Section 296-307-60205. Select and provide appropriate respirators.

IMPORTANT:

See WAC 296-307-624, Respiratory hazards, for:

• Hazard evaluation requirements. Evaluation results are necessary for respirator selection.

• A list of substance-specific rules that may also apply to you. Those listed rules have additional respirator selection requirements.

You 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 your 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.

• If respirator use will occur during emergencies, skip to Step 8 and document the analysis used to select the appropriate respirator.

• Use Centers for Disease Control (CDC) selection guidance for exposures to specific biological agents when this guidance exists. Visit http://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:

– The atmosphere is oxygen deficient or oxygen enriched

OR

– You CANNOT measure or estimate your expected exposure concentration

OR

– Your measured or estimated expected exposure concentration is greater or equal to the IDLH value in the NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards

Note:	• WISHA uses the IDLH values in the 1990 edition of the NIOSH Pocket Guide to Hazardous Chemicals to determine the existence of IDLH conditions. You may use more recent editions of this guide. Visit www.cdc.gov/niosh for more information.
	• 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:

• Full-facepiece, pressure demand, self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) certified by NIOSH for a minimum service life of thirty minutes

OR

• Full-facepiece, pressure demand air-line respirator equipped with an auxiliary self-contained air supply

Exception:	If the respiratory hazard is oxygen deficiency AND you can show oxygen concentrations can be controlled within the ranges listed in Table 4 under ALL foreseeable conditions, you are allowed to select ANY type of SCBA or air-line respirator.

Table 4

Concentration Ranges for Oxygen Deficiency

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:

• High humidity or temperature extremes in the workplace.

• Necessary voice communication.

• High traffic areas and moving machinery.

• Time or distance for escape.

Step 10: Follow Table 6 requirements to select an air-purifying respirator.

• If Table 6 requirements cannot be met, you must select an air-line respirator or an SCBA.

Step 11: Make sure respirators you select 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, you will need to select a sufficient number of types, models or sizes to provide for fit testing. You 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

Use Table 6 to select air-purifying respirators for particle, vapor, or gas contaminants.

Table 6

Requirements for Selecting Any Air-purifying Respirator

[Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.17.060. WSR 05-01-166, § 296-307-60205, filed 12/21/04, effective 4/2/05.]

RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.17.060. WSR 05-01-166, § 296-307-60205, filed 12/21/04, effective 4/2/05.

Rules

296-307-624,296-307-624,