WAC 296-62-07713   Methods of compliance for asbestos activities in general industry.  (1) Engineering controls and work practices.

     (a) The employer must institute engineering controls and work practices to reduce and maintain employee exposure to or below the permissible exposure limits prescribed in WAC 296-62-07705, except to the extent that such controls are not feasible. Engineering controls and work practices include but are not limited to the following:

     (i) Local exhaust ventilation equipped with HEPA filter dust collection systems;

     (ii) Vacuum cleaners equipped with HEPA filters;

     (iii) Enclosure or isolation of processes producing asbestos dust;

     (iv) Use of wet methods, wetting agents, or removal encapsulants to control employee exposures during asbestos handling, mixing, removal, cutting, application, and cleanup;

     (v) Prompt disposal of wastes contaminated with asbestos in leak-tight containers; or

     (vi) Use of work practices or other engineering controls that the director can show to be feasible.

     (b) Wherever the feasible engineering controls and work practices that can be instituted are not sufficient to reduce employee exposure to or below the permissible exposure limits prescribed in WAC 296-62-07705, the employer must use them to reduce employee exposure to the lowest levels achievable by these controls and must supplement them by the use of respiratory protection that complies with the requirements of WAC 296-62-07715.

     (c) For the following operations, wherever feasible engineering controls and work practices that can be instituted are not sufficient to reduce the employee exposure to or below the permissible exposure limits prescribed in WAC 296-62-07705, the employer must use them to reduce employee exposure to or below 0.5 fiber per cubic centimeter of air (as an eight-hour time-weighted average) or 2.5 fibers per cubic centimeter of air for thirty minutes (short-term exposure), and must supplement them by the use of any combination of respiratory protection that complies with the requirements of WAC 296-62-07715, work practices and feasible engineering controls that will reduce employee exposure to or below the permissible exposure limits prescribed in WAC 296-62-07705: Coupling cutoff in primary asbestos cement pipe manufacturing; sanding in primary and secondary asbestos cement sheet manufacturing; grinding in primary and secondary friction product manufacturing; carding and spinning in dry textile processes; and grinding and sanding in primary plastics manufacturing.

     (d) Local exhaust ventilation. Local exhaust HEPA ventilation and dust collection systems must be designed, constructed, installed, and maintained in accordance with good practices such as those found in the American National Standard Fundamentals Governing the Design and Operation of Local Exhaust Systems, ANSI Z9.2-1979.

     (e) Particular tools. All hand-operated and power-operated tools which would produce or release fibers of asbestos so as to expose employees to levels in excess of the exposure limits prescribed in WAC 296-62-07705, such as, but not limited to, saws, scorers, abrasive wheels, and drills, must be provided with local exhaust ventilation systems which comply with (d) of this subsection. High-speed abrasive disc saws that are not equipped with appropriate engineering controls must not be used for work related to asbestos.

     (f) Wet methods. Asbestos must be handled, mixed, applied, removed, cut, scored, or otherwise worked in a wet saturated state to prevent the emission of airborne fibers unless the usefulness of the product would be diminished thereby.

     (g) Particular products and operations. When asbestos cement, mortar, coating, grout, plaster, or similar material containing asbestos is removed from bags, cartons, or other containers in which they are shipped, it must be either wetted, enclosed, or ventilated so as to prevent effectively the release of airborne fibers of asbestos.

     (h) Compressed air. Compressed air must not be used to remove asbestos or materials containing asbestos unless the compressed air is used in conjunction with an enclosed ventilation system designed to effectively capture the dust cloud created by the compressed air.

     (2) Compliance program.

     (a) Where either the time weighted average and/or excursion limit is exceeded, the employer must establish and implement a written program to reduce employee exposure to or below the permissible exposure limits by means of engineering and work practice controls as required by subsection (1) of this section, and by the use of respiratory protection where required or permitted under this section.

     (b) Such programs must be reviewed and updated as necessary to reflect significant changes in the status of the employer's compliance program.

     (c) Written programs must be submitted upon request for examination and copying to the director, affected employees and designated employee representatives.

     (d) The employer must not use employee rotation as a means of compliance with the permissible exposure limits specified in WAC 296-62-07705.

     (3) Specific compliance methods for brake and clutch repair:

     (a) Engineering controls and work practices for brake and clutch repair and service. During automotive brake and clutch inspection, disassembly, repair and assembly operations, the employer must institute engineering controls and work practices to reduce employee exposure to materials containing asbestos using a negative pressure enclosure/HEPA vacuum system method or low pressure/wet cleaning method which meets the detailed requirements in WAC 296-62-07745, Appendix F. The employer may also comply using an equivalent method which follows written procedures which the employer demonstrates can achieve results equivalent to Method (1) Negative pressure enclosure/HEPA vacuum system method in WAC 296-62-07745, Appendix F. For facilities in which no more than 5 pair of brakes or 5 clutches are inspected, disassembled, repaired, or assembled per week, (4) Wet method in WAC 296-62-07745, Appendix F may be used instead of Method (1).

     (b) The employer may also comply by using an equivalent method which follows written procedures, which the employer demonstrates can achieve equivalent exposure reductions as do the two "preferred methods." Such demonstration must include monitoring data conducted under workplace conditions closely resembling the process, type of asbestos containing materials, control method, work practices and environmental conditions which the equivalent method will be used, or objective data, which document that under all reasonably foreseeable conditions of brake and clutch repair applications, the method results in exposure which are equivalent to the methods in WAC 296-62-07745, Appendix F.



[Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010, [49.17].040,[49.17].050 , and 49.26.130. 00-06-075, § 296-62-07713, filed 3/1/00, effective 4/10/00. Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.26.040, and 49.26.130. 99-17-026, § 296-62-07713, filed 8/10/99, effective 11/10/99. Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.040, [49.17.]050 and [49.17.]060. 97-01-079, § 296-62-07713, filed 12/17/96, effective 3/1/97. Statutory Authority: Chapter 49.17 RCW. 90-17-051 (Order 90-10), § 296-62-07713, filed 8/13/90, effective 9/24/90; 89-11-035 (Order 89-03), § 296-62-07713, filed 5/15/89, effective 6/30/89; 87-24-051 (Order 87-24), § 296-62-07713, filed 11/30/87. Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.050(2) and49.17.040 . 87-10-008 (Order 87-06), § 296-62-07713, filed 4/27/87.]