Time Trends in Exposure Measurements from OSHA Compliance Inspections of the Pulp and Paper Industry

Joseph B. Coble, Peter S.J. Lees, Genevieve Matanoski

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Scopus citations

Abstract

Time trends in employee exposures to the air contaminants measured by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) during compliance inspections of pulp and paper manufacturing facilities conducted between 1979 and 1997 were evaluated based on the measurement results stored in the OSHA Integrated Management Information System (IMIS) database. The IMIS database is among the largest sources of occupational exposure measurements available for occupational health research in the United States. The IMIS database contains the results of 3568 personal time-weighted average (TWA) measurements for 171 air contaminants made at 524 establishments in Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) 26. An analysis of these measurements revealed an overall decrease in the total number of measurements made per year since 1991, and a decrease in the percentage of measurements by year that exceeded the OSHA permissible exposure limits (PELs). Linear regression analyses detected decreasing trends in the geometric mean concentrations by year for 33 of the 36 agents analyzed.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)263-270
Number of pages8
JournalApplied Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
Volume16
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 1 2001
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Osha Imis
  • Pulp And Paper
  • Time Trends Exposure

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

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