Signaling its renewed focus on regulatory means to address occupational hazards, OSHA is pursuing comprehensive rulemaking to prevent combustible dust explosions. The Agency announced it will be issuing an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) and convening stakeholder meetings to evaluate approaches to regulating combustible dust. Employers with combustible dust hazards in their worksites are encouraged to participate in the rulemaking process.

Combustible dusts are solids ground into fine particles, which can cause a fire or explosion when suspended in air under certain circumstances. Common examples of combustible dusts include metal (aluminum and magnesium), wood, plastic, rubber, coal, flour, sugar, and paper, among others. OSHA has identified a number of industries with combustible dust hazards, including agriculture, chemicals, food, grain, plastics, wood, paper, textiles, pharmaceuticals, tire and rubber manufacturing, and metal processing. While certain OSHA standards provide some protection against combustible dust, for example, Housekeeping (29 CFR 1910.22) and Electrical Equipment in Hazardous Locations (29 CFR 1910.307), OSHA does not have a single comprehensive rule to protect employees from combustible dust explosions.

OSHA’s announcement was expected. Over the last several years, the Agency has published non-mandatory guidance on combustible dust hazards and the prevention of combustible dust explosions. Furthermore, there has been significant congressional interest in the issue. In the last Congress, the House of Representatives passed a bill to force OSHA to issue an interim and final combustible dust standard within 3 and 18 months, respectively. On February 4 of this year, Representatives George Miller, Lynn Woolsey, and John Barrow re-introduced this bill.

Secretary of Labor Solis, in announcing the combustible dust rulemaking, stated that “OSHA is reinvigorating the regulatory process to ensure workers receive the protection they need while also ensuring that employers have the tools needed to make their workplaces safer.” Employers must remain alert to OSHA’s regulatory initiatives and participate in the rulemaking process.

Print:
Email this postTweet this postLike this postShare this post on LinkedIn
Photo of Bradford T. Hammock Bradford T. Hammock

Brad Hammock is a Principal in the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis, practicing exclusively in the safety and health area. He heads Jackson Lewis’ Workplace Safety and Health practice group.

He joined the firm in 2008 after serving for ten years…

Brad Hammock is a Principal in the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis, practicing exclusively in the safety and health area. He heads Jackson Lewis’ Workplace Safety and Health practice group.

He joined the firm in 2008 after serving for ten years as an OSHA attorney within the Department of Labor including, most recently, for more than three years as lead counsel for safety standards. As lead counsel, Mr. Hammock managed attorneys who worked with OSHA on regulatory initiatives, compliance assistance, and enforcement policy. He had direct responsibility for more than 20 major OSHA regulatory initiatives, including rulemakings on personal protective equipment, confined spaces, and crane safety.

Before his promotion to lead counsel, Mr. Hammock worked as a regulatory attorney for OSHA, focusing on ergonomics. He was one of the lead attorneys during the development of the OSHA ergonomics standard in 2000 and had primary responsibility for the Department of Labor’s comprehensive approach to ergonomics in 2002. Mr. Hammock is widely regarded as one of the nation’s most experienced attorneys on ergonomics.

Education

  • University of Virginia/Bachelor of Arts in American Government/1992
  • Syracuse University College of Law/Juris Doctor, magna cum laude/1996

Bar Admissions

  • District of Columbia
  • Virginia