Finding of Emergency Section 5204 , Occupational Exposures to Respirable Crystalline Silica Business Meeting : December 14 , 2023 Page 22 of 36 geologic field research are not able to install many of the protections required under the proposed revisions to section 5204 .
• Revised subsection ( b )( 11 ), definition of “ Physician or Other Licensed Health Care Professional ( PLHCP )”. o This change is necessary because the phrase “ him or her ” has generally been replaced with the term “ them ” in modern phraseology .
• Revised subsection ( b )( 12 ), definition of “ Regulated Area .” o This change clarifies that the term “ PEL ” refers to “ permissible exposure limit ,” which is further defined in subsection ( c ).
• New subsection ( b )( 15 ), definition for “ suspected silicosis .” o This new definition includes three possible classifications of silicosis based on signs and symptoms , radiological findings or abnormal spirometry . o This definition is necessary to clarify the meaning of “ suspected silicosis ” as it applies to the proposed amendments to section 5204 . Suspected silicosis can be identified in each of these three ways ; it is not necessary , for example , to await radiological confirmation . This definition allows for early action to protect an employee from continued exposure , and to ensure proper medical support , rather than waiting for radiological confirmation of disease , at which point serious damage to the lungs has likely already taken place .
• New subsection ( b )( 17 ), definition for “ wet methods .” o This new definition describes three wet methods for effectively suppressing dust ( A ) Applying water directly onto the work object ; ( B ) submersing the work object under water ; or ( C ) using a water jet cutting tool . o The effect of this proposed addition is to clarify that only certain types of wet methods qualify as such under the proposed amendments to section 5204 . Ineffective wet methods that rely on an inadequate volume of water , for example , would be prohibited under the revised section 5204 .
Subsection ( d ) Exposure assessment .
• The proposed emergency regulation would add a new sentence to subsection ( d )( 1 ), which would require employers to assess employee exposures to RCS , as described in ( d )( 3 ), regardless of exposures or expected exposures , if employees perform highexposure trigger tasks . The effect of this proposed addition is to ensure that employers conduct regular monitoring in order to assess the effectiveness of engineering controls in eliminating or greatly reducing employee exposures to RCS . This monitoring will inform whether engineering controls or work practices should be improved to reduce exposure levels . Monitoring must be conducted irrespective of previous monitoring data obtained by the employer , or “ objective data ” claimed by the employer , or whether the