Evaluation of Cr(VI) Exposure Levels in the Shipbuilding Industry

Metal fabrication operations, such as welding, brazing, cutting, painting, and paint removing which are commonly performed at a shipyard, release air pollutants harmful to the health of workers. To protect the health of workers, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has established permissible exposure levels (PELs) for various air pollutants released in the workplace. OSHA constantly reviews and revises the PELs on regulated air pollutants and establishes new ones for previously unregulated pollutants based on research studies and public petitions. In July 1993, OSHA was petitioned by the Oil, Chemical, and Atomic Workers (OCAW) union to establish an emergency temporary standard (ETS) that would lower the PEL for Cr(VI) from the existing 100 :g/m to between 5 and 0.5 :g/m. OSHA is also considering a revision in PELs for 20 air pollutants from a list of 212 air pollutants that, it had originally intended to revise in 1989. Manganese (Mn) and Nickel (Ni) are among the list of these 20 air pollutants.