Beryllium is a lightweight but extremely strong metal used in the aerospace, electronics, energy, telecommunications, medical, and defense industries. Beryllium-copper alloys are widely used because of their electrical and thermal conductivity, hardness, and good corrosion resistance. Beryllium oxide is used to make ceramics for electronics and other electrical equipment because of its heat conductivity, high strength and hardness, and good electrical insulation. Metal slags and fly ash (a byproduct of coal-fired power plants) may also contain trace amounts of beryllium (considerably <0.1% by weight).

Inhaling airborne beryllium can cause a lung disease called chronic beryllium disease (CBD). Occupational exposure to beryllium has also been linked to lung cancer. However, CBD is the primary health risk for beryllium workers. In the preamble, OSHA states that there is greater uncertainty regarding the lung cancer risk estimates than for the CBD risk estimates.

Around 62,000 workers are exposed to beryllium on the job. Exposures occur when beryllium and beryllium-containing materials are processed in a way that releases airborne beryllium dust, fume, or mist into the workplace air. Worker exposures to beryllium can occur in settings such as foundry and smelting operations; fabricating, machining, and grinding beryllium metal and alloys; beryllium oxide ceramics manufacturing; and dental lab work.

In addition to the operations described above, the final rule covers operations involving trace amounts of beryllium (< 0.1% by weight) where workers may nevertheless be exposed to beryllium above the action level. Workers at fossil fuel-fired power plants may encounter beryllium in certain plant processes. Additionally, in the construction and shipyard industries, abrasive blasters and support personnel may be exposed to beryllium from slags. In these operations, beryllium exposure may occur as a result of high dust levels generated despite the low beryllium content of the material.

Chronic Beryllium Disease (CBD), formerly known as "berylliosis," is a chronic granulomatous (inflammatory) lung disease caused by inhalation of airborne beryllium by individuals who have been previously sensitized to beryllium. CBD signs and symptoms can include shortness of breath, fatigue, weight loss, fever, and night sweats but may take months or years after exposure to beryllium to appear. CBD can continue to progress even after a worker has been removed from exposure. An individual must become sensitized to beryllium before he or she can develop CBD.

Beryllium sensitization is the activation of the body's immune response to beryllium. Beryllium sensitization can result from inhalation or skin exposure to beryllium dust, fume, mist or solutions. While no clinical symptoms are associated with sensitization, a sensitized worker is at risk of developing CBD when inhalation exposure to beryllium has occurred. Beryllium sensitization (BeS) is determined by a test result(s) indicating a person has been identified as having an immunological sensitivity to beryllium.

The new rule lowers the Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs) and requires that employers use feasible engineering controls - such as ventilation along with work practice controls - to reduce workers' inhalation exposure to beryllium. Research indicates that inhalation exposure to airborne beryllium particulate is necessary for CBD to develop in workers. Once the full effects of the rule are realized, OSHA expects it to prevent 90 deaths from beryllium-related diseases and prevent 46 new cases of CBD each year.

NIOSH studies have shown that worker protection models such as Materion's beryllium worker protection model (BWPM) have reduced risks of beryllium-related diseases for Materion's facilities. For more information on Materion's BWPM, see http://beryllium.eu/productstewardship/beryllium-safety-model-2/.

OSHA's previous permissible exposure limits (PELs) for beryllium are outdated and inadequate for protecting worker health. The previous PELs were based on older studies that do not reflect more recent scientific evidence showing that low-level exposures to beryllium can cause serious lung disease. In the 45 years since the previous PELs were established, the U.S. National Toxicology Program, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health have all identified beryllium as a human carcinogen. The final rule is expected to reduce the risk of disease among beryllium-exposed workers.

OSHA's new PELs are 0.2 micrograms of beryllium per cubic meter of air (μg/m³), as an 8-hour time-weighted average, and 2.0 μg/m³ as determined over a sampling period of 15 minutes. The PELs are the same for all employers covered by the standards (general industry, construction, and shipyards). The new 8-hour TWA PEL represents a ten-fold decrease from the previous PEL.

OSHA established a PEL of 0.2 μg/m³ because the agency determined that occupational exposure to beryllium at the previous PELs resulted in a significant risk of developing CBD or dying from CBD or lung cancer, and that compliance with a 0.2 μg/m³ PEL would substantially reduce that risk.

The beryllium rule applies to occupational exposure to beryllium in all forms, compounds, and mixtures in general industry, construction, and shipyards.

The rule does not apply to articles that contain beryllium and that the employer does not process. OSHA defines an article, under its Hazard Communication standard, as "a manufactured item other than a fluid or particle: (i) which is formed to a specific shape or design during manufacture; (ii) which has end use function(s) dependent in whole or in part upon its shape or design during end use; and (iii) which under normal conditions of use does not release more than very small quantities, e.g., minute or trace amounts of a hazardous chemical, and does not pose a physical hazard or health risk to employees."

The rule also exempts materials containing less than 0.1 percent beryllium by weight where the employer has objective data demonstrating that employee exposure to beryllium will remain below the action level of 0.1 µg/m³, as an 8-hour time weighted average, under any foreseeable conditions. For example, if the only beryllium-containing material in an employer's facility contains less than 0.1 percent beryllium by weight, and that facility has only one process that can release beryllium in excess of the action level, the standard applies only in locations where that process can release beryllium in excess of the action level. If the employer has objective data indicating that exposures will not reach the action level in a particular location within the facility then the standard, including the dermal contact provisions, does not apply in that part of the facility.

OSHA's general industry beryllium standard includes an exemption for materials containing less than 0.1 % beryllium by weight but with the qualifier that an employer claiming this exemption must have objective data demonstrating that employee exposure to beryllium will remain below the action level of 0.l micrograms of beryllium per cubic meter of air (µg/m³) as an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA) under any foreseeable conditions. See "Are there exemptions to this rule?" and "How can objective data be used to determine where the beryllium standard applies to employers who handle or use materials containing less than 0.1 % beryllium by weight?" for a discussion of OSHA's interpretation of "any foreseeable conditions" and a discussion of how employers can determine if they are covered under the standard.

For example, for coal combustion residuals that contain 2 ppm (0.0002%) beryllium by weight, the final action level of beryllium of 0.1 µg/m³ would be exceeded only when total dust concentrations exceed 50 mg/m³, a level that is over 3 times higher than the current PEL of 15 mg/m³ for PNOCs (particles not otherwise classified) as listed in 29 CFR 1910.1000 (Table Z-1- Limits for Air Contaminants). In this particular situation, if the employer has objective data that shows that exposures during an operation are consistently below the PEL for PNOCs of 15 mg/m³, or even up to 3 times the PEL for PNOCs, then beryllium exposures would not exceed the action level under any foreseeable conditions and this operation would be exempt from the beryllium standards.

The main industries affected include:

• Beryllium Production
• Beryllium Oxide Ceramics and Composites
• Nonferrous Foundries
• Secondary Smelting, Refining, and Alloying
• Precision Turned Products
• Copper Rolling, Drawing, and Extruding
• Fabrication of Beryllium Alloy Products
• Welding
• Dental Laboratories
• Construction and Shipyards (Abrasive blasting with slags)
• Fossil Fuel-fired Electric Power Generation

Approximately 7,300 establishments will be affected, including general industry, construction, and shipyards.

About 62,000 workers will be affected.

The rule is estimated to provide average annual net benefits over the next 60 years of $560.9 million each year. The total annualized cost of the rule is $73.9 million.

The rule is expected to result in annual costs of about $10,100 for the average workplace covered by the rule. The annual cost to a firm with fewer than twenty employees will be less, averaging about $2,600.

OSHA consulted with small businesses through the normal Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) process and as part of its extensive analysis of the impacts on small businesses.

Before issuing its proposed beryllium rule, OSHA convened a Small Business Advocacy Review Panel in accordance with SBREFA. After issuing the proposed rule, OSHA gave members of the public, including small businesses, the opportunity to express their concerns about the rulemaking through written comments, testimony at a public hearing, and submission of data and post-hearing briefs. OSHA considered all information it received from the SBREFA panel, in addition to comments and testimony on the proposed rule, to inform the final rule and evaluate its impacts on small businesses.

OSHA's beryllium standards cover exposures to beryllium in general industry, construction, and shipyards. The standards include an exemption for materials containing less than 0.1 % beryllium by weight but with the qualifier that an employer claiming this exemption must have objective data demonstrating that employee exposure to beryllium will remain below the action level of 0.1 micrograms of beryllium per cubic meter of air (μg/m³) as an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA) under any foreseeable conditions. Conditions are foreseeable when they can be reasonably anticipated. Employers can use objective data, based on industry-wide surveys or calculations based on the beryllium content in dust, that represent typical exposures during the employers' operations, to determine if they are covered under the standard.

For example, for coal slag that contains 2 ppm (0.0002 %) beryllium by weight, the final action level of beryllium of 0.1 μg/m³ would be exceeded only when total dust concentrations exceed 50 mg/m³, a level that is over 3 times higher than the current 29 CFR 1910.1000 (Table Z-1-Limits for Air Contaminants) PEL of 15 mg/m³ for PNOC (particles not otherwise classified). In this particular situation, if the employer has objective data that shows that exposures are below the PEL for PNOCs, or even up to 3 times the PEL for PNOCs, then this material would be exempt from the beryllium standards.

Employers must use engineering and work practice controls as the primary way keep exposures at or below the PEL.

• Engineering controls include using process isolation, ventilated enclosures, or local exhaust ventilation to keep beryllium from being dispersed throughout a work area.
• Examples of work practices to control beryllium exposures include keeping surfaces clean by using a HEPA-filtered vacuum or by wetting down dust before sweeping it up. See the "How does OSHA define 'as free as practicable'" section for further information.
• If engineering and work practice controls cannot keep exposures at or below the PEL, employers must provide respiratory protection to affected employees.

Respirators are not as protective as engineering controls, and they aren't always as practical either. Unless respirators are selected for each worker, individually fitted, periodically refitted, and regularly maintained, and unless filters and other parts are replaced as necessary, workers will not be protected from beryllium exposure. In many cases, workers using only respirators would also have to wear more extensive and expensive protection. Even when respirators are selected, fitted, and maintained correctly, they must be worn consistently and correctly by workers to be effective. Respirators can also be uncomfortable, especially in hot weather, and cannot be used by some workers.

The employer must provide a powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR) instead of a negative pressure respirator when all of the following are met: (1) respiratory protection is required by the beryllium standard; (2) an employee entitled to such respiratory protection requests a PAPR; and (3) the PAPR provides adequate protection to the employee.

Yes, worker exposures to beryllium at the new PEL, STEL, and action level can be reliably measured using existing sampling and analytical methods.

• OSHA has carefully reviewed the available scientific literature and expert testimony contained in the rulemaking record on the ability of modern sampling and analytical methods to reliably measure beryllium at the new PEL, STEL, and action level.
• OSHA and NIOSH methods for analyzing beryllium are able to measure concentrations at the new PEL and action level with acceptable precision.

Objective data means information, such as air monitoring data from industry-wide surveys or calculations based on the composition of a substance, demonstrating airborne exposure to beryllium associated with a particular product or material or a specific process, task, or activity. The data must reflect workplace conditions closely resembling or with a higher airborne exposure potential than the processes, types of material, control methods, work practices, and environmental conditions in the employer's current operations.

In the beryllium standard, OSHA defines objective data as information, such as air monitoring data from industry-wide surveys or calculations based on the composition of a substance, demonstrating airborne exposure to beryllium associated with a particular product or material or a specific process, task, or activity. The data must reflect workplace conditions closely resembling or with a higher airborne exposure potential than the processes, types of material, control methods, work practices, and environmental conditions in the employer's current operations.

Employers may rely on material, use, process, and air concentration information that indicates that the use or handling of a beryllium-containing material cannot, under any foreseeable conditions, release concentrations of beryllium at or above the action level (AL) of 0.1 µg/m3 as an 8-hour TWA. OSHA interprets the phrase "any foreseeable conditions" as meaning situations that can be reasonably anticipated. For example, annual maintenance of equipment during which exposures could exceed the action level would be a situation that is generally foreseeable. Similarly, the failure of ventilation systems is foreseeable, so this exemption does not apply where exposures below the action level are only expected or achieved because of the use of ventilation.

Employers can develop objective data from the air monitoring results of industry-wide surveys (e.g., conducted by trade associations for use by their members, from stewardship programs operated by manufacturers for their customers, from workers' compensation insurance carriers, etc) to show that similar operations and conditions in their workplaces do not expose employees to beryllium at or above the action level. Employers can also develop objective data using historical air monitoring data from a variety of sources, such as similar operations on different shifts, similar operations in other facilities within the same industry, and similar operations in comparable industries. For example, the beryllium content of fly ash in coal-fired power plants is low enough that if an employer ensures exposures from fly ash cannot exceed the PEL for total dust (particles not otherwise regulated), then that data, along with information about the beryllium content of the fly ash, will be sufficient to show beryllium exposures will not exceed the action level.

OSHA has included a performance option for exposure monitoring because it provides employers flexibility to assess the 8-hour TWA and STEL exposure for each employee on the basis of any combination of air monitoring data or objective data sufficient to accurately characterize employee exposures to beryllium.

OSHA considers exposures to be accurately characterized when they reflect the exposures of employees on each shift, for each job classification, in each work area. However, under the performance option, the employer has flexibility to determine how to achieve this. For example, under this option an employer could determine that there are no differences between the exposure of an employee in a certain job classification who performs a task in a particular work area on one shift and the exposure of another employee in the same job classification who performs the same task in the same work area on another shift. In that case, the employer could characterize the exposure of the second employee based on the first employee's exposure.

Under the beryllium standard for general industry, a beryllium work area is any work area containing a process or operation that can release beryllium where employees are, or can reasonably be expected to be, exposed to airborne beryllium at any level or where there is the potential for dermal contact with beryllium. It is important to note that this definition is narrower than the proposal in a key respect; the airborne beryllium must be generated from a process or operation within that area, and the beryllium work area is the area surrounding the process, operation, or task involving the release of beryllium. This allows employers to establish a demarcated area in which workers and other persons authorized to be in the area are made aware of the potential for beryllium exposure and must take certain precautions accordingly. By controlling the release of airborne beryllium from the particular process, operation, or task, the employer can limit the size of the beryllium work area and eliminate the likelihood of an entire facility becoming a beryllium work area. Beryllium work areas are not required for shipyards or construction.

The requirements for a regulated area must be maintained as long as exposures over the PEL or STEL are reasonably expected. When exposure exceeding the PEL or STEL is no longer expected, the requirements for a regulated area no longer apply. Examples of such situations include ventilation ductwork repairs, air cleaning equipment maintenance, or intermittent or periodic work operations (e.g., anode changing in pot rooms).

Dermal contact means there is a reasonable expectation that an employee's skin becomes contaminated with beryllium-containing dust, fumes, mist, or solutions generated from a beryllium process or operation. In a practical sense, keeping beryllium off of skin, out of cuts and wounds and preventing direct transfer of beryllium from the hands to the face and breathing zone are key precautions for beryllium workers.

The purpose of medical surveillance is to:

• Identify adverse health effects associated with beryllium exposure so that appropriate actions can be taken, including re-evaluating engineering controls or providing medical removal protection benefits.
• Determine if an employee has been sensitized to beryllium and at risk of developing CBD.
• Determine the employee's fitness to use respirators.

In response to the information gained through medical surveillance, employees can take actions to improve their health, such as making job choices to reduce exposures, requesting a powered-air purifying respirator for extra protection, or making personal lifestyle or health decisions, such as quitting smoking.

No. OSHA only means that a diagnostic center must have the capabilities to perform such tests. The tests to be conducted are to be at the discretion of the examining physician with the permission of the worker.

No. The need for continued referral to a diagnostic center is to be at the discretion of the examining physician(s) in agreement with the worker and employer. A worker may only need to consult a pulmonologist at a local medical facility convenient to the worker.

No. After an employee has received a clinical evaluation at a CBD diagnostic center, the employee may choose, but is not required, to have any subsequent medical examinations for which the employee is eligible under paragraph (k) of the standard performed at a CBD diagnostic center mutually agreed upon by the employer and employee. Continued evaluation at a CBD diagnostic center may be helpful for sensitized employees and employees diagnosed with CBD because specialized evaluations may be needed to determine the appropriate tests to monitor for possible progression from sensitization to CBD and to monitor the progression of CBD if it does occur. But for employees who have not been confirmed positive, an examination with a pulmonologist at a local medical facility convenient to the worker may be appropriate if more supportive follow-up is not required at that particular time.

Under the beryllium standards, the employer is required to keep surfaces in beryllium work areas, materials designated for disposal or recycling in general industry (unless they are placed in enclosures that prevent the release of beryllium-containing particulate or solutions under 6 normal conditions of use, storage, or transport), personal protective equipment (PPE), and eating and drinking areas as free as practicable of beryllium. The requirement to maintain surfaces as free as practicable of a regulated substance is included in other OSHA health standards, such as those for lead (29 CFR 1910.1025, 29 CFR 1926.62), chromium (VI) (29 CFR 1910.1026), and asbestos (29 CFR 1910.1001). As OSHA explained in a  2014 letter of interpretation concerning the meaning of "as free as practicable" in the hexavalent chromium standard, OSHA evaluates whether a surface is "as free as practicable" of a contaminant by the efficacy of the employer's program to keep surfaces clean. A sufficient housekeeping program for beryllium may include a routine cleaning schedule and the use of effective cleaning methods to minimize exposure from accumulation of beryllium on surfaces. The intent of the "as-free-aspracticable" requirement is to ensure that accumulations of beryllium dust do not become sources of employee beryllium exposures. Therefore, any method that achieves this end is acceptable.

OSHA further intends for this term to be broad and performance-oriented, so as to allow employers in a variety of industries flexibility to decide what type of control methods and procedures are best suited to their beryllium operations, and OSHA 's beryllium standard does not specify quantitative limits for the amount of beryllium on surfaces or PPE. OSHA intends to evaluate compliance based on employer efforts under the circumstances present at each facility. For example, eating and drinking areas may need more frequent cleaning than regulated areas where workers wear PPE. Or work areas may need more frequent cleaning during periods of higher production volume.

Where appropriate, based on the beryllium content of the material, employees and employers may be able to assess whether surfaces are visibly clean as a practical guide to determine the effectiveness of a housekeeping program. For example, in industries working with materials that contain more than 0.1 % beryllium by weight, visible cleanliness may be a helpful indicator of whether a surface or PPE is as free as practicable. However, depending on the operations involved, visible cleanliness may not be necessary or appropriate as a barometer of compliance in industries that work with materials that contain less than 0.1 % beryllium by weight. If an employer maintains a reasonable, comprehensive written exposure control plan and follows the plan, the employer would likely be considered to be in compliance with the "as-free-as-practicable" requirement.

Under the beryllium standard, the employer is required to ensure that spills and emergency releases of beryllium are cleaned up promptly. A “spill” is an unintended and unexpected deposit of beryllium-containing material. A spill is also an “emergency” under the beryllium standard if it meets the standard’s definition of that term. Fugitive beryllium-containing dust or other particulate from regular processes or operations are not considered spills.

The words "sealed" and "impermeable" are interpreted in terms of the materials in the container. For example, if the material is contaminated with beryllium-containing dust, the container must not allow the escape of the dust under conditions of ordinary handling. If the material includes beryllium-containing liquids, it must not leak. As it relates to the production of beryllium containing metals, transfer in commerce or the handling and processing of scrap metals, OSHA intends that the enclosures selected should not allow the materials they contain to escape under normal conditions of use, storage or transport.

OSHA considers a bag to be impermeable if it meets two requirements:

1. The bag must be made of material that, when closed, does not allow particles or dust to escape; and
2. The bag must be of sufficient quality so it cannot be punctured or torn in the specific situation of its use, storage, or transport.

If the dissolvable bag meets both of these requirements, then OSHA would consider the bag to be impermeable under 1910.1024(h)(2)(v) even though the bag is designed to dissolve in agitating hot water. See OSHA's Letter of Interpretation dated November 29, 2018 on Dissolvable Laundry Bags for Personal Protective Clothing.

• Employers were required to comply with most of the obligations of the standard by December 12, 2018.
• In a December 11, 2018 NPRM, OSHA proposed to modify the general industry standard to clarify certain provisions and simplify or improve compliance. OSHA proposes to modify several of the general industry standard's definitions, along with the provisions for methods of compliance, personal protective clothing and equipment, hygiene areas and practices, housekeeping, medical surveillance, communication of hazards, and recordkeeping. Employers are required to comply with the provisions affected by the December 2018 proposal. However, while this rulemaking is pending, compliance with the standard as modified by this proposal will be accepted as compliance.
• Employers are required to implement the engineering controls requirement beginning on March 10, 2020, three years after the effective date of the standards.

• Employers were required to comply with the TWA PEL and STEL by May 11, 2018.
• OSHA has extended the compliance date for the ancillary provisions of the construction and shipyards standards to September 30, 2020 in a Direct Final Rule published on September 30, 2019. OSHA extended the compliance date to provide time to finalize its October 8, 2019, proposal to revise or remove several ancillary provisions from these standards.

Yes. States with OSHA-approved State Plans have six months to adopt standards that are at least as effective as Federal OSHA standards. Many State Plans adopt standards identical to OSHA standards, but some State Plans may have different or more stringent requirements. For more information, see the State Plan webpage.

OSHA recognizes that most employers want to keep their employees safe and protect them from workplace hazards. We therefore provide extensive compliance assistance through our Compliance Assistance Specialists, website, publications, webinars, and training programs, many of which are geared toward small and mid-sized employers. For beryllium, OSHA will develop a Small Entity Compliance Guide, fact sheets, and other compliance assistance resources. For more information, see the Beryllium Rulemaking webpage.

OSHA's On-site Consultation Program provides professional, high-quality, individualized assistance to small and medium-sized businesses at no cost. This service, which is provided by consultants from state agencies or universities, is separate and independent from enforcement programs in federal or state OSHA's programs, and provides free and confidential workplace safety and health evaluations and advice to small and medium-sized businesses. In FY 2015, the On-site Consultation Program conducted more than 27,800 free visits to small and medium-sized business worksites, helping to remove more than 3.5 million workers from hazards nationwide.