2021 OSHA Review of Hazcom Interpretations

Written By: Atanu Das on Tuesday, January 4, 2022

Here's how the year looked:

• In March, the agency discussed whether action levels for hazardous chemicals need to be listed in Section 8 of the SDS.

The response was: No. There is no requirement to list an AL for any hazardous chemical in section 8 of the SDS: however, the responsible party may choose to include it as supplemental information. The HCS only requires section 8 of the SDS to include the OSHA permissible exposure limit (PEL), American Conference of Governmental Industries Hygienists (ACGIH) Threshold Limit Value (TLV), and any other exposure limit used or recommended by the chemical manufacturer, importer, or employer preparing the SDS, where available.

• A request for proper classification of cloth wipes saturated with a hazardous solution was made in April

OSHA reminded the requester that the wipe itself should not be classified but the liquid on the wipe should be evaluated according to physical and health hazard criteria already outlined in the standard. Additionally, any DOT transport classifications should be considered independent of the OSHA hazard classification.

• In June, The European Portable Battery Association and representatives from other international groups asked if OSHA would conduct risk assessments on Li-ion batteries to allow these to be considered under the article exemption.

In response, OSHA stated:  When conducting the hazard classification, the manufacturer or importer must bear in mind that the HCS classification is based on the intrinsic hazards posed by a chemical/product, not the risk. Risk refers to the probability that an adverse effect will occur with specific exposure conditions. The hazard classification must take into consideration the hazards of the product in its shipped form as well as under the product’s normal conditions of use (e.g., downstream use, processing, hazardous by-products) and foreseeable emergencies. Hence, the HCS is applicable.

• And in August, OSHA gave guidance on the use of generic SDSs for consumer products.