A couple of weeks ago I presented as a guest lecturer to the University of Wollongong (UoW) Master of Occupational Hygiene class on mining airborne exposure risks and controls over a one-and-a-half-hour lecture and discussion with the students. The students come from a range of industries, both public (governmental) and private (industry). It was a great opportunity to introduce them to the airborne hazards that mining can be exposed to (e.g. respirable dust, respirable crystalline silica, diesel particulate matter, etc), and controls, focusing on the higher level controls in the hierarchy.
I discussed the standards development, lifecycle approach, requirements (e.g. pressure >20Pa, CO2 Ambient + 400ppm), testing methodology, other applications (e.g. electrical cabinets), and examples of implementation. There was a great discussion on the standard and its practical application to prevent exposure.
Providing awareness and education to a range of mining stakeholders is key for understanding and the continued uptake of ISO 23875 to effectively manage airborne dust exposure risk while working in mobile equipment with enclosures.