NIOSH is currently testing low-cost solutions for protecting workers from silica exposure when cutting fiber cement siding. You can help us test a dust control and at the same time add to the research that supports and advances the prevention of silicosis.  

The proposed rule to lower the permissible exposure limit for crystalline silica got dusted off earlier this month after a long period of inactivity at the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

The American Industrial Hygiene Association® (AIHA) has released the white paper titled “Recommended Skills and Capabilities for Silica Competent Persons,” which represents a common, minimum body of knowledge needed by a competent person to provide meaningful worker protection from silica.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said it’s time for the Obama administration to push forward on a proposed silica delay that has been stuck in limbo at the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for two years – long past the required 90 day deadline.

Frustrated by delays in the review of a proposed silica rule, occupational health advocates have launched  an online petition meant to compel the Obama administration to make good on its promise to support the U.S. labor force.

In the two years that a proposed rule to protect workers from exposure to dangerous levels of silica dust on the job has been held up by the White House, more than 100 workers have died and thousands have been sickened by preventable exposure to silica dust.

The following describes the NIOSH policy for respiratory protection against airborne exposures to crystalline silica.

A new online resource from the Center for Construction Research and Training provides information and tools to help identify silica hazards, understand the health risk, and easily find equipment and methods to control the dust.

NIOSH researchers involved in an effort to characterize chemical hazards in the oil and gas extraction industry have found elevated levels of silica exposure during hydraulic fracturing operations.

Peg Seminario, longtime director of health and safety for the AFL-CIO, told ISHN in an exclusive day after the election interview, “We don’t buy at all the claim that regulations kill jobs. Quite the opposite, according to recent research.”