Current through Register Vol. 41, No. 3, September 23, 2024
Asbestos abatement workers shall complete at least a
four-day (32 hours) training program as outlined below. All training programs
shall be approved by the board. The accredited asbestos training program shall
include lectures, demonstrations, at least 14 hours of hands-on training, a
training program review, and an examination.
The training shall address the following topics:
1. Physical characteristics of asbestos.
a. Identification of asbestos.
b. Aerodynamic characteristics.
c. Typical uses and physical
appearance.
d. A summary of
abatement control options.
2. Potential health effects related to
asbestos exposure.
a. The nature of
asbestos-related diseases.
b.
Routes of exposure, dose-response relationships and the lack of a safe exposure
level.
c. Synergism between
cigarette smoking and asbestos exposure.
d. Latency period for disease.
3. Employee personal protective
equipment.
a. Classes and characteristics of
respirator types.
b. Limitations of
respirators and their proper selection, inspection, donning, use, maintenance,
and storage procedures.
c. Methods
for field testing of the facepiece-to-face seal (positive and negative pressure
fitting tests).
d. Qualitative and
quantitative fit testing procedures.
e. Variability between field and laboratory
protection factors.
f. Factors that
alter respirator fit (e.g., facial hair).
g. The components of a proper respiratory
protection program.
h. Selection
and use of personal protective clothing; use, storage, and handling of
nondisposable clothing.
i.
Regulations covering personal protective equipment.
4. State-of-the-art work practices.
a. Asbestos abatement activities including
descriptions of construction and maintenance of barriers and decontamination
enclosure systems.
b. Positioning
of warning signs.
c. Electrical and
ventilation system lock-out.
d.
Working techniques for minimizing fiber release, use of wet methods, use of
negative pressure ventilation equipment, use of high efficiency particulate air
(HEPA) vacuums.
e. Clean-up and
disposal procedures.
f. Work
practices for removal, encapsulation, enclosure, and repair.
g. Emergency procedures for sudden
releases.
h. Potential exposure
situations, and transport and disposal procedures.
i. Recommended and prohibited work
practices.
5. Personal
hygiene.
a. Entry and exit procedures for the
work area, use of showers, avoidance of eating, drinking, smoking, and chewing
(gum or tobacco) in the work area.
b. Potential exposures, including family
exposure.
6. Additional
safety hazards.
a. Hazards encountered during
abatement activities and how to deal with them, including electrical hazards,
heat stress, air contaminants other than asbestos, fire and explosion
hazards.
b. Scaffold and ladder
hazards.
c. Slips, trips and
falls.
d. Confined
spaces.
7. Medical
monitoring.
a. OSHA requirements for a
pulmonary function test.
b. Chest
X-rays and a medical history for each employee.
8. Air monitoring.
a. Procedures to determine airborne
concentrations of asbestos fibers.
b. Focusing on how personal air sampling is
performed and the reasons for it.
9. Relevant federal, state and local
regulatory requirements, procedures and standards, with particular attention
directed at relevant EPA, OSHA, and state regulations concerning asbestos
abatement workers and Department of Transportation regulations ( 49 CFR 172
Subpart H), with emphasis on packaging requirements and marking of containers
of ACM waste.
10. Establishment of
respiratory protection programs.
11. Training program review. A review of key
aspects of the accredited asbestos training program.
Statutory Authority
§ 54.1-501 of the Code of Virginia.
