Prenotification to the department under RCW 49.26.120 shall not be required for:

(1)(a) Any asbestos project involving less than forty-eight square feet of surface area, or less than ten linear feet of pipe unless the surface area of the pipe is greater than forty-eight square feet. The person undertaking such a project shall keep the reports, or statements, and written descriptions required under RCW 49.26.013 and 49.26.120 which shall be available upon request of the department. Employees and employee representatives may request such reports under RCW 49.26.013(2).

(b) The director may waive the prenotification requirement upon written request of an owner for large-scale, ongoing projects. In granting such a waiver, the director shall require the owner to provide prenotification if significant changes in personnel, methodologies, equipment, worksite, or work procedures occur or are likely to occur. The director shall further require annual resubmittal of such notification.

(c) The director, upon review of an owner's reports, work practices, or other data available as a result of inspections, audits, or other authorized activities, may reduce the size threshold for prenotification required by this section. Such a change shall be based on the director's determination that significant problems in personnel, methodologies, equipment, worksite, or work procedures are creating the potential for violations of this chapter or asbestos requirements under chapter 49.17 RCW. The new prenotification requirements shall be given in writing to the owner and shall remain in effect until modified or withdrawn in writing by the director.

(2) Emergency projects.

(a) As used in this section, "emergency project" means a project that was not planned and results from a sudden, unexpected event, and does not include operations that are necessitated by nonroutine failure of equipment or systems.

(b) Emergency projects which disturb or release any material containing asbestos into the air shall be reported to the department within three working days after the commencement of the project in the manner otherwise required under this chapter. A notice shall be clearly posted adjacent to the worksite describing the nature of the emergency project. The employees' collective bargaining representatives, or employee representatives, or designated representatives, if any, shall be notified of the emergency as soon as possible by the person undertaking the emergency project.

Incremental phasing in the conduct or design of asbestos projects or otherwise designing or conducting asbestos projects of a size less than forty-eight square feet, or other threshold for exemption as provided under this section, with the intent of avoiding prenotification requirements is a violation of this chapter.

Purpose—Severability—1989 c 154: See notes following RCW 49.26.013.