Think of HAZWOPER and large hazardous waste sites with workers in chemical suits spring to mind. Although much of the HAZWOPER Standard applies to those types of waste cleanup operations, some portions of the standard apply to relatively small spills or releases of hazardous substances at industrial or construction sites. Hazardous substances, including hazardous waste, hazardous materials, biological agents, and certain substances regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), pose numerous worker safety and health hazards if not approached and dealt with properly. OSHA’s HAZWOPER Standard is intended to provide a framework for employers to implement, in order to protect their workers from these hazards during any of the work operations listed in the Scope section below.
HAZWOPER covers three primary categories of work operations, any one or more of which may apply to a single employer:
An employer is exempt from the entire HAZWOPER standard if it can demonstrate that the operation does not involve employee exposure, or a reasonable possibility of such exposure, to hazards.
Note: There are many other OSHA standards that can be interrelated to HAZWOPER, such as, but not limited to, Emergency Action Plans, Process Safety Management, Personal Protective Equipment, Respiratory Protection, Permit-required Confined Spaces, Fire Brigades, Toxic and Hazardous Substances, Bloodborne Pathogens, Hazard Communication, and Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories. Also note that EPA’s Worker Protection Standard at 40 CFR 311 adopts portions of 1910.120 for state and local government employees engaged in hazardous waste operations. Finally, construction follows the HAZWOPER Standard at 29 CFR 1926.65, which is “nearly” identical to 1910.120.
The summary below is divided into four parts, based on the four operations listed in the Scope section earlier. A single employer may fall under one or more of the four parts.
Employers covered by the hazardous waste cleanup operations portion (paragraphs (b) to (o) of 1910.120/1926.65) of the HAZWOPER Standard must:
Employers covered by the hazardous waste TSD facility portion (paragraphs (p)(1) to (p)(8) of 1910.120/1926.65) of the HAZWOPER Standard must:
Employers covered by the portion (paragraph (p)(8) of 1910.120/1926.65) of the HAZWOPER Standard applicable to small and large quantity hazardous waste generators that qualify for permitting exemptions under 40 CFR 264, 265, and 270, but who are also required by EPA or a state agency to have their employees engage in emergency response or who otherwise direct their employees to engage in emergency response for hazardous waste storage areas must:
Employers covered by the emergency response operations portion (paragraph (q) of 1910.120/1926.65) of the HAZWOPER Standard must: