OSHA to Roll Back Rules on Toxic Mineral at Construction Sites
Shortly after President Trump’s inauguration, the agency said it might peel away some restrictions,
and OSHA’s proposed new rule follows a lobbying campaign by sellers of a waste product known as coal slag, an abrasive used for sandblasting in shipyards and at construction sites.
In the document, the agency said it was taking the step because further review indicated
that the ancillary safety measures provided no additional benefits in the maritime and construction industries, which had adequate additional safeguards already in place, such as the use of protective gear.
The OSHA proposal released on Friday would require shipyards and construction companies
that use coal slag to meet the same new maximum exposure limit as other industries.
By BARRY MEIERJUNE 23, 2017
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration proposed on Friday a rollback of some Obama-era rules to protect workers in the maritime
and construction industries from beryllium, a potentially deadly mineral.
OSHA estimates that there are about 11,500 affected workers in the construction
and maritime industries, compared with 50,000 workers in other industries covered by the regulation.
“If this proposal to weaken the beryllium rule goes into effect, construction
and shipyard workers will die and be permanently disabled,” said Emily Gardner, an advocate for workers’ health and safety at Public Citizen in Washington.
