Recognize silica dust and health effects
Learning objective: Identify materials, tasks and health hazards before exposure.
Respirable crystalline silica is the very small airborne fraction of crystalline silica that can reach deep into the lungs. Quartz, cristobalite and tridymite are crystalline forms. Sand, stone, concrete, mortar, brick and artificial stone can contain silica. Cutting, grinding, drilling, crushing and abrasive blasting can release respirable dust; the amount depends on the material, process and controls.
Exposure can cause silicosis, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease. Silicosis scars the lungs and has no cure. OSHA hazard communication also requires addressing immune-system effects. Serious injury can develop before a worker recognizes symptoms; feeling well is not evidence that exposure is controlled.
A visible cloud is a warning, but hazardous respirable particles may be present when the air looks clear. A product’s bulk silica percentage does not measure the concentration in a worker’s breathing zone. Use the applicable exposure-control route and reliable exposure evidence, not sight, smell or symptoms, to judge protection.
Read the actual label and safety data sheet and identify the tasks that release dust. Consider nearby workers, cleaning, maintenance, disposal and other employers. A finished product can become an inhalation hazard when it is cut or ground. Discuss unexpected material or changed work with the responsible employer contact before continuing.
Keep dust at its source using the specified controls. Do not wait for a cough to report a failed water supply, damaged shroud or ineffective capture. Report symptoms to the appropriate health professional and explain the exposure history; workplace hazard reporting and medical care serve different purposes.
Source context: 1910.1053(j); 1910.1200