Regulatory Info

FactSheet
OSHA’s Crystalline Silica Rule:
General Industry and Maritime
OSHA is issuing two standards to protect workers from exposure to respirable
crystalline silica — one for general industry and maritime, and the other for
construction — in order to allow employers to tailor solutions to the specific
conditions in their workplaces.
Who is affected by the general industry
and maritime standard?
About 295,000 workers are exposed to respirable
crystalline silica in over 75,000 general industry
and maritime workplaces. Exposure to respirable
crystalline silica can cause silicosis, lung cancer,
other respiratory diseases, and kidney disease.
Some of the affected industries are shown below.
Number of Workers Exposed to Respirable
Crystalline Silica in Selected General Industry/
Maritime Sectors
Industry
sector
Workers
currently
exposed
Workers currently
exposed above
the new PEL
Asphalt Roofing
Materials
3,15 8 1,410
Concrete
Products
32,981 9,391
Cut Stone 9,429 5,243
Dental
Laboratories
31,105 864
Foundries 34,591 12,173
Jewelry 6,772 2,434
Porcelain
Enameling
4,113 1,654
Pottery 6,269 2,496
Railroads
16,895 5,340
Ready-Mix
Concrete
27,123 19,941
Shipyards 3.038 2,228
Structural Clay
Products
7,893 3,198
Support Activities
for Oil and Gas
Operations
16,960 11,207
Source: OSHA Directorate of Standards and Guidance
OSHA estimates that over 100,000 workers in
general industry and maritime are exposed to
silica levels that exceed the new permissible
exposure limit (PEL).
What does the standard require?
The standard for general industry and maritime
requires employers to:
• Measure the amount of silica that workers are
exposed to if it may be at or above an action
level of 25 μg/m
3
(micrograms of silica per cubic
meter of air), averaged over an 8-hour day;
• Protect workers from respirable crystalline
silica exposures above the permissible
exposure limit of 50 μg/m
3
, averaged over an
8-hour day;
• Limit workers’ access to areas where they
could be exposed above the PEL;
• Use dust controls to protect workers from
silica exposures above the PEL;
• Provide respirators to workers when dust
controls cannot limit exposures to the PEL;
• Restrict housekeeping practices that expose
workers to silica where feasible alternatives
are available;
• Establish and implement a written exposure
control plan that identifies tasks that involve
exposure and methods used to protect workers;
• Offer medical exams — including chest X-rays
and lung function tests — every three years
for workers exposed at or above the action
level for 30 or more days per year;
• Train workers on work operations that result in
silica exposure and ways to limit exposure; and
• Keep records of workers’ silica exposure and
medical exams.