard control (LHC) or lead hazard reduction (LHR) project. The term
				  renovation includes, but is not limited to: the removal, modification or repair
				  of painted surfaces or painted components (e.g. modification of painted doors,
				  surface restoration, window repair); surface preparation activities such as
				  sanding, scraping, or other such activities which may generate paint dust; the
				  removal of building components (e.g. walls, ceilings, plumbing, windows);
				  weatherization projects (e.g. cutting holes in painted surfaces to install
				  blown-in insulation or to gain access to attics, planning thresholds to install
				  weather-stripping); and interim controls that disturb lead-painted surfaces. A
				  renovation performed for converting a building, or part of a building, into
				  target housing or child care facilities is a renovation under this Part. The
				  term renovation does not include minor repair and maintenance
				  activities.
69. "Renovation,
				  repair, and painting project" or "RRP project" means a project which is being
				  done by a Lead Renovation Firm for purposes other than removing lead-based
				  paint or correcting lead hazards (although it may result in this). The purpose
				  of an RRP project is to ensure that renovations performed at a regulated
				  facility or for compensation at target housing are done safely and prevent lead
				  exposure to owners, occupants and neighbors of the property where the work is
				  performed. Any additional work which disturbs lead-based paint, other than
				  emergency renovation operations, performed in the same room or area within the
				  same thirty (30) day period must be considered the same RRP project for the
				  purpose of determining whether the work is spot removal or renovation, repair,
				  and painting (RRP).
70. "Sample"
				  means an individual sample collected at one (1) time and in one (1) place, such
				  as a "grab" sample of soil or a single-surface dust wipe.
71. "Spot removal or
de
				  minimis
" means minor repair and maintenance activities, which do not
				  involve window replacement or demolition of painted surface areas, and disturb
				  less than six square feet (6 ft2) of interior
				  lead-based paint per room or less than twenty square feet (20
				  ft2) of exterior lead-based paint, and provided that
				  no prohibited work practices are used. When removing painted components, or
				  portions of painted components the entire surface area removed is the amount of
				  lead-based paint being disturbed. Any additional work which disturbs lead based
				  paint, performed in the same room or area within the same thirty (30) day
				  period of an RRP project must be considered the same RRP project and not spot
				  removal.
72. "Standard treatments"
				  means a series of lead hazard control or lead hazard reduction measures
				  designed to correct assumed lead hazards without the benefit of a lead
				  inspection. See "treatments."
73.
				  "Substrate" means the material directly beneath the painted surface out of
				  which the components are constructed. The underlying surface which remains
				  after paint is removed. Examples of substrates include wood, plaster,
				  sheetrock, concrete, and metal.
74.
				  "Target housing" means any pre-1978 residential dwelling, except housing for
				  the elderly or persons with disabilities or zero (0) bedroom units in which no
				  child resides.
75. "Temporary lead
				  hazard control measures" means a set of measures designed to temporarily reduce
				  human exposure or likely exposure to lead hazards, including but not limited
				  to, specialized cleaning, temporary containment (e.g. plastic sheeting and/or
				  duct tape), ongoing monitoring, and the establishment and operation of lead
				  management and resident education programs.
76. "Tenant" means any person, other than the
				  owner, who enters into an agreement to rent, lease, or sublease a single-family
				  house, dwelling unit, or premises.
77. "Treatments" means any methods designed
				  to control or reduce lead exposure hazards. Treatments include lead abatement,
				  interim controls, or a combination of both. See "standard
				  treatments."
78. "Vertical
				  containment" means a vertical barrier consisting of plastic sheeting or other
				  impenetrable material over scaffolding or a rigid frame, or an equivalent
				  system of containing the work area. Vertical containment is required for some
				  exterior renovations, but it may be used on any renovation.
79. "Wet cleaning" means a process of
				  eliminating lead contamination from surfaces and objects by using water or
				  detergent solutions and rinsing with clean water.
80. "Wet disposable cleaning cloth" means a
				  commercially available, premoistened white disposable cloth designed to be used
				  for cleaning hard surfaces such as uncarpeted floors or counter tops.
81. "Work area" means the area established by
				  an appropriately licensed or certified lead professional to contain the dust
				  and debris generated by activities that disturb painted surfaces.