An important part of the silica compliance program is worksite air
monitoring. Airborne silica levels must be determined and
appropriate controls maintained. OSHA requires companies using
silica to conduct air sampling to determine initial exposure levels.
Once the determination has been made, further monitoring may be
necessary if the process or task changes, materials change, or
engineering controls are installed or modified.
If air sampling results show that the amount of silica in the air
exceeds the PEL, then the company must determine and implement,
when feasible, engineering and administrative controls. When these controls are not feasible, or cannot lower the employee’s exposure to below the PEL, protective equipment or any other protective measures must be used.
A trained specialist will use a combination device called a cyclone assembly and a sampling pump to trap tiny respirable silica particles from the air in the work environment. The cyclone assembly and sampling pump will be placed on an employee, who will wear the device throughout the work shift for up to 8 hours. The device is small and does not affect the work task.
All employees or just a select few who are closest to the silica
source may be fitted with the sampling device. The safety specialist can
help you determine what will be most appropriate. He or she will take several variables in consideration such as weather, number of workers, location of workers, time at various tasks, tools in use, and other issues before implementing the air monitoring.
Once the workers have been fitted for the pump assembly, the monitoring begins. The safety specialist maintains the control group who perform their daily tasks normally. At the end of the day, the
safety specialist removes the pumps and filters (located in the cyclones) from the workers. They are sent to a lab and tested for silica exposure results. The results from the lab tests verify respirable silica exposure levels. And then depending on the intensity of the overexposure, the safety specialist incorporates control methods for worker protection.
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