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Analysis of the asbestos permissible-exposure-level threshold standard. Master's thesis

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:5387933
This thesis examines the reasoning of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) decision to set stringent exposure levels for airborne asbestos in the work place. Technical recommendations from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the Bureau of Mines, and the American conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists were presented to OSHA for consideration. OSHA and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) set industry standards for permissible exposure levels (PEL) of airborne asbestos. Exposure to asbestos poses a health hazard to workers, their families, and consumers of asbestos products. Because it poses an unreasonable risk human life, OSHA has repeatedly lowered the Permissible Exposure Levels and the EPA will ban the manufacture, importation, processing and commercial distribution of asbestos containing products from the United States in phases by 1997. These decisions may have been made too hastily because of the long latency (15-40 years) period before cancer develops, and the added risks that smoking imposes.
Research Organization:
Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA (United States)
OSTI ID:
5387933
Report Number(s):
AD-A-246526/8/XAB
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English