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An estimated 1.3 million employees in construction and general industry face significant
asbestos exposure on the job. Heaviest exposures occur in the construction industry, particularly during the
removal of asbestos during renovation or demolition.
Asbestos is well recognized as a health hazard and is highly regulated. OSHA and EPA asbestos rules are
intertwined.
The following commonly asked questions link to resources that provide useful safety and health information about
Asbestos.
Related
Safety and Health Topics
Recognition
- Asbestos Standard for the Construction Industry. OSHA Publication
3096 (2002), 68 pages. Available as a 255 KB PDF.
OSHA guidelines for asbestos in construction.
- Asbestos Standard for the General Industry. OSHA Publication
3095 (1995), 34 pages. Available as a 190 KB PDF.
General OSHA guidelines for asbestos.
- Sample
List of Suspect Asbestos-Containing Materials. EPA Region
VI (2002, June), 2 pages. Provides a list of materials that may
contain asbestos.
- The following references provide information regarding recognition
of asbestos hazards. However, their treatment of compliance issues
is out of date, since the standards were updated in 1994. For
regulatory information, please refer to the Compliance
section of this document.
- Asbestos. OSHA Fact Sheet (2002), 2 pages. Available as
a 63 KB PDF.
- Substance technical information for asbestos. 1926.1101
App H. This non-mandatory appendix to the pre-1994 OSHA
standards was not updated with the standards.
- Asbestos-The Tenth Report on Carcinogens. U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services Public Health Service National Toxicology
Program (2002, December), 8 pages. Available as a 2.02 MB
PDF.
This is a document that explains the properties, use, production,
exposure, and regulations regarding asbestos.
- What
is Asbestos? University of Minnesota, 1 page. Explains the
different mineral forms of asbestos.
- Asbestos
Health Effects. University of Minnesota, 2 pages. Describes
asbestos exposure and disease.
- Asbestos
Report. International Program on Chemical Safety (IPCS), (1988).
Provides an international point of view. This summary discusses
aspects of asbestos production, use, and disposal, as well as
health effects, and sampling and analysis procedures. Item #3
is construction specific.
- For additional general Asbestos information, refer to the Asbestos
Safety and Health Topic page.
Evaluation
- The Asbestos Advisor 2.0.
The Asbestos Advisor software is an interactive compliance assistance tool. Once installed on your PC, it can
interview you about buildings and worksites, and the kinds of tasks workers perform there. It will produce
guidance on how the Asbestos Standard may apply to those buildings and at work. NOTE:
When queried "to obtain general guidance" (selection 1), the Asbestos Advisor asks if you have any
employees. If you respond with "no" (selection 2), the Asbestos Advisor concludes you are "not
subject to regulations" under OSHA. This is not accurate! Building owners and
managers may be subject to the OSHA Asbestos Standards if employees of any employer
work in the building.
- Medical surveillance guidance is provided in the appendices to the OSHA
Standards:
- Medical questionnaires. OSHA Regulation 1926.1101
App D, Mandatory appendix.
- Interpretation and classification of chest roentgenograms. OSHA Regulation 1926.1101
App E. Mandatory appendix.
- Medical surveillance guidelines for asbestos. OSHA Regulation and 1926.1101
App I, Non-Mandatory appendix.
- Exposure monitoring samples must be analyzed by Phase Contrast Microscopy (PCM)
for OSHA purposes. PCM methods accurately assess fiber exposure levels, but PCM can not differentiate between
asbestos and non-asbestos fibers. Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) methods can be used to identify fibers,
but may not be used to quantify air concentrations for occupational exposure.
- OSHA (Sampling) Reference Method. OSHA Regulation 1926.1101
App A, Mandatory appendix. Asbestos exposure sampling and analysis must meet these minimal
requirements.
- Detailed procedure for asbestos sampling and analysis. OSHA Regulation 1926.1101
App B, Non-Mandatory appendix.
- Bulk sample analysis should be done by Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM). Bulk
analysis results will likely apply to both OSHA and EPA regulations. Refer to Other
Resources for links to EPA rules.
- Polarized Light Microscopy of Asbestos. OSHA Regulation 1926.1101
App K, non-mandatory analytical method.
- For more general asbestos information, refer to the Asbestos
Safety and Health Topic page.
Control
- Asbestos Removal:
- Facilities: Operations and maintenance (O&M) practices are used to control
hazards of asbestos.
- Other asbestos control links:
- For additional general asbestos information, refer to the Asbestos
Safety and Health Topic page.
Compliance
- Compliance information, including Standards, Directives and Interpretations, is provided on the Compliance
page.
Training
- Training materials developed
by the OSHA Office of Training and Education. Materials include handouts and a set of slides. The handout is a
table listing significant changes. The slides provide an outline of the requirements of the Asbestos Standard
for the Construction Industry.
- The OSHA Office of Training and Education's OSHA
Construction Industry Safety and Health Outreach Program (1996, May) contains a section on Asbestos:
- EPA regulations have influenced OSHA asbestos training requirements. For removal of non-intact
("friable") asbestos in buildings, EPA requires "accreditation" training for workers and
competent persons ("supervisors"). This training is identical to that required by OSHA for Class
I and II work, but it must be obtained from an EPA-approved course provider. Class III and IV training is
based on EPA "AHERA" requirements for schools.
- For additional general asbestos information, refer to the Asbestos
Safety and Health Topic page.
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