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Hazardous and Toxic Substances |
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| Hazard Recognition |
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Many workers are unaware of chemicals that
create potential hazards in their work environment, making them more
vulnerable to exposure and injury. The following references aid in
recognizing hazards associated with hazardous and toxic substances.
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Hazardous Chemicals in Labs.
OSHA Fact Sheet, (2002). Also available as a 270 KB PDF,
2 pages. Discusses OSHA's Laboratory standard and the unique problems associated with laboratory use of hazardous chemicals.
- Training Requirements in OSHA Standards and Training Guidelines. OSHA Publication 2254,
(1998). Also available as a 720 KB
PDF, 110 pages.
- Hazardous
Waste. OSHA Safety and Health Topics Page. Provides information on
OSHA, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and national consensus standards, as well as links to
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and
other chemical safety sources.
- Ventilation.
OSHA Safety and Health Topics Page. Provides links to engineering
resources, OSHA Technical Manual (OTM), and Field Inspection Reference
Manual (FIRM) sections, as well as National Institute for Occupational Safety and
Health (NIOSH) and Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) references.
- Draft Model Training Program for Hazard Communication.
OSHA. Presents an approach to providing training using a series of lesson
plans, slides, and quizzes that are provided in appendices which also
include a glossary of commonly used terms and references that can provide
additional information.
- International
Chemical Safety Cards (ICSCs): US National Version. National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Contains the collective views of the IPCS Peer Review Committee
and summarize essential health and safety information on
chemicals for use by workers at the "shop floor" level
and employers in factories, agriculture, construction and other work places.
- Healthy
Children -- Toxic Environments: Acting on the Unique Vulnerability
of Children Who Dwell Near Hazardous Waste Sites. Agency
for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), (1997, April 28). Discusses
many of the unique problems associated with childhood exposure to hazardous and toxic substances.
- Understanding Toxic Substances: An Introduction to Chemical Hazards in the Workplace.
California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Hazard Evaluation System and Information Service (HESIS), (1996, August). Answers
basic questions and provides an extensive glossary of terms. Includes a
checklist to aid a worker in gathering facts and getting answers
regarding chemical exposure in the workplace.
- If
I'm Pregnant, Can the Chemicals I Work With Harm My Baby? California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Hazard Evaluation System and Information Service
(HESIS). Provides a useful guide to inform pregnant workers of the hazards in their workplace environment.
- Understanding Toxic Substances. Washington State
Department of Labor and Industries, 153 KB
PDF,
17 pages. Explains how chemicals can affect the body, what to look for
when reading health information, the different types of exposure limits
for chemicals in the workplace, tips on how to know if you are exposed,
what you can do to reduce exposure, and where to go for additional
information. Based upon the the previous reference.
- International
Programme on Chemical Safety. International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS). The two main roles
of the IPCS are to establish the scientific health and environmental
risk assessment basis for safe use of chemicals and to strengthen
national capabilities for chemical safety.
Specific Chemical Information
- OSHA/EPA Occupational Chemical Database. OSHA.
Compiles information from several governmental sources relating to occupational chemicals. At the date of initial release in July 2007, the database contained information on over 800 chemicals.
- Chemical
Sampling Information (CSI). OSHA. Provides information on chemical properties,
health effects, and sampling and analysis parameters.
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NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards. National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Publication No. 2005-149, (2005, September). Serves as a source of general industrial hygiene
information on several hundred chemicals and classes for workers,
employers, and occupational health professionals.
- Registry
of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances (RTECS). National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). The RTECS is a database of toxicological information
including primary irritation, mutagenic effects, reproductive
effects, tumorigenic effects, acute toxicity, and other multiple dose toxicity.
- NIOSH
Current Intelligence Bulletins (CIB). National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Publications. Provides safety and health
information on approximately 57 topics, many of which are chemicals or
chemical related.
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Criteria Documents. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
Publications. References links to documents that identify specific
hazards associated with a chemical, an industry, or a process. Industry
trends, potential hazards, and recommended control procedures are presented.
- Documentation
for Immediately Dangerous To Life or Health Concentrations
(IDLHs). National Institute for Occupational Safety and
Health (NIOSH), National Technical Information Service (NTIS)
Publication No. PB-94-195047, (1994, May). Provides a summary
of information NIOSH used to determine and evaluate IDLH values.
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Report on Carcinogens (RoC). US Department of Health and Human
Services (DHHS), National Toxicology Program (NTP). Identifies and discusses
agents, substances, mixtures, or exposure circumstances
that may pose a hazard to human health by virtue of their carcinogenicity.
- Occupational
Health Guidelines for Chemical Hazards. US Department of
Health and Human Services (DHHS), National Institute
for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Publication
No. 81-123, (1981, January). Provides a table of contents
of guidelines for many hazardous chemicals. The files provide
technical chemical information, including chemical and physical
properties, health effects, exposure limits, and recommendations
for medical monitoring, personal protective equipment (PPE),
and control procedures. This document has been updated and
revised through the years with the following supplements:
- ToxFAQs.
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). Provides a
series of summaries and answers to frequently asked questions about
contaminants found at hazardous waste sites and hazardous substances
excerpted from ATSDR's Toxicological Profiles and Public Health Statements.
Each fact sheet serves as a quick and easy-to-understand guide.
- Sector
Notebooks. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Provides a list of available notebooks containing: national
industrial process descriptions, lists of chemicals commonly used,
waste release profiles, discussions of pollution prevention opportunities,
summaries of statutes and regulations, compliance and enforcement
profiles, lists of compliance activities, and contact directories.
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Integrated Risk Information System. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA). The IRIS is a database of human health effects that may result
from exposure to various substances found in the environment. The
information in IRIS is intended for those without extensive training
in toxicology, but with some knowledge of health sciences.
- Health
Effects Notebook for Hazardous Air Pollutants. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA). Provides a collection of documents
that contain health effects information related to each of the EPA
Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) from the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments.
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The Chemical Reactivity Worksheet. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA), Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R).
Provides a free program that can be used to
research the reactivity of substances or mixtures of substances.
- Right
to Know Hazardous Substance Fact Sheets. State of New Jersey,
Department of Health and Senior Services. Provides a collection of
documents on individual hazardous chemicals. Each sheet contains
acute and chronic health hazards, identification, workplace exposure
limits, medical tests, workplace controls and practices, personal
protective equipment, handling and storage, questions and answers,
definitions, and emergency response information for fires, spills
and first aid.
- EXTOXNET - The EXTension TOXicology NETwork. The University of California-Davis, Oregon
State University, Michigan State University, Cornell University, and the
University of Idaho. Provides information more widely available via Pesticide Information Profiles, Toxicology Information Briefs, and Fact Sheets.
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Where to find Material Safety Data Sheets on the Internet. Interactive
Learning Paradigms Incorporated (ILPI). Provides links to MSDS available on the Internet.
- For additional information on chemical reactivity, see OSHA's Chemical
Reactivity Hazards Safety and Health Topics Page. Provides links to
references that aid in evaluating chemical reactive interactions and their
potential hazards.
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