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Frequently Asked Questions:
HAZWOPER
- Who is covered by OSHA's HAZWOPER Standard?
- Is computer-based training acceptable for refresher training?
- For emergency response in an unknown or potentially IDLH atmosphere, what is the minimum number of people required?
- Can refresher training be given in segments?
- What if refresher training isn't received in 12 months?
- What are the training or certification requirements for HAZWOPER trainers?
- What are the HAZWOPER training requirements for hospital staff?
- What is the difference between an incidental and an emergency spill?
- What are the HAZWOPER training requirements for on-site workers who are not directly involved in cleanup activities?
- What is the applicability of HAZWOPER to small quantity generators?
- What is the application of HAZWOPER to TSD facilities that store hazardous materials for 90 days or less?
Who is covered by OSHA's HAZWOPER standard?
The
Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER)
applies to five distinct groups of employers and their employees. This
includes any employees who are exposed or potentially exposed to
hazardous substances -- including hazardous waste -- and who are
engaged in one of the following operations as specified by 1910.120(a)(1)(i-v) and 1926.65(a)(1)(i-v):
- clean-up
operations -- required by a governmental body, whether federal, state,
local, or other involving hazardous substances -- that are conducted at
uncontrolled hazardous waste sites;
- corrective actions involving clean-up operations at sites covered by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA) as amended (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.);
- voluntary
clean-up operations at sites recognized by federal, state, local, or
other governmental body as uncontrolled hazardous waste sites;
- operations involving hazardous wastes that are conducted at treatment, storage, and disposal facilities regulated by Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations
Parts 264 and 265 pursuant to RCRA, or by agencies under agreement with
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to implement RCRA regulations; and
- emergency
response operations for releases of, or substantial threats of release
of, hazardous substances regardless of the location of the hazard.
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
Is computer-based training acceptable for refresher training?
Computer-based
training may meet some refresher training requirements, provided that
it covers topics relevant to workers' assigned duties. It must be
supplemented by the opportunity to ask questions of a qualified trainer
and by an assessment of hands-on performance of work tasks.
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
For emergency response in an unknown or potentially IDLH atmosphere, what is the minimum number of people required?
At
a minimum, four (4) people are required: two working as a team inside
the unknown or potentially IDLH atmosphere, and two working outside
this atmosphere for assistance or rescue.
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
Can refresher training be given in segments?
Refresher
training may be given in segments so long as the required 8 hours have
been completed by the employee's anniversary date.
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
What if refresher training isn't received in 12 months?
If
the date for refresher training has lapsed, the need to repeat initial
training must be determined based on the employee's familiarity with
safety and health procedures used on site. The employee should take the
next availably refresher training course. "There should be a record in
the employee's file indicating why the training has been delayed and
when the training will be completed."
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
What are the training or certification requirements for HAZWOPER trainers?
The
"Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response" standard
(HAZWOPER), 29 CFR 1910.120, states in paragraph (e)(5) that "Trainers
shall be qualified to instruct employees about the subject matter that
is being presented in training". In addition, 29 CFR 1910.120(e)(5)
explains that the qualifications of the instructors may be shown by
academic degrees, completed training courses and/or work experience.
At this time, OSHA does not have any specific requirements to certify
an instructor. The subjects that trainers should be able to convey to
employees at hazardous waste operations who need training are
summarized in paragraphs (e), (p) and (q) of the HAZWOPER standard.
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
What are the HAZWOPER training requirements for hospital staff?
OSHA's
Hazardous Waste and Emergency Response standard (HAZWOPER) requires
that workers be trained to perform their anticipated job duties without
endangering themselves or others. To determine the level and type of
training your workers need, you must consider the hazards in your
community and what capabilities your personnel need to respond to those
hazards. You should make your determination based on worst-case
scenarios. If your personnel are expected to provide limited
decontamination services in order to attend to medical problems, they
must be trained to the first responder operations level with emphasis
on the use of PPE and decontamination procedures. This level of
emergency response training is described in 29 CFR 1910.120(q)(6)(ii);
additional guidance about the content of this training is available in
HAZWOPER's Appendix E. Hospitals may develop in-house training or they
may send personnel to a standard first responder operations level
course, then provide additional training in decontamination and PPE as
needed. HAZWOPER requires the employer to certify that workers have the
training and competencies listed in (q)(6)(ii). The standard also
requires annual refresher training or demonstration of competency, as
described in (q)(8).
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
What is the difference between an incidental and an emergency spill?
An
incidental release is a release of hazardous substance which does not
pose a significant safety or health hazard to employees in the
immediate vicinity or to the employee cleaning it up, nor does it have
the potential to become an emergency within a short time frame.
Incidental releases are limited in quantity, exposure potential, or
toxicity and present minor safety or health hazards to employees in the
immediate work area or those assigned to clean them up. An incidental
spill may be safely cleaned up by employees who are familiar with the
hazards of the chemicals with which they are working.
The properties of hazardous substances, such as toxicity, volatility,
flammability, explosiveness, corrosiveness, etc., as well as the
particular circumstances of the release itself, such as quantity,
confined space considerations, ventilation, etc., will have an impact
on what employees can handle safely and what procedures should be
followed. Additionally, there are other factors that may mitigate the
hazards associated with a release and its remediation, such as the
knowledge of the employee in the immediate work area, the response and
personal protective equipment (PPE) at hand, and the pre-established
standard operating procedures for responding to releases of hazardous
substances. There are some engineering control measures that will
mitigate the release that employees can activate to assist them in
controlling and stopping the release.
These considerations (properties of the hazardous substance, the
circumstances of the release, and the mitigating factors in the work
area) combine to define the distinction between incidental releases and
releases that require an emergency response. The distinction is
facility-specific and is a function of the emergency response plan.
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
What are the HAZWOPER training requirements for on-site workers who are not directly involved in cleanup activities?
Workers,
such as utility workers, who must perform duties at a hazardous waste
site that has not yet been characterized but where contamination is
expected, do fall under the scope of 29 CFR 1910.120. These workers
must work under the direction of an on-site supervisor and a
site-specific safety and health plan, and must be fully trained and
protected pursuant to the HAZWOPER standard. When additional
information becomes available through site characterization which
verifies that there is minimal or no risk of employee exposure to
hazardous substances, a lesser degree of PPE and worker training may be
acceptable.
When site characterization shows that the area to be serviced by
workers is free of potential exposure, or the proposed work assignments
would not expose any of the work crew to hazardous substances, the
activity can be carried out as a normal maintenance or construction
operation.
... The utility contractor is bound to provide at least the minimum
number of training hours specified. On a hazardous waste site that has
many site specific peculiarities the employer may need to train
employees beyond the 40 or 24 hour minimum set by the standard.
Employees must be provided training that prepares them for their job
functions and responsibilities, as stated in the general requirements
in 29 CFR 1910.120(e).
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
What is the applicability of HAZWOPER to small quantity generators?
Employers
who are not required to have a permit or interim status because they
are conditionally exempt small quantity generators under 40 CFR 261.5
or are generators who qualify under 40 CFR 262.34 for exemptions from
regulation under 40 CFR 262.34 for exemptions from regulation under 40
CFR parts 264, 265, and 270 ("excepted employers") are not covered by
paragraphs (p)(1) through (p)(7) of this section [1910.120 or 1926.65].
Excepted employers who are required by the EPA or state agency to have
their employees engage in emergency response or who direct their
employees to engage in emergency response are covered by paragraph
(p)(8) of this section [1910.120 or 1926.65], and cannot be exempted by
(p)(8)(i) of this section [1910.120 or 1926.65].
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
What is the application of HAZWOPER to TSD facilities that store hazardous materials for 90 days or less?
Conditionally-exempt
small quantity generators and generators who store hazardous wastes for
less than 90 days are exempt from compliance with sections (p)(1)
through (p)(7), and are thus covered only by section (p)(8), the
emergency response program.
Employers who have
hazardous waste storage areas in their facilities have the option of
meeting the emergency response requirements of HAZWOPER by complying
with either paragraph (p)(8) or paragraph (q) for those areas. The
employer must meet the requirements of paragraph (q) for other areas of
their facility which have potential for emergency releases of hazardous
substances or hazardous raw materials.
... [Regarding the] exemption from employee training requirements under
paragraph (p)(8) if the employer intends to evacuate employees in the
event of an emergency. Paragraph (p)(8)(i), like paragraph (q)(1),
provides an exemption from the emergency response requirements if the
employer intends to evacuate all employees and provides an emergency
action plan (i.e., an evacuation plan) in accordance with 29 CFR
1910.38(a).
However, the HAZWOPER standard states in paragraph (a)(2)(iii)(B) that
"employers who are required by the EPA or state agency to have their
employees engage in emergency response... are covered by paragraph
(p)(8) of this section, and cannot be exempted by (p)(8)(i) of this
section."
Reference Interpretation and Compliance Letters:
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