Silica and Lead Awareness

For workers, supervisors and safety representatives in construction, renovation, fabrication and industry: why silica and lead still cause disease, respirable crystalline silica and silicosis, silica limits under Ontario O. Reg. 490/09, BC Part 5 exposure control plans and the ACGIH TLV, assessing exposure with personal sampling and task-based tools, wet methods and properly sized vacuum dust collection, engineered stone and other high-risk work, how lead enters and harms the body with blood lead in µmol/L and µg/dL, lead limits, Ontario's construction guideline and BC requirements, paint testing, air and wipe sampling, safer removal, containment and hygiene, medical surveillance for both hazards, and a capstone exposure control plan for an older building.

HSE-242 12 lessons · 5 h 11 min

Offered by HSM University · Safety Training

This is the Canadian version of this course. See the American version.

What you'll learn

Explain why silica and lead remain serious occupational hazards, who is exposed, and how latency, cumulative exposure and legacy materials keep the problem alive.
Distinguish crystalline from amorphous silica, identify materials and tasks that produce respirable crystalline silica, and describe silicosis, lung cancer and the other diseases it causes.
Apply the silica limits and requirements of Canadian jurisdictions, including Ontario's designated substance regulation, BC's exposure control plan rules and the ACGIH TLV, with mixture and long-shift adjustments.
Plan and interpret silica exposure assessments using personal sampling, objective data, task-based tools and direct-reading monitors, including TWA and detection limit calculations.
Select silica controls through the hierarchy, including elimination, wet methods, properly sized vacuum dust collection, enclosed cabs, housekeeping and respirators, and calculate combined control effectiveness.
Recognize engineered stone fabrication and other high-risk silica work, describe recent regulatory responses, and specify the controls each requires.
Identify occupational sources of lead, explain how lead is absorbed, distributed and stored, convert blood lead units, and describe its effects on adults, children and the fetus.
Apply Canadian lead limits and guidance, including Ontario's designated substance regulation and construction guideline, BC's requirements and the ACGIH BEI, and explain the limits of consumer paint rules.
Assess lead exposure using paint testing, air sampling, surface wipe sampling and blood lead results, converting between the units used for each.
Select lead controls, including leaving paint in place, safer removal methods, containment with negative pressure, hygiene facilities, clean-up, waste handling and respirators.
Describe medical surveillance for silica and lead, interpret spirometry trends and blood lead results with tiered action levels, and protect confidentiality and workers' rights.
Prepare and review a combined silica and lead exposure control plan for an older building, including hazard identification, task controls, hygiene, monitoring, clearance criteria and cost.

Course content

12 lessons · 5 h 11 min total · final exam

1 Why silica and lead are still a problem 27 min · quiz
2 Respirable crystalline silica: sources and health effects 26 min · quiz
3 Silica law and exposure limits 25 min · quiz
4 Assessing silica exposure 25 min · quiz
5 Controlling silica dust 26 min · quiz
6 Engineered stone and other high-risk silica work 25 min · quiz
7 Lead: sources and health effects 25 min · quiz
8 Lead law and exposure limits 28 min · quiz
9 Assessing lead exposure 26 min · quiz
10 Lead controls and hygiene 26 min · quiz
11 Medical surveillance and health monitoring 25 min · quiz
12 Capstone: a silica and lead exposure control plan 27 min · quiz
E Final exam 20 questions

Requirements

HSE-240 Respiratory Protection

Recommended background. You can start any course at any time.