Personal Protective Equipment

DOE-EM-STD-5503-94

5.0. PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT

5.1. BACKGROUND

The purpose of personal protective clothing and equipment (PPE) is to shield or isolate

individuals from the chemical, physical, radiological, and biological hazards that may be

encountered at a hazardous waste site when engineering and other controls are not feasible or

cannot provide adequate protection. Careful selection and use of adequate PPE should protect

the health of EM-40 employees.

No single combination of PPE is capable of protecting against all hazards. Therefore, PPE

should be used in conjunction with, not in place of, other protective methods, such as

engineering controls and safe work practices. A written PPE program, as required by 29 CFR

1910.120(g)(5) should be in place at all EM-40 hazardous waste sites. The effectiveness of the

PPE program should be evaluated regularly. The use of PPE can itself create significant worker

hazards, such as heat stress, physical and psychological stress, impaired vision, reduced mobility,

and distorted communication. In general, the higher the level of PPE protection, the greater are

the risks associated with use of PPE. For any given situation, PPE should be selected to provide

an adequate level of protection. Over-protection as well as under-protection can be hazardous

and should be avoided.

The overall objectives of this chapter are:

To describe the PPE program that will provide EM-40 hazardous waste site workers with

protection from chemical, physical, biological and radiological hazards;

To comply with applicable DOE and regulatory requirements; and

To establish the selection, use, upgrade/downgrade, and training requirements for the PPE

program.

5.2. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Personal protective equipment should be utilized when:

It is not possible and/or feasible to implement engineering controls and work practices

that will ensure the safety and health of workers;

It is necessary to reduce and maintain employee exposure to below the permissible

exposure limits (PELs) in 29 CFR 1910, Subparts G and Z, and/or below the threshold

limit values (TLVs) established by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial

Hygienists (ACGIH); or in the absence of PELs or TLVs, below the recommended

exposure limits published in the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

(NIOSH) publication, NIOSH Recommendations for Occupational Health Standards

dated 1992;

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