WAC 296-848-40025   Exposure control areas.  

     You must:

     • Establish temporary or permanent exposure control areas where airborne concentrations of inorganic arsenic are above the permissible exposure limit (PEL) by doing all the following:

     – Distinguish the boundaries of exposure control areas from the rest of the workplace in any way that minimizes employee access.

     – Allow only authorized personnel to enter exposure control areas.

     – Post signs at access points to exposure control areas that include this warning:

DANGER Inorganic Arsenic Cancer Hazard Authorized Personnel Only No Smoking or Eating Respirator Required

     – Make sure signs are kept clean and well lit so they are easy to read.

     – Keep signs and areas near them free of statements that contradict or detract from their message.

Note:

This requirement does not prevent you from posting signs required by other laws, rules, or ordinances.

     You must:

     – Make sure employees entering exposure control areas have an appropriate respirator.

     – Prevent all of the following activities from occurring in exposure control areas unless they are conducted in required lunchrooms, change rooms, or showers:

     ▪ Eating food or drinking beverages.

     ▪ Smoking.

     ▪ Chewing tobacco or gum.

     ▪ Applying cosmetics.

Note:	• You may use permanent or temporary enclosures, caution tape, ropes, painted lines on surfaces, or other materials to visibly distinguish exposure control areas or separate them from the rest of the workplace.
	• When distinguishing exposure control areas, you should consider factors such as:
	– The level and duration of airborne exposure.
	– Whether the area is permanent or temporary.
	– The number of employees in adjacent areas.

Reference:

To see other requirements for respirators within this chapter, go to Respirators, WAC 296-848-40045.

[Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.17.060. 05-01-173, § 296-848-40025, filed 12/21/04, effective 5/1/05.]