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Page last reviewed: 11/30/2009
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Hazardous and Toxic Substances
Hazardous and toxic substances are defined as those
chemicals present in the workplace which are capable of causing harm. In this
definition, the term chemicals includes dusts, mixtures, and common materials
such as paints, fuels, and solvents. OSHA currently regulates exposure to approximately
400 substances. The OSHA
Chemical Sampling Information file contains listings
for approximately 1500 substances; the Environmental Protection Agency's
(EPA's) Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) Chemical Substances Inventory lists
information on more than 62,000 chemicals or chemical substances; some libraries
maintain files of material safety data sheets (MSDS) for more than 100,000 substances.
It is not possible to address the hazards associated with each of these chemicals in this safety and health topics page, however, the following information is relevant to many hazardous and toxic substances in the workplace.
Exposures to hazardous and toxic
substances are addressed in specific standards for the general industry,
shipyard employment, and the construction
industry.
OSHA Standards
This section highlights OSHA standards and standard
interpretations (official letters of interpretation of the standards) related to
hazardous and toxic substances.
Note:
Twenty-five states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands have
OSHA-approved State Plans and have adopted their own standards and
enforcement policies. For the most part, these States adopt standards that
are identical to Federal OSHA. However, some States have adopted different
standards applicable to this topic or may have different enforcement
policies.
General Industry (29 CFR
1910)
Shipyard Employment (29 CFR
1915)
Construction Industry (29 CFR
1926)
Standard Interpretations
Hazard Recognition
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.
-
Hazardous Chemicals in Labs.
OSHA Fact Sheet, (2002). Also available as a 253 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 (ICSC). 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.
- Hazard Evaluation System and Information Services (HESIS) Publications. California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Hazard Evaluation System and Information Service (HESIS). Provides access to numerous publications about chemicals, other toxic substances, and hazards in selected occupations.
- Understanding Toxic Substances [153 KB
PDF,
17 pages]. Washington State
Department of Labor and Industries. 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. World Health Organization (WHO), 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 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. OSHA. Provides information on chemical properties,
health effects, and sampling and analysis parameters.
-
NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards. National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Publication No. 2005-149, (2007, September). Serves as a source of general industrial hygiene
information on several hundred chemicals and classes for workers,
employers, and occupational health professionals.
- NIOSH Numbered Publications - 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.
-
NIOSH Numbered Publications - 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).
- 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 health hazard due to 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.
- 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 (IRIS). 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Possible Solutions
The following references aid in controlling
workplace hazards associated with hazardous and toxic substances.
-
Hazard Communication. OSHA Safety and Health Topics Page.
Provides example HazCom programs, many training resources, as well
as links to the proposed Globally Harmonized System of
Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS).
- Process
Safety Management. OSHA Safety and Health Topics Page. Contains
requirements for the management of hazards associated with
processes using highly hazardous chemicals included in the Process
Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals Standard (29
CFR 1910.119).
- Sampling
and Analysis. OSHA Safety and Health Topics Page. Describes chemical
sampling and analysis used by occupational and safety
professionals to assess workplace contaminants and associated
worker exposures.
- Recommendations for Chemical Protective Clothing. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH),
(1998, February). A companion to the NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards. It provides chemical protective
clothing guidelines for chemicals listed in the Pocket Guide.
- A Guide for Evaluating the Performance
of Chemical Protective Clothing. US Department of Health
and Human Services (DHHS), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Publication
No. 90-109, (1990, June). Includes selection and evaluation guidelines for protective clothing.
- Report
To Congress On Workers' Home Contamination Study Conducted Under The Workers' Family Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 671A).
US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH),
(1995, September). Summarizes the hazards to which a worker's family may be exposed.
Additional Information
Related Safety and Health Topics Pages
Training
-
Small Business Handbook. OSHA Publication 2209-02R, (2005). Also
available as a 260 KB
PDF, 56 pages.
- Chemical Hazard Communication. OSHA Publication 3084, (Revised 1998). Also available as a 284 KB
PDF, 31 pages.
Establishes uniform requirements to ensure that the hazards of all chemicals imported into, produced, or used
in US workplaces are evaluated, and that this hazard information is transmitted to affected employers and exposed employees.
- Training Requirements in OSHA Standards and Training Guidelines. OSHA Publication 2254,
(1998). Also available as a 720 KB PDF, 110 pages.
- 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.
- Hazard Communication [1 MB ZIP*]. OSHA.
Assists trainers conducting OSHA 10-hour General Industry outreach training for workers. Since workers are the target audience, the material emphasizes hazard identification,
avoidance, and control — not standards. No attempt has been made to treat the topic exhaustively.
Other Resources
- Chemical
Safety. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH) Workplace Safety and Health Topic. Provides information on many hazardous chemicals
and chemical concerns.
- Agency
for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). DHHS and the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) have created this agency to seek and prevent
harmful exposures and diseases related to toxic substances by providing
information, research, and public health actions.
- Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT). Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA). The EPA Office of Prevention,
Pesticides and Toxic Substances (OPPTS) plays an important role in
protecting public health and the environment from potential risk
from toxic chemicals. This page provides links to various programs
and initiatives within the OPPTS.
- Contaminated Media, Human Health, and Environmental Effects. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Includes
information about health, safety, and risk assessment issues related to
Superfund sites and the hazards related to exposure to contaminants; risk
assessment information; tips for reporting or responding to
Superfund-related emergencies; and safety guides for cleaning up and
preventing environmental hazards.
- NOAA Supports Both Natural And Man-Made Disasters In Its Homeland Security Program. National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA). Provides information about the types of assistance
and information available from NOAA whose mission is science, service and
stewardship of the oceans and atmosphere.
- Office of Response and Restoration. Protects coastal and marine resources,
mitigates threats, reduces harm, and restores ecological function and provides comprehensive solutions to environmental hazards caused by oil,
chemicals, and marine debris.
- Hazard
Evaluation System and Information Service (HESIS). California
Department of Public Health (CDPH), Occupational Health Branch (OHB).
Provides information about harmful workplace
chemicals and the potential effects of exposure.
-
Library.
US Department of Transportation (DOT), Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).
Accessibility Assistance: Contact the OSHA Directorate of Technical Support and Emergency Management at (202) 693-2300 for assistance accessing PDF and ZIP materials.
*These files are provided for downloading.
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