South Carolina Code of Regulations
Chapter 61 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL
Subchapter 61-63 - Radioactive Materials (Title A)
Part III - STANDARDS FOR PROTECTION AGAINST RADIATION
Section 61-63.III.RHA 3.19 - Respiratory Protection and Controls to Restrict Internal Exposure in Restricted Areas
Universal Citation: SC Code Regs 61-63.III.RHA 3.19
Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 9, September 27, 2024
3.19.1 USE OF PROCESS OR OTHER ENGINEERING CONTROLS.
3.19.1.1 The licensee shall use, to the
extent practical, process or other engineering controls (e.g., containment,
decontamination or ventilation) to control the concentrations of radioactive
material in air.
3.19.2 USE OF OTHER CONTROLS.
When it is not practical to apply process or other engineering controls to control the concentrations of radioactive material in air to values below those that define an airborne radioactivity area, the licensee shall, consistent with maintaining the total effective dose equivalent ALARA, increase monitoring and limit intakes by one or more of the following means:
3.19.2.1 Control of access;
3.19.2.2 Limitation of exposure times;
3.19.2.3 Use of respiratory protection equipment;
or
3.19.2.4 Other controls.
If the licensee performs an ALARA analysis to determine whether or not respirators should be used, the licensee may consider safety factors other than radiological factors. The licensee should also consider the impact of respirator use on workers' industrial health and safety.
3.19.3 USE OF INDIVIDUAL RESPIRATORY PROTECTION EQUIPMENT.
3.19.3.1 If the licensee uses
respiratory protection equipment to limit intakes pursuant to 3.19.2--
3.19.3.1.1 The licensee shall use only respiratory
protection equipment that is tested and certified by the National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), except as otherwise noted in this
regulation.
3.19.3.1.2 If the licensee
wishes to use equipment that has not been tested or certified by NIOSH or for which
there is no schedule for testing or certification, the licensee shall submit an
application for authorized use of that equipment, except as provided in this
regulation, 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.
3.19.3.1.3 The licensee shall implement and
maintain a respiratory protection program that includes--
3.19.3.1.3.1 Air sampling sufficient to identify
the potential hazard, permit proper equipment selection, and estimate
doses;
3.19.3.1.3.2 Surveys and
bioassays, as appropriate, to evaluate actual intakes;
3.19.3.1.3.3 Testing of respirators for
operability (user seal check for face sealing devices and functional check for
others) immediately prior to each use;
3.19.3.1.3.4 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; breathing air quality; storage; inventory and control; repair; quality
assurance of respiratory protection equipment; limitations on periods of respirator
use and relief from respirator use; monitoring, including air sampling and
bioassays; and recordkeeping; and
3.19.3.1.3.5 Determination by a physician prior to
initial fitting of face sealing respirators or before the first field use of
non-face sealing respirators, and either every 12 months thereafter or periodically
at a frequency determined by a physician, that the individual user is medically fit
to use the respiratory protection equipment.
3.19.3.1.3.6 Fit testing, with fit factor and ges;
10 times the APF for negative pressure devices, and a fit factor and ges; 500 for
any positive pressure, continuous flow, and pressure-demand devices, before the
first field use of tight fitting, face-sealing respirators and periodically
thereafter at a frequency not to exceed 1 year. Fit testing must be performed with
the facepiece operating in the negative pressure mode.
3.19.3.1.4 The licensee 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.
3.19.3.1.5 The licensee shall use
equipment within limitations for type and mode of use and shall provide proper
visual, communication, and other special capabilities (such as low temperature work
environments) when needed. The licensee shall also provide for the concurrent use of
other safety or radiological protection equipment. The licensee shall use equipment
in such a way as not to interfere with the proper operation of the respirator.
3.19.3.1.6 Standby rescue persons are
required whenever one-piece atmosphere-supplying suits, or any combination of
supplied air respiratory protection device and personnel protective equipment are
used from which an unaided individual would have difficulty extricating himself or
herself. The standby persons must be equipped with respiratory protection devices or
other apparatus appropriate for the potential hazards. The standby rescue persons
shall observe or otherwise maintain continuous communication with the workers
(visual, voice, signal line, telephone, radio, or other suitable means), and be
immediately available to assist them in case of a failure of the air supply or for
any other reason that requires relief from distress. A sufficient number of standby
rescue persons must be immediately available to assist all users of this type of
equipment and to provide effective emergency rescue if needed.
3.19.3.1.7 Atmosphere-supplying respirators must
be supplied with respirable air of grade D quality or better as defined by the
Compressed Gas Association in publication G-7.1, "Commodity Specification for Air,"
1997 and included in the regulations of the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (
29 CFR 1910.134(i) (1) (ii) (A)
through (E)) . Grade D quality air criteria
include:
(1) Oxygen content (v/v) of
19.5-23.5%;
(2) Hydrocarbon (condensed)
content of 5 milligrams per cubic meter of air or less;
(3) Carbon monoxide (CO) content of 10 ppm or
less;
(4) Carbon dioxide content of
1,000 ppm or less; and
(5) Lack of
noticeable odor.
3.19.3.1.8
The licensee shall ensure that no objects, materials or substances, such as facial
hair, or any conditions that interfere with the face--facepiece seal or valve
function, and that are under the control of the respirator wearer, are present
between the skin of the wearer's face and the sealing surface of a tight-fitting
respirator facepiece.
3.19.3.2 In estimating the dose to individuals
from intake of airborne radioactive materials, the concentration of radioactive
material in the air that is inhaled when respirators are worn is initially assumed
to be the ambient concentration in air without respiratory protection, divided by
the assigned protection factor. If the dose is later found to be greater than the
estimated dose, the corrected value must be used. If the dose is later found to be
less than the estimated dose, the corrected value may be used.
3.19.4 Further restrictions on the use of respiratory protection equipment.
The Department may impose restrictions in addition to those in 3.19.2, 3.19.3 and Appendix A, RHA 3.52 to--
3.19.4.1 Ensure that the respiratory protection
program of the licensee is adequate to limit doses to individuals from intakes of
airborne radioactive materials consistent with maintaining total effective dose
equivalent ALARA; and
3.19.4.2 Limit the
extent to which a licensee may use respiratory protection equipment instead of
process or other engineering controls.
3.19.5 Application for use of higher assigned protection factors.
The licensee shall obtain authorization from the Department before using assigned protection factors in excess of those specified in Appendix A, RHA 3.52. The Department may authorize a licensee to use higher assigned protection factors on receipt of an application that--
3.19.5.1 Describes the
situation for which a need exists for higher protection factors; and
3.19.5.2 Demonstrates that the respiratory
protection equipment provides these higher protection factors under the proposed
conditions of use.
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