Regulations & Requirements
OSHA General Industry Standard (including Oil & Gas)
On March 24, 2016, OSHA issued a final silica standard for general industry and maritime. The new standard went into effect on June 23, 2016, and OSHA began enforcement on June 23, 2018. There are two exceptions:
- While medical surveillance must be offered to all employees who will be exposed above the PEL for 30 days or more a year as of June 23, 2018, medical surveillance must be offered to employees who will be exposed at or above the action level for 30 or more days a year starting on June 23, 2020.
- Hydraulic fracturing operations in the oil and gas industry must implement engineering controls to limit exposures to the new PEL by June 23, 2021.
The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in December 2017 upheld the standard and concluded that OSHA failed to adequately explain its decision to omit medical removal protections from the General Industry rule and remanded for further consideration of the issue.
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