See Appendix A Frequently Asked Questions and Examples of Confined Spaces by visiting the labor and industries website at http://www.lni.wa.gov/safety/rules/chapter/809/.

Push buttons, selector switches and other control circuit-type devices are not energy isolating devices.

When the opening is large enough for the worker to fully enter the space, a permit is required even for partial body entry. Permits are not required for partial body entry, where the opening is not large enough for full entry, although other rules such as chapter 296-803 WAC, Lockout/tagout (control of hazardous energy), and chapter 296-841 WAC, Airborne contaminants, may apply.

An employer cannot avoid the duties of the standard merely by refusing to decide whether its employees will enter a permit space. DOSH considers the failure to decide as an implicit decision to allow employees to enter those spaces, if they are working in the proximity of the space without the required worker protections.

An entry supervisor also may serve as an attendant or as an authorized entrant, as long as that person is trained and equipped as required by this standard for each role he or she fills. The duties of entry supervisor may be passed from one individual to another during the course of an entry operation.

1 1 percent (%) = 10,000 parts per million (ppm).

 

2 For additional information about atmospheric concentration, see chapter 296-62 WAC, General occupational health standards, Parts F, G, and I, and chapter 296-841 WAC, Airborne contaminants.

 

3 For immediately dangerous to life or health values see http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/idlh/idlhintr.html.

 

An airborne concentration of a substance that is not capable of causing death, incapacitation, impairment to self-rescue, injury or acute illness due to its health effects is not covered by this definition.

 

For air contaminants, that have no WISHA-determined doses or permissible exposure limits (PELs) use other sources of information that can provide guidance in establishing acceptable atmospheric conditions, such as: Safety data sheets required by WAC 296-901-14014, published information and internal documents.

If the owner of the property on which the construction activity occurs has contracted in writing with an entity for the general management of that property and has in writing transferred to that entity the information specified in WAC 296-809-20006, DOSH will treat the contracted management entity as the host employer for as long as that entity manages the property. Otherwise, DOSH will treat the owner of the property as the host employer.

Some materials - hydrogen fluoride gas and cadmium vapor, for example - may produce immediate transient effects that, even if severe, may pass without medical attention, but are followed by sudden, possibly fatal collapse twelve to seventy-two hours after exposure. The victim "feels normal" after recovery from transient effects until collapse. Such materials in hazardous quantities are considered to be "immediately" dangerous to life or health (IDLH).

 

For immediately dangerous to life or health values see http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/idlh/idlhintr.html.

When using lockout, you must follow all the requirements of chapter 296-803 WAC, Lockout/tagout (control of hazardous energy).

Testing allows employers to devise and implement adequate controls to protect entrants during entry, and to determine if acceptable entry conditions are present.

Requirements in other chapters may apply to your work. You can find a list of these rules in Appendix C Rules in Other Chapters that Cover Confined Spaces by visiting the labor and industries website at http://www.lni.wa.gov/safety/rules/chapter/809/. You will find some safety and health requirements addressed on a broad level in this chapter, while being addressed for a specific application in another rule. When this happens, both requirements apply and should not conflict. When a conflict does occur, you need to follow the more specific requirement.

 

2 Equally effective means must warn employees about the existence, location and danger of permit-required confined spaces for all affected employees.

 

3 Examples of measures to prevent employee entry include: Padlocks, bolted covers, use of special tools to remove covers along with, employee training, and permanently closing the space, such as welding it closed.

All employers are responsible for following all confined space requirements in this chapter and in other chapters that apply.

1 Examples of safe work procedures include. but are not limited to: Communication, hazard identification, monitoring and testing, energy control (lockout), ventilation (purging, flushing, use of local exhaust), inerting, engulfment control, equipment use, equipment maintenance, coordination with another employer, emergency evacuation, rescue, and hazard elimination procedures.

 

If you have multiple spaces assigned to one attendant, include the procedures necessary to enable the attendant to fulfill their required responsibilities and respond to an emergency. See WAC 296-809-50010, Table 2.

This would include any additional permit-required confined spaces identified by you.

1 Training topics include, but are not limited to:

 

• Roles and responsibilities;

 

• Hazards of the permit space;

 

• Procedures from your program created to protect employees, such as methods used to isolate and control hazards, equipment use, equipment maintenance and evacuation;

 

• For individuals not authorized to perform rescue, the dangers of attempting unauthorized rescue.

 

2 Employers can determine employee proficiency by:

 

• Systematically observing employee performance using safe work procedures and equipment to perform specific job tasks during training exercises that simulate actual confined space conditions;

 

• A comprehensive written exam; or

 

• Any other method that is effective for the employer.

1 Examples of circumstances requiring the review of your program include the following:

 

• There is unauthorized entry of a permit space.

 

• A permit space hazard not covered by the permit is found.

 

• A condition prohibited by the permit occurs.

 

• An injury or near-miss occurs during entry.

 

• There is a change in the use or configuration of a permit space.

 

• An employee complains about the effectiveness of the program.

 

2 Employers may perform a single annual review covering all entries performed during a twelve-month period. If no entry is performed during a twelve-month period, no review is necessary.

 

3 Keep employee exposure records according to chapter 296-802 WAC, Employee medical and exposure records.

Examples of measures to prevent unauthorized entry are signs, physical barricades, warning tape, and an attendant.

1 The following is not considered to be adequate rescue and emergency services:

 

• Planning to rely on a rescue service and posting a contact number (like "911") without contacting them and completing an evaluation in advance to ensure they meet the criteria of this standard.

 

2 Timely rescue will vary according to the specific hazards involved in each entry. For example, chapter 296-842 WAC, Respirators, requires that employers provide a standby person or persons capable of immediate action to rescue employee(s) for work areas considered to contain an IDLH atmosphere.

See Appendix H - Evaluating Rescue Teams or Services by visiting the labor and industries website at http://www.lni.wa.gov/safety/rules/chapter/809/.

When you can demonstrate that the use of a chest or full-body harness is not feasible or creates a greater hazard, then you may use wristlets or another method shown to be the safest and most effective alternative.

• Make sure entry supervisors have the required knowledge and proficiency to perform the job duties and responsibilities required by this chapter.

 

• The entry supervisor may also perform other duties under this chapter, such as attendant or entrant, if they are trained and proficient in those duties.

 

• The responsibility of the entry supervisor may be passed from one supervisor to another during an entry operation.

1 For the purposes of this section, energy control procedures must isolate the space and result in the elimination of the hazards including applicable stored energy. Evaluate your energy control procedures (lockout) to ensure they fully eliminate the hazards when used. See chapter 296-803 WAC, Lockout/tagout (control of hazardous energy). Tagout is an example of a method not considered to eliminate hazards.

 

2 Controlling atmospheric hazards through forced air ventilation does not eliminate the hazards.

 

3 Do not use alternative methods to enter a continuous system unless you can do the following:

 

• Completely isolate the area entered from the rest of the space;

 

• Demonstrate that the conditions that caused the hazard or potential hazard no longer exist within the system for the duration of the entry including engulfment; and

 

• You have sufficient quantities of continuous ventilation to control the atmospheric hazard.

 

See Appendix J for Alternative Methods Documentation by visiting the labor and industries website at http://www.lni.wa.gov/safety/rules/chapter/809/.