Hazard
Alert
Lead in Construction |
|
CPWR – Center for Construction Research and Training
Old paint on metal bridges, process equipment, and buildings may contain
lead. Construction workers are exposed to lead when metal structures are
torn down, renovated, or repainted.
When metal covered
with lead paint is cut, sanded, heated, burned, or blasted with abrasives,
lead gets into the air. Anyone near such work can get lead poisoning.
Lead is toxic if
you breathe or swallow it. It can cause severe anemia and harm reproduction.
It can damage your kidneys, brain, and nervous system, too.
The first signs of severe poisoning may be upset stomach (or cramps),
weakness, joint pain, and/or being tired. (But lead can harm you even
if you don't show these symptoms at first.)
If you are stripping,
sanding, heating, cutting, or otherwise disturbing a painted surface
or you are near such work:
- Ask your
contractor if the paint contains lead. The OSHA hazard communication
rules say the contractor must train you if you are exposed. Until you
are sure there is no lead, act as if the paint contains lead.
If the paint has lead (or may have lead):
- Follow your
contractor's special procedures for this work. OSHA and some states
have special rules for work on lead-coated surfaces. OSHA says a contractor
must use engineering and work practice controls to prevent lead exposures.
- Use wet methods,
if you can, to keep down any dust.
- Before you
use a torch for cutting, remove paint. (Cutting with torches or
heating lead paint produces a lead fume.) Use long-handled torches.
- Use local-exhaust
ventilation.
- OSHA says use
a respirator only when other controls are not possible or not
enough. (Do not use a disposable dust mask that is not approved by
NIOSH, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
)
- If respirators
are used, OSHA requires a full respiratory protection program. The
contractor must do an exposure assessment to find out which respirator
is needed. A respirator will need at least a NIOSH-approved half-mask
with high-efficiency (N-, R-, or P-100) filter protection for lead
fumes. Such a mask provides protection for up to 10 times the permissible
exposure limit (PEL) for lead fumes.
- A respiratory
protection program must include proper selection and fitting of respirators,
medical screening of workers to be sure they can wear respirators, and
worker training. Correct storage and cleaning of respirators, and an
evaluation of the program are needed also.
- Do not smoke,
eat, or drink around work on lead paint. This is to prevent swallowing
lead.
- Always wash
your hands and face before smoking, eating, or drinking. This is
to prevent swallowing lead.
- Do not wear
work clothes home. Lead dust on your clothes and shoes can poison
your family, especially your children.
- Have your
blood-lead level checked. OSHA says your employer must test your
blood-lead level if you are exposed to lead. How often you will need
more blood tests will depend on the exposure level. If your blood-lead
level is above 50 micrograms per deciliter, OSHA says your employer
must give you a different job until you are well. Your employer must
also arrange for medical exams.
Representatives of
unions, management, and state and local governments have written guidelines
for a safe lead-removal program for industrial structures. You can get
the guidelines, Model Specifications for the Protection of Workers
from Lead on Steel Structures, from CPWR – Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) at 301-578-8500.
For more information,
call your local union, CPWR – Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) (301-578-8500
or www.cpwr.com ), the
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (1-800-35-NIOSH
or www.cdc.gov/niosh
), or OSHA (1-800-321-OSHA or www.osha.gov). Or go to www.elcosh.org.
This document appears in the
eLCOSH website with the permission of the author and/or copyright holder
and may not be reproduced without their consent. eLCOSH is an information
clearinghouse. eLCOSH and its sponsors are not responsible for the accuracy
of information provided on this web site, nor for its use or misuse.
©
2002, CPWR – Center for Construction Research and Training. All rights reserved. CPWR
is a research, development, and training arm of the Building and Construction
Trades Dept., AFL-CIO: CPWR, Suite 1000, 8484 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring,
MD 20910. (Edward C. Sullivan is president of the Building and Construction
Trades Dept. and of CPWR and Joseph Maloney is secretary treasurer.) Production
of this card was supported by grant CCU317202 from the National Institute
for Occupational Safety and Health and grants U45-ES09764 and U45-ES06185
from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. The contents
are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent
the official views of NIOSH or NIEHS.
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