Washington Administrative Code › Title 296 - Labor and Industries, Department of › Chapter 296-307 - Safety standards for agriculture › SPECIALIZED OPERATIONS › Part Y-5 - Respirators › Section 296-307-60205 - Select and provide appropriate respirators

Current through Register Vol. 24-14, July 15, 2024
IMPORTANT:
See WAC
					 296-307-624 Scope,
					 for:
1. Hazard evaluation
				  requirements. Evaluation results are necessary for respirator
				  selection.
2. A list of
				  substance-specific rules that may also apply. Those listed rules have
				  additional respirator selection requirements.
The employer must select and provide, at no cost to
					 employees, appropriate respirators for routine use, infrequent use, and
					 reasonably foreseeable emergencies (such as escape, emergency, and spill
					 response situations) by completing the following process:
Respirator Selection Process
Step 1:
If the only respirator use is for
					 escape, skip to
Step 8
to select appropriate respirators.
Step 2:
If the respiratory hazard is a
					 biological aerosol, such as TB (tuberculosis), anthrax, psittacosis (parrot
					 fever), or hanta virus, select a respirator appropriate for
nonemergency
activities recognized to present a health risk to
					 workers AND skip to
Step 8
.
(a) If respirator use will occur during
emergencies,
skip to
Step 8
and document the
				  analysis used to select the appropriate respirator.
(b) Use Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
				  selection guidance for exposures to specific biological agents when this
				  guidance exists. Visit
https://www.cdc.gov
.
Step 3:
If the respiratory hazard is a
					 pesticide, follow the respirator specification on the pesticide label AND skip
					 to
Step 9
.
Step 4:
Determine the expected exposure
					 concentration for each respiratory hazard of concern. Use the results from the
					 evaluation required by WAC
					 296-307-624, Respiratory
					 hazards.
Step 5:
Determine if the respiratory hazard is
					 classified as IDLH; if it is NOT IDLH skip to
Step 7
.
The respiratory hazard
IS
classified as IDLH
					 if:
(a) The atmosphere is oxygen
				  deficient or oxygen enriched;
OR
(b) The employer CANNOT measure or estimate
				  expected exposure concentration;
OR
(c) The measured or estimated expected
				  exposure concentration is greater or equal to the IDLH value in the NIOSH
Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards
.
Notes:
1. WISHA uses the IDLH values in the 1990 edition
								of the NIOSH
Pocket Guide to Hazardous Chemicals
to determine
								the existence of IDLH conditions. The employer may use more recent editions of
								this guide. Visit
www.cdc.gov/niosh
for
								more information.
2. If your measured or estimated expected exposure
								concentration is below NIOSH's IDLH values, proceed to
Step
								7
.
Step 6:
Select an appropriate respirator from
					 one of the following respirators for IDLH conditions and skip to
Step
					 8
:
(a) Full-facepiece, pressure
				  demand, self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) certified by NIOSH for a
				  minimum service life of thirty minutes;
OR
(b) Full-facepiece, pressure demand air-line
				  respirator equipped with an auxiliary self-contained air supply.
Exception:
If the respiratory hazard is oxygen deficiency AND the
							 employer can show oxygen concentrations can be controlled within the ranges
							 listed in Table 4 under ALL foreseeable conditions, the employer is allowed to
							 select
ANY
type of SCBA or airline respirator.
Table 4 Concentration Ranges for Oxygen
					 Deficiency
Altitude
(as ft. above sea level)
Oxygen Concentration Range
(as percent
							 oxygen)
Below 3,001
16.0 - 19.5
3,001 - 4,000
16.4 - 19.5
4,001 - 5,000
17.1 - 19.5
5,001 - 6,000
17.8 - 19.5
6,001 - 8,000
19.3 - 19.5
Above 8,000 feet the exception does not
							 apply.
Step 7:
Identify respirator types with
					 assigned protection factors (APFs) from Table 5 that are appropriate to protect
					 employees from the expected exposure concentration.
Step 8:
Consider hazards that could require
					 selection of specific respirator types. For example, select full-facepiece
					 respirators to prevent eye irritation or abrasive blasting helmets to provide
					 particle rebound protection.
Step 9:
Evaluate user and workplace factors
					 that might compromise respirator performance, reliability or safety.
If the respiratory hazard is a pesticide, follow the
					 requirements on the pesticide label and skip to
Step 11
.
Examples:
(a) High
				  humidity or temperature extremes in the workplace.
(b) Necessary voice communication.
(c) High traffic areas and moving
				  machinery.
(d) Time or distance for
				  escape.
Step 10:
Follow Table 6 requirements to select
					 an air-purifying respirator.
If Table 6 requirements cannot be met, the employer must
					 select an air-line respirator or an SCBA.
Step 11:
Make sure respirators the employer
					 selects are certified by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and
					 Health (NIOSH).
To maintain certification, make sure the respirator is
					 used according to cautions and limitations specified on the NIOSH approval
					 label.
Note:
While selecting respirators, the employer will need to
							 select a sufficient number of types, models or sizes to provide for fit
							 testing. The employer can also consider other respirator use issues, such as
							 accommodating facial hair with a loose fitting respirator.
Use Table 5 to identify the assigned protection factor for
					 different types of respirators.
Table 5 Assigned Protection Factors (APF) for
					 Respirator Types
If the respirator is a(n)...
Then the APF is...
Air-purifying respirator with a:
* Half-facepiece.............
10
* Full-facepiece.............
100
Note:
Half-facepiece includes 1/4 masks,
							 filtering facepieces, and elastomeric facepieces.
Powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR) with a:
* Loose-fitting facepiece......
25
* Half-facepiece.............
50
* Full-facepiece, equipped with HEPA filters, chemical
							 cartridges or canisters.................
1000
* Hood or helmet, equipped with HEPA filters, chemical
							 cartridges or canisters.................
1000
Air-line respirator with a:
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in demand
							 mode......
10
* Loose-fitting facepiece and designed to operate in
							 continuous flow mode.................
25
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in
							 continuous-flow, or pressure-demand mode.......
50
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in demand
							 mode......
100
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
							 continuous-flow OR pressure-demand mode.......
1000
Helmet or hood and designed to operate in
							 continuous-flow mode
1000
Self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) with a tight
							 fitting:
* Half-facepiece and designed to operate in demand
							 mode......
10
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in demand
							 mode......
100
* Full-facepiece and designed to operate in
							 pressure-demand mode.....................
10,000
Combination respirators:
* Find the APF for each type of respirator in the
							 combination.
The lowest value
* Use the lower APF to represent the combination.
Use Table 6 to select air-purifying respirators for
					 particle, vapor, or gas contaminants.
Table 6 Requirements for Selecting Any Air-purifying
					 Respirator
If the contaminant is a..
								.
Then...
* Gas OR vapor
*Provide a respirator with canisters or cartridges
								equipped with a NIOSH-certified, end-of-service-life indicator (ESLI)
OR
*If a canister or cartridge with an ESLI is NOT
								available, develop a cartridge change schedule to make sure the canisters or
								cartridges are replaced before they are no longer effective
OR
*Select an atmosphere-supplying respirator
* Particle, such as a dust, spray, mist, fog,
								fume, or aerosol
* Select respirators with filters certified to be
								at least 95% efficient by NIOSH
- For example, N95s, R99s, P100s, or High
								Efficiency Particulate Air filters (HEPA)
OR
* The employer may select respirators NIOSH
								certified as "dust and mist," "dust, fume, or mist," OR "pesticides." The
								employer can only use these respirators if particles primarily have a mass
								median aerodynamic diameter of at least two micrometers.
Note:
These respirators are no longer
								sold for occupational use.
Statutory Authority:
						RCW
						 49.17.010,
						49.17.040,
						49.17.050,
						49.17.060. 05-01-166, §
						296-307-60205, filed 12/21/04, effective
						4/2/05.