The ‘Wood Dust in the Wood Recycling Sector’ document addresses health and safety and sets out how to prevent and control employee exposure on sites, with a framework of recommended measures.
Endorsed by the Waste Industry Safety and Health Forum (WISH), the guidance is the first of its kind specific to the wood recycling industry, with current HSE wood dust guidance focusing on woodworking and construction.
WRA board member Jamie Plevin, managing director at R Plevin & Sons Ltd, led the project to develop the guidance.
“We are delighted to launch this guidance today which sets out best practice for businesses that operate in the wood recycling sector on managing wood dust from a health and safety perspective,” he said.
“We wanted to have a sector-specific guide which recognises the nuances of our industry,” continued Mr Plevin. “This will be a useful tool to ensure everyone in the industry understands their obligations and will also help the HSE to understand our sector better.
“Special thanks to the compliance team at Plevin – Graham Hobson, Michelle Barnes and Kevin Fletcher – without whom this guidance would not have been possible, and to Erica Malkin at the WRA for her design work.”
Employers have a legal duty to protect workers from the hazards of wood dust under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH). They must carry out risk assessments and take steps to ensure risks are prevented or adequately controlled. They must not exceed certain Workplace Exposure Limits (WELs) for dust and reduce employee exposure to As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP).
The WRA guidance addresses the HSE’s recommendations on managing exposure to wood dust and sets out the ways in which the risks can be prevented or adequately controlled according to a ‘hierarchy of control’. It covers topics including risk assessments, wood dust exposure during waste processing activities, Respiratory Protective Equipment (RPE) and health surveillance of employees.
“We welcome and support this guidance which is the first ‘industry-standard’ document to be endorsed by WISH and will be linked to from our website,” said Chris Jones, chair of WISH.
“This will help employers in the wood recycling sector to ensure they are meeting their legal duties with regards to wood dust and developing safe systems of work.”
“Health and Safety is paramount in our industry and we hope this guidance will help operators to ensure they are following best practice,” said Julia Turner, executive director of the WRA.
“Thank you to Jamie and the team at Plevin for all the time and expertise they have dedicated to putting this guidance document together.”
The best practice guidance can be downloaded for free from the WRA website here.
