4 minute read
Every Breath You Take - Keep It Clean
EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE
KEEP IT CLEAN
BY KIM HODNE SAFETY CONSULTANT
If COVID taught us anything as a society, it was bad things come in very tiny particles and respiratory protection is vital to our health. While this new awareness may be in the collective conscious today, it is not new to the safety and health professionals of workplace safety. As a safety director in the heavy industry trades from construction to shipbuilding, I have trained and fit-tested hundreds of employees for respiratory protection. The trades span the spectrum of painters, welders, insulators, mason and most every trade requires respirator use at some point in their career.
For me, as a safety professional, the necessity for respirator protection became crystal clear in October 2001. I was a Safety Compliance Officer for the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, WISHA, a OSHA state plan state. The call had come from the federal OSHA office for volunteers. They were mobilizing much-needed help to aid at the site of the World Trade Center tragedy. Safety professionals from across the country were needed to help keep the rescue teams and construction crews safe. The site was highly contaminated with asbestos and respiratory protection was imperative for those working on site. Teams were rotated in for two-week assignments, I spent that time fit testing many first responders and tradesmen. Explaining the hazards they were being exposed to and the need to wear the respirator whenever working onsite. This wasn’t a hard sell, the contamination was thick in the air, and nothing was moved without generating a cloud of toxic dust. The tiny killers hidden in the cloud were undeniable. There are some that still suffer today from exposure before the protection plan could be fully implemented. A hard lesson learned and an eye-opening experience for me personally.
I take respiratory protection seriously and do all I can to help the workers and owners understand how important it is for them, and their quality of life. The most common hazards for the commercial construction trades would be silica for masons, asbestos and lead for demolition crews, and H2S / CO / Methane for those working in vaults, trenches, and underground pipelines/structures. Painters are amongst this group as well with their exposure to VOCs, welders can’t escape the hazards either when welding on stainless steel and the hexavalent chromium exposure or welding/ burning galvanized pipe or plate.
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A simple test to prove the need for respirator use when welding is to take a clean wet wipe and wipe it over the inside of the welding helmet, the breathing zone. Once you see the black residue on the wipe you will realize the hazard. It’s not dirt (earth), it’s carbon soot and heavy metals dust, it may not seem to be a problem at the moment, but after twenty years of this unchecked hazard, the problem will be life-changing if not fatal.
This is just one example of the need for respiratory protection where the effect isn’t acute with an immediate realization but a more sinister chronic effect, it comes to years later when it’s too late to change the inevitable, poor health or worse. Sorry to come across as harsh, but that is the reality of ignoring preventable health problems.
Now that we’ve brought forward the long-term, chronic hazards of heavy metals and asbestos as examples, let’s look at a few of the more acute killers, those that you have very little time, if any, to react to. These are the ghosts, they don’t hide in a cloud of dust or heavy smoke, they are the invisible gases and fumes. There is Carbon Dioxide, CO2, and colorless gas that is heavier than air, this is one of the deadliest along with Hydrogen Sulfide, H2S. Each of these is naturally occurring in nature, organic matter decomposition. Fortunately, we have a fighting chance with H2S, it smells like rotten eggs in low concentrations. These gases are most commonly found in a toxic concentration in unventilated confined spaces. Atmospheric testing of all confined spaces is mandatory to prove the space is safe for entry, constant ventilation from the outside fresh air is the best practice to maintain a safe space for workers. A strong, well-written, and practiced Confined Space Program is essential to workers’ safety.
It is my hope that I have managed to raise your awareness of the importance of respiratory protection. It is a major component of maintaining a safe workplace. For some trades, the need is every day while others may only wear a respirator two or three times a year, but when they need to they need it available and to be trained in its use and limitations. Like all things in business, there is an upfront cost to implement a program. There is the mandatory physical exam for each employee, the training, fit testing, and the respirator itself. I fully understand this cost, especially if it has never been done in the past, but the cost of ignoring the program is much higher. I view it as an operational cost, one that is rolled into the overhead/administrative line. We at CSSI have the staff experts to help answer questions regarding respiratory protection, program writing, training, and fit testing employees. We are a resource that can help implement a program where there has never been or tune-up and existing program.
If you would like to learn more on respiratory safety, please contact Kim at Kim@IowaCSSI.com
