In the UK, numerous industries face the challenge of dust production. Ensuring dust safety is paramount for both worker health and regulatory compliance. Dust control, suppression, and prevention are critical aspects of maintaining a safe work environment in sectors such as construction, manufacturing, and mining.
As UK employers strive to meet the requirements set out by the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), implementing comprehensive dust safety measures has become an essential part of operational best practices. This article will explore key strategies for dust control, suppression, and prevention, providing valuable insights for UK-based professionals working in dust-producing industries.
Dust can be produced in many ways, including when:
The amount of dust that a task produces will also increase when:
Each situation is different and must be approached individually. However, when working around dust, there are some best practice principles you can apply. It is advised that:
While staying away from dust is important, your role and task may make dust unavoidable. When dust is inevitable, the HSE guidance suggests that controlling dust creation is an effective practice to minimise the health risks associated with dust particles.
Air purifiers do remove dust from the air, but their effectiveness depends on the environment they are used in. For example, many models are designed for use at home and are not capable of purifying air that contains large amounts of dust.
Typically, air purifiers will collect large dust particles from the air using a type of mechanical filtration, such as a HEPA filter.
For workplaces that create large amounts of dust or need to control dust and emissions during construction and demolition, an industrial air purifier or LEV (local exhaust ventilation) system is more appropriate. Keep scrolling to learn more about LEV.
The amount of dust that is safe to breathe in depends on the nature of the substance. The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations set a limit on how much is safe for particularly dangerous dusts. This is called the workplace exposure limit (WEL).
A WEL is the legal maximum amount of substance workers are allowed to be exposed to after control measures have been put in place.
These limits are often very low. To illustrate, the below image indicates the amount of silica dust considered safe to breathe when compared to a one pence piece.
Hazardous substances can enter the body in several ways. There are four ways that dust tends to enter the body.
It is easy to breathe in dust particles that are floating in the air. Too much dust inhalation can lead to breathing problems including lung disease. Two types of dust can be breathed in - inhalable and respirable dust. Total inhalable dust is larger and usually gets trapped in the mouth, nose or throat, where it causes damage. Respirable particles are smaller and can build up in the lungs, leading to lung damage.
When dust is breathed in it can become trapped in mucus. This is usually either spat out or swallowed. When it is swallowed it can cause gastrointestinal irritation or enter the blood, which in turn allows it to cause problems elsewhere in the body.
Particles produced during cutting, grinding and drilling can cause eye damage and irritation. Some substances may cause eye damage due to their chemical nature.
Some dusts are irritating or damaging to the skin. They can cause rashes or ulceration on contact.
Controlling construction dust is not always easy. However, limiting the amount of dust created by changing how a task is done is a good start. Some examples of how to do so include:
Some work that creates a lot of dust is inevitable. In these situations, a suppression system or an extraction system should be used to stop or limit the amount of dust that gets into the air:
Local exhaust ventilation (LEV) is a dust extraction system used to reduce dust exposure in the workplace. As the name implies, an LEV system is installed at the source of the dust to remove it before it can cause harm.
LEV extraction combines two key systems: an air extraction system and an air filtration system. It is usually installed where stationary tools, such as pedestal grinders, are in use.
The diagram below shows the key elements of an LEV system:
LEV systems must be correctly installed, ideally by a trained professional, so that they can effectively act as a dust prevention measure.
Grinding concrete releases respirable crystalline silica (silica dust) into the air. Find out about the danger of silica dust here.
A dust suppression system that is commonly employed when working with concrete uses water to stop particles from becoming airborne. There are two types of this system: a water suppression bottle system and a mains water system. The first uses a dust-suppression water bottle and is more portable than the other which relies on a mains water supply.
Personal protective equipment, or PPE, is the last line of defence against hazardous substances in the workplace. The importance of PPE in the workplace cannot be understated.
When other dust control measures do not reduce exposure to a satisfactory level, PPE and RPE (respiratory protective equipment) must be employed.
PPE may include disposable coveralls to protect personal clothing and skin, eye protection, or a full face dust mask to offer respiratory protection. Some PPE to protect workers from dust include:
When using a mask, it is important to ensure a good fit to improve the protection level. Face fit testing helps in determining if the seal of the respirator is secure enough to prevent dust from entering. It is important to note that a respirator relying on a face fit would not be effective if there is a beard or thick beard stubble, as it may cause leaks around the seal. Therefore, undergoing a fit test is crucial for ensuring optimal dust control and safety in hazardous environments.
In short, PPE helps to prevent too much dust inhalation, skin contact and eye contact.
No, the harm that construction dust inhalation causes usually develops over a long period when a person is repeatedly and regularly exposed. That said, breathing in the dust even for a short period is unpleasant, and can cause a reaction in people with asthma or other respiratory problems.
Adequate measures of dust control should always be taken and members of the public should be kept away from work that creates dust.
This article offers an in-depth guide to respirable crystalline silica, and the HSE offers guidance on how to control hazardous substances here.
You can find further information and guidance on the dangers of dust and how to control dust in the workplace in our Dust Awareness Online Training Course: