Oregon OSHA Implements New Rules for Heat, Wildfire Smoke

Oregon OSHA has initiated significant changes to worker safety standards in regards to heat and wildfire smoke. The rule changes were implemented under emergency provisions last year and are expected to be implemented on a permanent basis this April.

Eric Lloyd of Oregon Risk Management Solutions at a grower meeting last December discusses new worker safety rules for heat and wildfire smoke.

In regard to high temperatures, Oregon OSHA has installed a tiered requirement where rules change depending on when certain heat indexes are reached. The heat index is a combination of temperature and humidity and is usually found on weather apps under “feels like,” said Eric Lloyd of Oregon Risk Management Solutions.

At 80 degrees heat index, under the rules, employers must provide employees shade and an adequate supply of drinking water. Lloyd added that OSHA rules state that up to 32 ounces of water be accessible to all employees at no cost, and that the water temperature be between 35 and 77 degrees.

At 90 degrees, the rules include a requirement that shift managers or supervisors are accessible to employees, and employees must be monitored and observed for alertness or symptoms of heat illness. Employers also are required to provide a cool-down rest period in the shade of ten minutes for every two hours of work when working in temperatures with a heat index above 90 degrees.

Included in the new rules are training obligations on the environmental and personal risk factors for heat illness. Also, according to the rules, it is the responsibility of the employer to notify workers when reaching different points on the heat index scale. And, it is important for workers to immediately report any symptoms or signs of heat illness in themselves or in other workers, Lloyd said.

“Heat illness is very treatable, as long as we catch it early,” Lloyd said. “And frequently, the folks who are experiencing heat exhaustion, or especially heat stroke, may not realize it. Sometimes it is up to coworkers to watch our backs and keep us safe in that regard.”

Wildfire Smoke
The new wildfire smoke rules put in place by Oregon OSHA also are being implemented on a tiered system, in this case based on the air quality index, or AQI.

Employers are required to notify employees when the AQI reaches 101, and to provide respiratory protection in the form of N95 face masks if an employee requests it. At an AQI of 101, air quality is considered unhealthy for those with compromised respiratory systems.

At an AQI of 201, employers are again required to notify workers that the index has been reached and to insist workers wear N95 masks if they wish to continue working.

He added that these rules apply only to employees working outside. The rules do not apply to workers in a filtered tractor cab or those working indoors.

The third tier in the wildfire smoke rules is reached when the AQI hits 500.

“Five hundred is pretty darn unhealthy to be in,” Lloyd said. “If we are going to be working in that, OSHA is going to require us to use an actual hazmat respiratory (system) with attachable filters.

“I would hope that if we get to those kinds of smoky conditions, the only job we would be doing on a farm is fire-fighting,” Lloyd said.

As in the rules addressing heat illness, training obligations are in place for the wildfire smoke rules, including a rule that employers train employees on how to find AQI information. AQI information can be found on most weather apps, Lloyd said.

Employers also must ensure that employees know how to use respiratory protection and know where to find it.