New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
Title 10 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
Chapter I - State Sanitary Code
Part 16 - Ionizing Radiation
General Provisions
Section 16.26 - Respiratory protection and controls to restrict internal exposure in restricted areas
Universal Citation: 10 NY Comp Codes Rules and Regs ยง 16.26
Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) Use of process or other controls. The licensee shall use, to the extent practicable, process or other engineering controls, such as, containment or ventilation to control the concentrations of radioactive material in air.
(b) When it is not practicable to apply process or other engineering controls to control the concentrations of radioactive material in air to values below those that define airborne radioactivity area, the licensee or registrant shall, consistent with maintaining the total effective dose equivalent ALARA, increase monitoring and limit intakes by one or more of the following means:
(1) control of access; or
(2) limitation of exposure times;
or
(3) use of respiratory
protection equipment; or
(4) other
controls.
(c) Use of individual respiratory protection equipment.
(1) If the licensee or registrant uses
respiratory protection equipment to limit intakes pursuant to subdivision (b)
of this section:
(i) Except as provided in
subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph the licensee or registrant shall use only
respiratory protection equipment that is tested and certified or had
certification extended by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and
Health Administration and the Mine Safety and Health Administration.
(ii) If the licensee wishes to use equipment
that has not been tested or certified by the National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health and the Mine Safety and Health Administration,
has not had certification extended by the National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health and the Mine Safety and Health Administration, or for which
there is no schedule for testing or certification, the licensee or registrant
shall submit an application for authorized use of that equipment, including a
demonstration by testing, or a demonstration on the basis of reliable test
information, that the material and performance characteristics of the equipment
are capable of providing the proposed degree of protection under anticipated
conditions of use.
(iii) The
licensee shall implement and maintain a respiratory protection program that
includes:
(a) air sampling sufficient to
identify the potential hazard, permit proper equipment selection, and estimate
exposures; and
(b) surveys and
bioassays, as appropriate, to evaluate actual intakes; and
(c) testing of respirators for operability
immediately prior to each use; and
(d) written procedures regarding selection,
fitting, issuance, maintenance, and testing of respirators, including testing
for operability immediately prior to each use; supervision and training of
personnel; monitoring, including air sampling and bioassays; and recordkeeping;
and
(e) determination by a
physician prior to initial fitting of respirators, and at least every 12 months
thereafter, that the individual user is physically able to use the respiratory
protection equipment.
(iv) The licensee or registrant shall issue a
written policy statement on respirator usage covering:
(a) the use of process or other engineering
controls, instead of respirators; and
(b) the routine, nonroutine, and emergency
use of respirators; and
(c) the
length of periods of respirator use and relief from respirator use.
(v) The licensee or registrant
shall advise each respirator user that the user may leave the area at any time
for relief from respirator use in the event of equipment malfunction, physical
or psychological distress, procedural or communication failure, significant
deterioration of operating conditions, or any other conditions that might
require such relief.
(vi) The
licensee or registrant shall use equipment within the equipment manufacturer's
expressed limitations for type and mode of use and shall provide proper visual,
communication, and other special capabilities, such as adequate skin
protection, when needed.
(2) When estimating exposure of individuals
to airborne radioactive materials, the licensee or registrant may make
allowance for respiratory protection equipment used to limit intakes pursuant
to subdivision (b) of this section, provided that the following conditions, in
addition to those in subdivision (c) of this section, are satisfied:
(i) The licensee selects respiratory
protection equipment that provides a protection factor greater than the
multiple by which peak concentrations of airborne radioactive materials in the
working area are expected to exceed the values specified in Appendix 16-C,
Table 1, Column 3, infra. However, if the selection of respiratory protection
with a protection factor greater than the peak concentration is inconsistent
with the goal specified in subdivision (b) of this section of keeping the total
effective dose equivalent ALARA, the licensee or registrant may select
respiratory protection equipment with a lower protection factor provided that
such a selection would result in total effective dose equivalent that is ALARA.
The concentration of radioactive material in the air that is inhaled when
respirators are worn may be initially estimated by dividing the average
concentration in air, during each period of uninterrupted use, by the
protection factor. If the exposure is later found to be greater than initially
estimated, the corrected value shall be used; if the exposure is later found to
be less than initially estimated, the corrected value may be used.
(ii) The licensee or registrant shall obtain
authorization from the department before assigning respiratory protection
factors in excess of those specified in Appendix 16-A, Table 8, infra. The
department may authorize a licensee or registrant to use higher protection
factors upon receipt of an application that:
(a) describes the situation for which a need
exists for higher protection factors; and
(b) demonstrates that the respiratory
protection equipment provides these higher protection factors under the
proposed conditions of use.
(3) In an emergency, the licensee shall use
as emergency equipment only respiratory protection equipment that has been
specifically certified or had certification extended for emergency use by the
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the Mine Safety and
Health Administration.
(4) The
licensee shall notify the department in writing at least 30 days before the
date that respiratory protection equipment is first used pursuant to
subdivision (c) of this section.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New York may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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