Personal sample measurements of airborne lead during abatement procedures.

Abstract

Lead has been shown to be an environmental and occupational toxicant with multiple target organs and is regulated by various occupational and environmental agencies at all governmental levels. Current awareness of hazards associated with lead has resulted in an explosion of regulations and is creating a new environmental industry. When conducting lead abatement or related activities associated with lead-containing substances (LCS) the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires that personal samples be obtained to establish anticipated exposure levels associated with the type of work being performed. Several publications have reported exposure levels for lead; although the number of reports currently available is limited. OSHA regulations provide that for some activities a designated exposure concentration is established and require specific types of personal protective equipment (PPE) to be employed until the anticipated exposure level is determined. Upon establishment of the exposure level an appropriate modification, including reduction, in PPE is permitted. The OSHA permissible exposure limit (PEL) and action level for airborne lead are 50 ug/m3 and 30 ug/m3, respectively. This study provides data on personal sampling that were collected during a lead abatement project. These data provide an estimation of anticipated exposure, effectiveness of engineering controls and applicabilitymore » of work practices for similar projects in the future. 17 refs., 1 tab.« less