Feature Operating Engineers and the OSHA Silica Standard: A Survey of Union Trainers Grace Barlet 1 , Rosemary K. Sokas 2 , and Eileen Betit 1 Abstract Enclosed cabs with filtration systems, an engineering control preferred in the hierarchy of controls, may reduce heavy equipment operators’ silica exposure during demolition, grading, and excavation. We surveyed operating engineer trainers about silica training, familiarity with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) silica standard, and cab filtration systems. A voluntary and anonymous online survey was e-mailed to 437 trainers in January 2018. The response rate was 22.9 percent (n ¼ 100). Most trainers (84 percent) covered health risks and silica exposure prevention in their courses. Of these, 59 percent discussed cab filtration as an engineering control. Trainers identified possible barriers to the use of cab filtration systems and a need for education to increase use, and raised concerns about other exposures associated with heavy equipment use. Education about selection, use, and maintenance of cab filtration systems to control silica exposure is needed. Engineering improvements to heavy equipment should address cab filtration, noise, heat, and vibration. Keywords occupational health, training, silica, operating engineers, cab filtration, hierarchy of controls Introduction Operating engineers are highly skilled workers who use heavy equipment, such as excavators, bulldozers, cranes, and backhoes, on construction and mining sites to per- form tasks such as excavation, grading, and demolition. These tasks can generate large quantities of respirable crystalline silica dust, 1–3 which can cause silicosis, lung cancer, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), as well as kidney and autoimmune diseases. 4 In addition to silica, operating engineers are also exposed to other occupational hazards, including noise, vibration, and diesel exhaust. 5–7 Studies of unionized operating engineers have found significantly increased proportionate mortality ratios compared to the United States population from work-related injuries, cancers, and chronic respiratory diseases, including being struck by or crushed by machinery, lung cancer, leukemia, bone cancer, pneumoconiosis, and emphysema. 5,8 The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its final silica standard for the construc- tion industry (silica standard) in 2016 and began enforcement in September 2017. The standard includes the option to use the specified control methods listed in Table 1 of the standard to protect workers from expo- sure to hazardous levels of respirable crystalline silica. Table 1 matches eighteen construction tasks with engi- neering controls, work practices and, in select circum- stances, respiratory protection. Employers who follow Table 1 correctly do not need to conduct employee air monitoring to ensure compliance with the permissible exposure level, as long as the equipment and control methods listed in Table 1 are “fully and properly” imple- mented for a particular task. 9 Table 1 includes the use of enclosed cabs with filtration systems to protect heavy equipment operators from silica dust when the equip- ment is used for activities such as demolishing, abrading, and fracturing, or for grading and excavation tasks. 9 The standard specifies, among other things, that the enclosed cabs covered by Table 1 must have heating and cooling capabilities, seals and gaskets that are in good condition and work properly, be well-ventilated using positive pressure, and have intake air filtered 1 CPWR—The Center for Construction Research and Training, Silver Spring, MD, USA 2 Department of Human Science, Georgetown University School of Nursing and Health Studies, Washington, DC, USA Corresponding Author: Grace Barlet, CPWR—The Center for Construction Research and Training, 8484 Georgia Avenue, Suite 1000, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA. Email: gbarlet@cpwr.com NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health Policy 0(0) 1–6 ! The Author(s) 2019 Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions DOI: 10.1177/1048291119889006 journals.sagepub.com/home/new