852 Asbestos Safety

Glossary

Term	Definition
Abatement	The removal, encapsulation, enclosure, repair or demolition of ACM.
Accessible (when referring to ACM)	The material is subject to disturbance by school building occupants or custodial or maintenance personnel in the course of their normal activities.
ACM waste	Waste materials that contain friable asbestos in an amount of 1% or greater by weight, area, or count, and asbestos-contaminated materials (e.g., protective clothing and equipment).
Accredited	The analytical laboratory used for asbestos analysis must participate in a quality-assurance program administered by the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) or the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
Air erosion	The passage of air over friable ACBM which may result in the release of asbestos fibers.
Amended water	Water to which surfactant (wetting agent) has been added to increase the ability of the liquid to penetrate ACM.
Aggressive method	Removal or disturbance of building material by sanding, abrading, grinding or other method that breaks, crumbles, or disintegrates intact ACM.
Asbestos	A generic term referring to naturally occurring fibrous mineral silicates including chrysotile, amosite, crocidolite, tremolite asbestos, anthophyllite asbestos, actinolite asbestos, and any of these minerals that have been chemically treated and/or altered.
Asbestos-containing material (ACM)	Any material containing more than 1% asbestos by weight, area, or count.
Asbestos-containing building material (ACBM)	Surfacing ACM, thermal system insulation ACM, or miscellaneous ACM that is found in or on interior structural members or other parts of a school building.
Asbestos debris	Pieces of ACBM that can be identified by color, texture, or composition, or means dust, if the dust is determined by an accredited inspector to be ACM.
Authorized person	Any person authorized by the employer and required by work duties to be present in regulated areas.
Bonded asbestos	Held within another material and cannot be crumbled, pulverized or reduced to powder using the hands.
Building/facility owner	The legal entity, including a lessee, which exercises control over management and record keeping functions relating to a building and/or facility in which activities covered by this standard take place.
Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH)	Someone certified in the practice of industrial hygiene by the American Board of Industrial Hygiene.
Class I asbestos work	Activities involving the removal of TSI and surfacing ACM and PACM.
Class II asbestos work	Activities involving the removal of ACM which is not thermal system insulation or surfacing material. This includes, but is not limited to, the removal of asbestos-containing wallboard, floor tile and sheeting, roofing and siding shingles, and construction mastics.
Class III asbestos work	Repair and maintenance operations, where "ACM", including TSI and surfacing ACM and PACM, is likely to be disturbed.
Class IV asbestos work	Maintenance and custodial activities during which employees contact but do not disturb ACM or PACM and activities to clean up dust, waste and debris resulting from Class I, II, and III activities.
Clean room	An uncontaminated room having facilities for the storage of employees' street clothing and uncontaminated materials and equipment.
Closely resemble	The major workplace conditions which have contributed to the levels of historic asbestos exposure, are no more protective than conditions of the current workplace.
Competent person	In addition to the definition in 29 CFR 1926.32 (f), one who is capable of identifying existing asbestos hazards in the workplace and selecting the appropriate control strategy for asbestos exposure, who has the authority to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them, as specified in 29 CFR 1926.32(f): in addition, for Class I and Class II work who is specially trained in a training course which meets the criteria of EPA's Model Accreditation Plan (40 CFR 763) for supervisor, or its equivalent and, for Class III and Class IV work, who is trained in a manner consistent with EPA requirements for training of local education agency maintenance and custodial staff as set forth at 40 CFR 763.92 (a)(2).
Composite	Several individual parts combining to form one integral system. For example, a composite asbestos sample of a Sheetrock wall system with asbestos-containing joint compound would be a sample of the entire wall material, (i.e., joint compound, tape, and wallboard combined).
Containment	The construction of an impermeable barrier around ACM to prevent the release of fibers into occupied areas during abatement. In addition, a containment controls the amount of incoming air so that a negative pressure in the work area can be maintained.
Critical barrier	One or more layers of plastic sealed over all openings into a work area or any other similarly placed physical barrier sufficient to prevent airborne asbestos in a work area from migrating to an adjacent area.
Damaged friable miscellaneous ACM	Friable miscellaneous ACM which has deteriorated or sustained physical injury such that the internal structure (cohesion) of the material is inadequate or, if applicable, which has delaminated such that its bond to the substrate (adhesion) is inadequate or which for any other reason lacks fiber cohesion or adhesion qualities. Such damage or deterioration may be illustrated by the separation of ACM into layers; separation of ACM from the substrate; flaking, blistering, or crumbling of the ACM surface; water damage; significant or repeated water stains, scrapes, gouges, mars or other signs of physical injury on the ACM. Asbestos debris originating from the ACBM in question may also indicate damage.
Damaged friable surfacing ACM	Friable surfacing ACM which has deteriorated or sustained physical injury such that the internal structure (cohesion) of the material is inadequate or which has delaminated such that its bond to the substrate (adhesion) is inadequate, or which, for any other reason, lacks fiber cohesion or adhesion qualities. Such damage or deterioration may be illustrated by the separation of ACM into layers; separation of ACM from the substrate; flaking, blistering, or crumbling of the ACM surface; water damage; significant or repeated water stains, scrapes, gouges, mars or other signs of physical injury on the ACM. Asbestos debris originating from the ACBM in question may also indicate damage.
Damaged or significantly damaged thermal system insulation ACM	Thermal system insulation ACM on pipes, boilers, tanks, ducts, and other thermal system insulation equipment where the insulation has lost its structural integrity, or its covering, in whole or in part, is crushed, water-stained, gouged, punctured, missing, or not intact such that it is not able to contain fibers. Damage may be further illustrated by occasional punctures, gouges or other signs of physical injury to ACM; occasional water damage on the protective coverings/jackets; or exposed ACM ends or joints. Asbestos debris originating from the ACBM in question may also indicate damage.
Decontamination area	An enclosed area adjacent and connected to the regulated area and consisting of an equipment room, shower area, and clean room, which is used for the decontamination of workers, materials, and equipment that are contaminated with asbestos.
Demolition	The wrecking or taking out of any load-supporting structural member and any related razing, removing, or stripping of asbestos products.
Disturbance	Activities that disrupt the matrix of ACM or PACM, crumble or pulverize ACM or PACM, or generate visible debris from ACM or PACM. Disturbance includes cutting away small amounts of ACM and PACM, no greater than the amount which can be contained in one standard sized glove bag or waste bag in order to access a building component. In no event should the amount of ACM or PACM so disturbed exceed that which can be contained in one glove bag or waste bag which should not exceed 60 inches in length and width.
Employee exposure	Exposure to airborne asbestos that would occur if the employee was not using respiratory protective equipment.
Encapsulation	The treatment of ACBM with a material that surrounds or embeds asbestos fibers in an adhesive matrix to prevent the release of fibers, as the encapsulant creates a membrane over the surface (bridging encapsulant) or penetrates the material and binds its components together (penetrating encapsulant).
Enclosure	An airtight, impermeable, permanent barrier around ACBM to prevent the release of asbestos fibers into the air.
Equipment room	(Change room) means a contaminated room located within the decontamination area that is supplied with impermeable bags or containers for the disposal of contaminated protective clothing and equipment.
Fiber	A particulate form of asbestos 5 micrometers or longer, with a length-to-diameter ratio of at least 3 to 1.
Friable	When referring to material in a school building means that the material, when dry, may be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder by hand pressure, and includes previously nonfriable material after such previously nonfriable material becomes damaged to the extent that when dry it may be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder by hand pressure.
Friable asbestos	Crumbly, dusty or powdery. It can be crumbled, pulverized or reduced to powder form using the hands. Examples include: sprayed coatings or insulation, lagging, loose asbestos or asbestos in its raw state.
Functional space	A room, group of rooms, or homogeneous area (including crawl spaces or the space between a dropped ceiling and the floor or roof deck above), such as classroom(s), a cafeteria, gymnasium, hallway(s), designated by a person accredited to prepare management plans, design abatement projects, or conduct response actions.
Glovebag	Not more than a 60 x 60-inch impervious plastic bag-like enclosure affixed around an asbestos-containing material, with glove-like appendages through which material and tools may be handled.
High-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter	A filter capable of trapping and retaining at least 99.97 percent of 0.3 micrometer diameter mono-disperse particles.
Homogeneous area	An area of surfacing material or thermal system insulation that is uniform in color and texture.
Industrial hygienist	A professional qualified by education, training, and experience to anticipate, recognize, evaluate and develop controls for occupational health hazards.
Intact	The ACM has not crumbled, been pulverized, or otherwise deteriorated so that the asbestos is no longer likely to be bound with its matrix.
Miscellaneous ACM	Miscellaneous material that is ACM in a school building.
Miscellaneous material	Interior building material on structural components, structural members or fixtures, such as floor and ceiling tiles, and does not include surfacing material or thermal system insulation.
Modification	A changed or altered procedure, material or component of a control system, which replaces a procedure, material or component of a required system. Omitting a procedure or component, or reducing or diminishing the stringency or strength of a material or omponent of the control system is not a modification.
Negative Initial Exposure Assessment	A demonstration by the employer, that employee exposure during an operation is expected to be consistently below the PELs.
Non-friable	Material in a school building which when dry may not be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder by hand pressure.
Operations and maintenance program	A program of work practices to maintain friable ACBM in good condition, ensure clean up of asbestos fibers previously released, and prevent further release by minimizing and controlling friable ACBM disturbance or damage.
PACM	Presumed asbestos containing material.
Potential damage	Circumstances in which: Friable ACBM is in an area regularly used by building occupants, including maintenance personnel, in the course of their normal activities. There are indications that there is a reasonable likelihood that the material or its covering will become damaged, deteriorated, or delaminated due to factors such as changes in building use, changes in operations and maintenance practices, changes in occupancy, or recurrent damage.
Potential significant damage	Circumstances in which: Friable ACBM is in an area regularly used by building occupants, including maintenance personnel, in the course of their normal activities. There are indications that there is a reasonable likelihood that the material or its covering will become significantly damaged, deteriorated, or delaminated due to factors such as changes in building use, changes in operations and maintenance practices, changes in occupancy, or recurrent damage. The material is subject to major or continuing disturbance, due to factors including, but not limited to, accessibility or, under certain circumstances, vibration or air erosion.
Presumed asbestos containing material	Thermal system insulation and surfacing material found in buildings constructed no later than 1980.
Preventive measures	Actions taken to reduce disturbance of ACBM or otherwise eliminate the reasonable likelihood of the material becoming damaged or significantly damaged.
Project Designer	A person who has successfully completed the training requirements for an abatement project designer established by 40 U.S.C. Sec. 763.90(g).
Regulated area	An area established by the employer to demarcate areas where airborne concentrations of asbestos exceed, or there is a reasonable possibility they may exceed, the permissible exposure limits.
Removal	All operations where ACM and/or PACM is taken out or stripped from structures or substrates, and includes demolition operations. The taking out or the stripping of substantially all ACBM from a damaged area, a functional space, or a homogeneous area in a school building.
Renovation	The modifying of any existing structure, or portion thereof.
Repair	Overhauling, rebuilding, reconstructing, or reconditioning of structures or substrates, including encapsulation or other repair of ACM or PACM attached to structures or substrates. Returning damaged ACBM to an undamaged condition or to an intact state so as to prevent fiber release.
Response action	A method, including removal, encapsulation, enclosure, repair, operations and maintenance, that protects human health and the environment from friable ACBM.
Routine maintenance area	An area, such as a boiler room or mechanical room, that is not normally frequented by students and in which maintenance employees or contract workers regularly conduct maintenance activities.
Significantly damaged friable miscellaneous ACM	Damaged friable miscellaneous ACM where the damage is extensive and severe.
Significantly damaged friable surfacing ACM	Damaged friable surfacing ACM in a functional space where the damage is extensive and severe.
Surfacing ACM	Surfacing material which contains more than 1 percent asbestos.
Surfacing material	material that is sprayed, troweled-on or otherwise applied to surfaces (such as acoustical plaster on ceilings and fireproofing materials on structural members, or other materials on surfaces for acoustical, fireproofing, and other purposes).
Thermal System Insulation (TSI)	ACM applied to pipes, fittings, boilers, breeching, tanks, ducts or other structural components to prevent heat loss or gain.
Thermal System Insulation ACM	Thermal system insulation which contains more than 1 percent asbestos.
Threshold-limit value - short term exposure level (TLV-STEL)	The maximum concentration to which workers can be continuously exposed for a period of up to 15 minutes without suffering irritation, chronic or irreversible tissue change, or narcosis of sufficient degree to increase accident proneness, impair self-rescue, or materially reduce work efficiency, provided that no more than four excursions per day are permitted, with at least 60 minutes between exposure periods, and provided that the daily PEL also isn't exceeded. The STEL is a maximum allowable concentration, or ceiling, not to be exceeded during the 15-minute excursion.
Vibration	The periodic motion of friable ACBM which may result in the release of asbestos fibers.