HSE press release E089:03 - 30 May 2003
The latest supplement to update EH40 - the Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) list of occupational exposure limits (OEL) - has been published on the internet today.
The document includes the new and amended exposure limits approved by HSC in April, and should therefore be read in conjunction with EH40/2002 Occupational Exposure Limits 2002, which remains current for another year. The key new information in the supplement includes:
Employers have a duty under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002 to control workplace exposures to hazardous substances. EH40 contains technical details of any legal changes to OESs and MELs.
There will not be a new version of EH40 this year, because the HSC is currently developing an entirely new occupational exposure limit framework. An HSC consultative document (CD) explaining these proposals will be published in the autumn.
A paper version of EH40/2002 Occupational Exposure Limits Supplement 2003, ISBN 0 7176 2172 3, will be available from HSE Books from June 11, priced £3,. Copies of EH40/2002 (supplied together with the Supplement 2003) continue to be available from HSE Books, ISBN 0 7176 2083 2, price £10.50.
1. For more information on HSC's updates to the OESs and MELs is available in the HSC press release, OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE LIMITS UPDATED, C014:03 - 17 April 2003, available at http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2003/c03014.htm.
2. New MELs have been introduced for chloroethane, hydroquinone and manganese (and its inorganic compounds). The Supplement also includes amendments to the MELs for benzene and vinyl chloride that have come into effect since EH40/2002 was published.
3. OESs have been withdrawn for the following substances: dichlorvos, divinylbenzene, furfuryl alcohol (FA), glycerol trinitrate, nitrogen dioxide, nitrogen monoxide, sulphur dioxide, propylene dinitrate, ethylene dinitrate, subtilisins, sulphuric acid and five glycidyl ethers (2,3-epoxpropyl ethers).
4. There is no change to the OES for para-phenylenediamine, but an introduction of a skin notation for this substance; and narrowing the criteria applying to the OES for mineral oil mists in order to exclude metal working fluids.
5. Biological monitoring guidance values (BMGVs) have been introduced for cyclohexanone, glycerol trinitrate and xylene.
6. The 2003 Supplement additionally lists 15 existing MELs that HSC proposes are reviewed over time. These are the MELs for: acrylonitrile; arsenic & compounds except arsine; buta-1,3-diene; carbon disulphide; dichloromethane, 2-ethoxyethanol; formaldehyde; hardwood dust; isocyanates; machine-made mineral fibre (MMMF); rubber process dust; respirable crystalline silica; softwood dust; styrene; and trichloroethylene.
7. There are two types of controls MELs and OESs. A MEL is set for substances, which may cause the most serious health effects, such as cancer and occupational asthma. COSHH requires that exposure should be reduced as far below the MEL as is reasonably practicable. An OES is set at a level at which (based on current scientific knowledge) there is no indication of risk to the health of workers who breathe it in.
8. Proposals for new or revised OESs and MELs, or for their withdrawal, come from HSC's Advisory Committee on Toxic Substances (ACTS).
9. ACTS was established to advise HSC on matters relating to the control of toxic substances in the workplace. Its membership comprises nominees from CBI, TUC and local authority associations, together with independent members appointed for their particular expertise or experience.
10. The text of the COSHH Regulations 2002 (which replaced the COSHH 1999 Regulations on 21 November 2002) can be found in Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (Fourth edition), The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, Approved code of practice and guidance, L5, HSE Books 2002, ISBN 0 7176 2534 6, price £10.50, available from HSE Books (see above) or through good booksellers.
All enquiries from journalists should be directed to the HSE Press Office
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