Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112The new federal rules limiting the amount of allowable silica dust exposure for workers is rais- ing questions about how particle amounts will be measured, the effi- cacy of recommended methods to reduce exposure, and the financial impact of the ruling on small busi- nesses. For tile and stone installers, OSHA’s new rules are presenting mandates for planning, measuring, and reporting that many are calling impractical and an undue burden on workers and their employers. No one disputes the need and desire to keep workers safe. The construction trades and dozens of lawmakers, however, are ques- tioning why OSHA didn’t simply enforce existing rules rather than issue a new set of complicated and unattainable regulations. Fearing that the new rules will put companies out of business while resulting in no increase in work- er safety, 23 national construc- tion industry trade associations are challenging OSHA’s final respira- ble crystalline silica rule in the U.S. Court of Appeals. Jim Hieb, the Marble Institute of America’s (MIA) CEO, says the rule is simply flawed. “We have significant con- cerns about whether OSHA’s rule is even technically feasible, par- ticularly OSHA’s final permissible exposure limit.” The new rules cut the exposure limit from 100ug/ m3 to 50ug/m3 and create an “actionable” limit of 25ug/m3 that then kicks in a number of medical screening provisions. “We question whether OSHA truly understands the unique challenges facing the OSHA IN THE NEWS ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– OSHA's new silica rule aims to keep dust down but raises many questions Respirable crystalline silica rule effective June 23, 2016 By Chris Woelfel, TileLetter contributor 64 TileLetter | July 2016