Silica and Hydraulic Fracturing 5
Silica and Hydraulic Fracturing 5 : How Can OSHA and NIOSH Help? (1) OSHA has compliance assistance specialists throughout the nation who can provide information to employers and workers about OSHA standards, short educational programs on specific hazards or OSHA rights and responsibilities, and information on additional compliance assistance resources. Contact your local OSHA office for more information. (2) OSHA's On-Site Consultation Program offers free and confidential advice for small businesses with fewer than 250 employees at a site (and no more than 500 employees nationwide) to help identify and correct hazards at your worksite. On-site consultation services are separate from enforcement and do not result in penalties or citations. To locate the OSHA Consultation Office nearest you, visit OSHA's website or call 1-800-321-OSHA (6742). (3) OSHA's Cooperative Initiatives: OSHA, NIOSH, and several U.S. onshore exploration and production industry trade associations, companies, and individual experts have formed a Respirable Silica Focus Group to further explore silica exposure during hydraulic fracturing and to develop practical short- and long-term solutions to protect worker safety and health. (4) NIOSH is designing conceptual engineering controls to minimize exposure to silica during hydraulic fracturing. NIOSH is looking for industry partners to help test these engineering controls. If you are interested, please contact NIOSH at westernstatesoffice@cdc.gov. NIOSH is also looking for additional partners in drilling and well servicing to help evaluate worker exposures to chemical hazards and develop controls as needed. Please refer to the document NIOSH Field Effort to Assess Chemical Exposure Risks to Gas and Oil Workers [1 MB PDF, 4 pages] for details and contact us if you have questions or wish to participate. In addition, NIOSH has an active program that encourages Prevention through Design considerations so that occupational health and safety aspects (such as dust control) are built into equipment during the design phase. Employers and workers can always request a NIOSH Health Hazard Evaluation. For more information about this program, please visit the website. (5) NIOSH recommendations for preventing silicosis, including dust control, sampling and analysis methods, medical monitoring of workers, training, and respiratory protection, can be found at the Silica Topics webpage. For more information, see Best Practices for Dust Control in Metal/Nonmetal Mining, which discusses dust control in underground mining operations. Research results from this document have direct relevance for minerals handling operations in hydraulic fracturing operations. See more from topic source: https://www.osha.gov/html/a-z-index.html
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