California issues emergency wildfire smoke exposure rule
California employers are going to have to move fast in order to comply with an emergency occupational safety regulation expected to go into effect in early August. The rule adopted last week by the state’s Department of Industrial Relations’ (DIR) Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board is aimed at protecting workers from hazards associated with wildfire smoke.
This emergency rulemaking process began last December, after the Standards Board received a petition to protect workers from wildfire smoke before this year’s wildfire season, fueled by high temperatures and dry conditions. The emergency regulation will be effective for one year and applies to workplaces where the current Air Quality Index (AQI) for airborne particulate matter (PM) is 151 or greater, and where employers should reasonably anticipate that employees could be exposed to wildfire smoke.