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SECTION
C3: LABORATORY STANDARD
Introduction
In 1990, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued
a regulation entitled Occupational
Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories, otherwise known
as the Laboratory Standard, to address the differences between chemical
use in laboratories versus other workplaces.
The goal of the Laboratory Standard is to ensure that laboratory workers
are informed about the hazards of chemicals in their workplace and are
protected from chemical exposures exceeding allowable levels (e.g.,
exceeding OSHA
Permissible Exposure Limits). This goal is achieved by establishing
safe work practices in the laboratories through the implementation of
a Chemical Hygiene Plan (safety manual) and the appointment of departmental
Chemical Hygiene Officers.
Scope and Application
The Laboratory Standard applies to all individuals who work with hazardous
chemicals in science and engineering laboratories. Work with hazardous
chemicals outside of laboratories is covered by the Hazard
Communication Standard (see Section C2). Laboratory uses of chemicals
which provide no potential for exposure (e.g., chemically impregnated
test media or prepared kits for pregnancy testing) are not covered by
the Laboratory Standard.
Program Description
The Laboratory Standard consists of five major elements: information
and training, medical
consultations and exams, hazard
identification, exposure monitoring,
and the Chemical Hygiene Plan.
In accordance with the Laboratory Standard, each science and engineering
department has appointed a Chemical Hygiene Officer to develop and implement
a departmental Chemical Hygiene Plan. The Chemical Hygiene Officer is
the primary liaison for laboratory chemical safety issues between the
department and the Office of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS).
To determine the identity of the Chemical Hygiene Officer in a particular
department, contact the Departmental Safety Manager or consult the list
of Chemical Hygiene Officers on the
EHS Web Page at http://www.princeton.edu/~ehs/cho.htm.
Exposure
Determination
OSHA has established permissible
exposure limits (PELs) for hundreds of chemical substances.
The PEL is the concentration in inhaled air that the average, healthy
worker may be exposed to daily for a lifetime of work without significant
adverse health effects. The PEL is usually expressed as an eight hour
time weighted average concentration.
Laboratory workers must be protected from exposure above PELs. Exposure
monitoring, through air sampling, is conducted if there is reason to
believe that exposure may exceed exposure limits, or upon request. Individuals
who have been monitored will receive sampling results within 15 days
of receipt by EHS. Periodic monitoring will be conducted as needed.
Chemical Hygiene
Plan
The purpose of the Chemical Hygiene Plan is to provide guidelines for
prudent practices and procedures for the laboratory use of chemicals.
The Laboratory Standard stipulates that the Chemical Hygiene Plan set
forth procedures, equipment, personal protective equipment and work
practices capable of protecting workers from the health hazards presented
by the hazardous chemicals used in the laboratory.
Each science and engineering department at Princeton University has
developed a Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP), based on a model plan prepared
by EHS. Copies of the CHP are available to laboratory workers at all
times. In most departments, a copy of the CHP is available in each laboratory.
The following information may be found in each departmental Chemical
Hygiene Plan:
- Standard Operating Procedures
- prudent laboratory practices to be followed when working with chemicals
in a laboratory. These include general and laboratory-specific procedures
for work with several categories of chemicals, emergency
procedures, and laboratory waste
procedures.
- Chemical Exposure Control - criteria
to determine when chemical exposure monitoring will be conducted to
determine whether exposure limits are exceeded. It also outlines what
control measures (e.g., engineering controls, personal protective
equipment) will be used to assure exposure does not exceed exposure
limits.
- Function of Engineering Controls
- description of programs in place to ensure
laboratory fume hoods and other engineering controls function
properly.
- Information and Training - outline
of general and specific training
required and what information
must be available to and communicated to all laboratory workers.
- Criteria for Prior Approval of Laboratory
Procedures - Written approval must be obtained from the
principal investigator or Chemical Hygiene Officer before beginning
work with particularly hazardous substances, including select carcinogens,
reproductive toxins, embryotoxins, materials exhibiting a high degree
of acute toxicity and materials of unknown toxicity.
- Medical Consultations and Examinations
- provisions for medical consultation or examination when exposure
to a hazardous chemical takes place.
- Chemical Hygiene Officer Designation
- identity of the departmental Chemical Hygiene Officer and outline
of his or her role and responsibilities.
- Particularly Hazardous Substances
- outlines special procedures and safe work practices for work with
chemicals requiring prior approval.
Information
and Training
Laboratory workers are provided with information and training to
become knowledgeable of the hazards present in their laboratory. The
training is provided at the time of initial assignment to a laboratory
and prior to assignments involving new exposure situations.
EHS provides general training,
while the department provides specific training on particularly hazardous
materials or operations in the workplace. All individuals working
in a laboratory must attend EHS Laboratory
Safety Training.
The following information is available to all laboratory workers:
Full text of the OSHA
Laboratory Standard (available through EHS or the EHS web page
at http://www.princeton.edu/~ehs/services.htm#Lab Standard)
Location and availability of the departmental Chemical Hygiene
Plan
Permissible
exposure limits for OSHA Regulated Substances (available through
EHS or the EHS web page, see above)
Signs and symptoms associated with exposure to hazardous chemicals
in the laboratory
The location and availability of reference materials on the hazards,
safe handling, storage and disposal of hazardous chemicals in the
laboratory, including, but not limited to, MSDSs
Training includes at least the following:
Methods and observations that may be used to detect the presence
or release of a hazardous chemical. This may include monitoring
devices, as appropriate, and familiarity with the appearance and
odor of the chemicals
The physical and health hazards of chemicals in the laboratory
The measures that workers can take to protect themselves from
these hazards, including protective equipment, appropriate work
practices, and emergency procedures
Medical
Consultations and Examinations
Princeton University provides medical consultation with a licensed
healthcare professional for the purpose of determining what medical
examinations or procedures are appropriate in cases where a significant
exposure to a hazardous substance may have taken place, including:
- Whenever an individual develops signs or symptoms associated
with a hazardous chemical to which he or she may have been exposed
in
the laboratory
- Whenever exposure monitoring reveals exposure levels routinely
exceeding the OSHA action level or permissible exposure limit,
as
appropriate
- Whenever a spill, leak, explosion or other occurrence results
in the likelihood of a laboratory worker experiencing a hazardous
exposure
The laboratory worker or his/her supervisor provides the examining
physician with the identity of the hazardous chemical encountered
in the laboratory and the conditions under which the individual may
have been exposed.
The examining physician completes a written opinion that includes
the following information:
- Recommendations for further medical follow-up
- The results of the medical examination and any associated tests
- Any medical condition which may be revealed in the course of
the examination that may place the individual at increased risk
as a
result of exposure to a hazardous chemical in the workplace
A copy of the written opinion is provided to the laboratory worker,
the departmental Chemical Hygiene Officer and EHS. Further details
on the policy and procedures may be found in the departmental Chemical
Hygiene Plan.
Hazard Identification
Chemical containers must be labeled with the identity of the product,
the chemical constituents, and any appropriate hazard warnings. Labels
must not be removed or defaced.
Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs)
received by the laboratory must be maintained and be available to
laboratory workers during work hours. The location of any available
central departmental location for MSDSs may be found in the Chemical
Hygiene Plan. In addition to the MSDSs received with chemical shipments,
hundreds of MSDSs are available through EHS and the EHS web page at
http://www.princeton.edu/~ehs/ index.html#MSDS.
Recordkeeping
Departments must keep records of attendance at EHS general training
and departmental training, exposure monitoring, medical consultation,
and examinations. Such records may be transferred to an individual’s
physician or made available to the laboratory worker upon request.
Roles and Responsibilities
Department
- Appoint a Chemical Hygiene Officer.
- Maintain records of training, exposure monitoring and medical
examinations.
- Provide chemical and procedure-specific training.
Chemical Hygiene Officer
- Develop and implement a departmental Chemical
Hygiene Plan.
- Review and update the Chemical Hygiene Plan at least annually.
- Investigate accidents and chemical exposures.
Supervisors
- Ensure laboratory workers attend training.
- Ensure laboratory workers use personal protective equipment, as
needed.
EHS
- Conduct exposure monitoring, as needed.
- Provide general training.
- Audit departmental program periodically.
Individual
- Attend training.
- Review the departmental Chemical Hygiene
Plan.
- Follow procedures and laboratory practices outlined in the Chemical
Hygiene Plan.
- Use engineering controls and personal protective equipment, as
appropriate.
- Report all accidents and potential chemical exposures.
For More Information
Contact EHS at 258-5294.
Full text of the OSHA
Laboratory Standard (29 CFR 1910.1450), permissible
exposure limits, and a list of departmental Chemical
Hygiene Officers are available through EHS.
See the Princeton University Laboratory
Safety Manual for more information about laboratory safety.
A Laboratory Health and Safety Self-Audit Checklist is available
through EHS or may be downloaded either as a PDF
or a customizable Word document.
Links to other chemical safety-related web sites are available here.
The following additional references are available through EHS and the
Princeton University Library:
- American Chemical Society, Safety in Academic Chemistry Laboratories,
5th ed., 1990
- Bretherick, I., Handbook of Reactive Chemical Hazards,
4th ed., CRC Press, 1990
- British Cryogenic Council, Cryogenics Safety Manual, 3rd
ed., 1991
- Clayton, George and F. Clayton, editors, Patty’s Industrial Hygiene
and Toxicology, Wiley, Interscience, 1991
- Compressed Gas Association, Inc., Handbook of Compressed Gases,
3rd ed., VanNostrand Reinhold Company, New York, 1990
- Furr, A. Keith, Handbook of Laboratory Safety, 3rd ed.,
The Chemical Rubber Company, 1990
- Gosselin, et al, Clinical Toxicology of Commercial Products,
5th ed., Williams and Wilkins, 1984
- Hawley, Gessner G., The Condensed Chemical Dictionary, 11th
ed., Van Nostrand Reinhold, Company, 1987
- Lewis, Richard J., Dangerous Properties of Industrial Materials,
8th ed., Litton Educational Publishing, Inc., 1992
- Meyer, Eugene, Chemistry of Hazardous Materials, Prentice-Hall,
Inc., 1977
- National Research Council, Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Disposal of Chemicals,
National Academy Press, 1995
- National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Registry
of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances, (published annually)
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Occupational Health
Guidelines for Chemical Hazards, NIOSH/OSHA
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