OSHA Aims to Limit Silica Exposure For Oil Workers

January 12, 2015- The rapid growth in oil and gas production from shale and tight oil formations in the US is generating a boom in a related industry: frac sand. Sand is frequently used as a proppant in hydraulic fracturing.

One of the most sought-after proppants is high-purity quartz sand. Wisconsin and Minnesota are the biggest frac sand suppliers, and together have 164 active frac sand facilities, with another 20 proposed.

Hydraulic fracturing used 2,500 tons of sand/well a year ago. Today, new hydraulic fracturing techniques call for as much as 8,000 tons of sand/well.

But as the industry grows, so does public concern about its effects on health and the environment.

"None of the states at the center of the current frac sand mining boom have adopted air quality standards for silica that will adequately protect the tens of thousands of people living or working near the scores of recently opened or proposed mining sites," said Heather White, executive director of the Environmental Working Group.

Some parts of the US have banned frac sand mining all together. In Houston County, Wis., residents are clamoring to extend a frac sand mining moratorium enacted in 2012 beyond its 2015 expiration date.

A 2012 alert issued by the NIOSH identified exposure to airborne silica as a health hazard for hydraulic fracturing workers. Likewise, the OSHA has found that workers exposed to high levels of respirable crystalline silica during hydraulic fracturing are at risk for developing silicosis.

In August 2013, OSHA announced a proposed rule that calls for a permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 50 micrograms of respirable crystalline silica per cubic meter of air during an 8-hr workday.

Read the full ogi.com post here.

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