December 12, 2007—The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently issued a new safety and health instruction that details OSHA policies and procedures for inspecting workplaces that handle combustible dusts and that may have the potential for a dust explosion.
Combustible dusts are often either organic or metal dusts that are finely ground into very small particles, fibers, chips, and/or flakes, explains OSHA. These dusts can come from metal, wood, plastic and organic materials such as grain, flour, sugar, paper, soap and dried blood, or from textile materials. Some of the industries in which combustible dusts are particularly prevalent include agriculture, chemical, textile, forest, and the furniture industry.
The instruction provides detailed information on OSHA’s inspection scheduling, resource allocation, inspection resources, and procedures. OSHA notes that this information is particularly useful in educating businesses on how to achieve compliance with OSHA requirements in advance of any inspection.
The Instruction is available on OSHA’s Web site.
