Safety, Health and Welfare At Work (Carcinogens) Regulations, 2001

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR SI 78/2001
• Year: 2001

1. Citation and Commencement. 2. Interpretation. 3. Employer/Self-employed. 4. General Duties of Employer. 5. Information made available to the Authority. 6. Unforeseen Exposure. 7. Foreseeable Exposure. 8. General Measures. 9. Duty not to make Charges for Personal Protective Equipment. 10. Information and Training of Employees. 11. Consultation. 12. Health Surveillance. 13. Exposure Record. 14. Revocation.
S.I. No. 078 of 2001
SAFETY, HEALTH AND WELFARE AT WORK (CARCINOGENS) REGULATIONS, 2001
I, Tom Kitt, Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 28 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 1989 (No. 7 of 1989), in relation to the matters set out in paragraphs (1), (2) to (7), (9) to (16), (17), (21), (22), (25), (26), (28)(a), (28)(c), (29), (30), (32), (33) and (36) of the Fourth Schedule of that Act, the Labour (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1993 ( S.I. No. 18 of 1993 ) (as adapted by the Enterprise and Employment (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order, 1997 ( S.I. No. 305 of 1997 )), and the Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Delegation of Ministerial Functions)(No. 2) Order, 1997 ( S.I. No. 330 of 1997 ) and after consultation with the National Authority for Occupational Safety and Health, and for the purpose, amongst other things, of giving effect to Council Directive 90/394/EEC1 as amended by Council Directives 97/42/EC2 and 99/38/EC3 hereby make the following regulations:
	1. Citation
These Regulations may be cited as the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Carcinogens) Regulations, 2001.
	2. Interpretation
(1) In these Regulations
“Act” means the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 1989 (No. 7 of 1989);
“carcinogen” means:
(a) a substance which meets the criteria for classification as a category 1 or 2 carcinogen set out in Annex VI of Directive 67/548/EEC4 ,
(b) a preparation composed of one or more substances referred to in subparagraph (a) where the concentration of one or more of the substances meets the requirements for concentration limits for the classification of a preparation as a category 1 or 2 carcinogen set out in either:
(i) Annex I to Directive 67/548/EEC, or
(ii) Annex I to Directive 88/379/EEC5 where the substance or substances do not appear in Annex I to Directive 67/548/EEC or appear in it without concentration limits;
or
(c) a substance, preparation or process referred to in Schedule 1 and a substance or preparation released by a process referred to in Schedule 1;
“employer” means, for the purposes of these Regulations, an employer of employees who are, or who are likely to be, exposed to carcinogens or mutagens as a result of their work;
“exposure” means, unless otherwise specified, an exposure to a carcinogen or mutagen;
“limit value” means, unless otherwise specified, the limit of the time-weighted average of the concentration for a carcinogen or mutagen in the air within the breathing zone of a worker in relation to a specified reference period as set out in Schedule 2;
“mutagen” means:
(a) a substance which meets the criteria for classification as a category 1 or 2 mutagen set out in Annex VI to Directive 67/548/EEC;
(b) a preparation composed of one or more substances referred to in subparagraph (a) where the concentration of one or more of the individual substances meets the requirements for concentration limits for the classification of a preparation as a category 1 or 2 mutagen set out in either:
(i) Annex I to Directive 67/548/EEC, or
(ii) Annex I to Directive 88/379/EEC where the substance or substances do not appear in Annex I to Directive 67/548/EEC or appear in it without concentration limits;
“responsible medical practitioner” means the registered medical practitioner employed, or otherwise engaged, by an employer to be responsible for health surveillance of employees covered by these Regulations.
(2) A word or provision used in these Regulations and also used in Council Directive 90/394/EEC as last amended by Council Directive 99/38/EC shall have the same meaning in these Regulations as it has in that Directive.
(3) In these Regulations a reference to a paragraph or subparagraph is to a paragraph or subparagraph in the provision in which the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended, and a reference to a Regulation or a Schedule is to a Regulation of, or a Schedule to these Regulations, unless it is indicated that reference to some other Regulation or Schedule is intended.
(4) These Regulations shall apply in addition to the European Communities (Protection of Workers) (Exposure to Asbestos) Regulations, 1989 ( S.I. No. 34 of 1989 ), the European Communities (Protection of Workers)(Exposure to Asbestos)(Amendment) Regulations, 1993 ( S.I. No. 276 of 1993 ), and the European Communities (Protection of Workers)(Exposure to Asbestos)(Amendment) Regulations, 2000 ( S.I. No. 74 of 2000 ), where such application will result in an improvement of the conditions of health and safety of every person at work at the workplace who is, or who may be exposed to asbestos or dust containing asbestos.
	3. Employer/Self-employed
(1) These Regulations shall apply to a self-employed person as they apply to an employer and as if that self-employed person was an employer and his own employee.
(2) These Regulations shall apply to an employer in respect of the use by him of the services of a fixed-term employee or a temporary employee, taking into account the provisions of Regulation 4 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations, 1993 ( S.I. No. 44 of 1993 ).
(3) Where duties, however expressed, are placed by these Regulations on an employer in respect of any of his employees at a workplace, he shall be under a like duty in respect of every other person at work at that workplace who is or may be exposed at that place to a carcinogen or a mutagen as defined in Regulation 2 (1), except that the duties under Regulations 12 and 13 shall not apply to persons who are not his employees.
	4. General duties of employer
It shall be the duty of every employer-
(a) to apply the measures specified in Schedule 3 wherever a carcinogen or mutagen is used at that employer's place of work,
(b) to assess any risk to any employee's health or safety resulting from any activity at that employer's place of work likely to involve a risk of exposure of any employee to carcinogens or mutagens, and for that purpose to determine the nature, degree and duration of any employee's exposure to carcinogens or mutagens, and to lay down the resulting measures to be taken to ensure the safety and health of employees,
(c) to renew the assessment required by paragraph (b) regularly and in any event whenever there is a change in conditions at the place of work which may affect any employee's exposure to carcinogens or mutagens,
(d) to take account of all other routes of exposure to carcinogens or mutagens, including absorption either into or through the skin or both, when assessing a risk of exposure,
(e) to give particular attention to any effects concerning the health or safety of employees at particular risk and to take account of the desirability of not having such employees present in areas where they may be exposed to carcinogens or mutagens,
(f) to prevent exposure of employees to carcinogens or mutagens at a place of work where the results of the assessment required by paragraph (b) reveal a risk to employees' health or safety,
(g) to reduce the use of a carcinogen or mutagen at the place of work, in particular by replacing it (in so far as is technically possible) by a substance, preparation or process which eliminates or reduces the risk to an employee's health or safety,
(h) to ensure that any carcinogen or mutagen is (in so far as is technically possible) used in a closed system whenever it is not technically possible to replace a carcinogen or mutagen in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (g),
(i) to ensure that the level of exposure of employees is reduced to as low a level as is technically possible where it is not technically possible to use a system referred to in paragraph (h),
(j) to ensure that exposure shall not exceed the limit value of a carcinogen or mutagen as set out in Schedule 2,
(k) to ensure, in the case of areas where an assessment under paragraph (b) reveals a risk to employees' safety and health, that only those employees are permitted to enter who must do so in order to perform their work or duties, and
(l) to ensure that all containers, packages and installations containing carcinogens or mutagens are labelled clearly and legibly and display clearly visible warning and hazard signs.
	5. Information made available to the Authority
(1) The employer shall provide the Authority when requested with the findings of any assessment carried out under Regulation 4 (b).
(2) Where an assessment carried out under Regulation 4 (b) reveals a risk to any employee's health or safety, the employer shall provide the Authority, when requested, with information relating to-
(a) the activities or industrial processes carried out including the reasons for which carcinogens or mutagens are used,
(b) the quantities of substances or preparations manufactured or used which contain carcinogens or mutagens,
(c) the number of employees exposed to carcinogens or mutagens,
(d) the preventive measures taken to prevent or reduce such exposure,
(e) the type of personal protective equipment used for the purpose of such measures,
(f) the nature and degree of exposure of employees to carcinogens or mutagens, and
(g) the replacement...