Wood dust is considered hazardous substance. Measures must therefore be taken to protect employees from this exposure. The new version of the Technical Rule for Hazardous Substances (TRGS) 553 has created more comprehensive regulations to protect health when handling wood dust at the workplace.
The extended TRGS 553 now corresponds to the applicable legal framework and the current state of the art. The TRGS came into force with the announcement in the Joint Ministerial Gazette on December 12, 2022.
These regulations were previously adopted by the Committee for Hazardous Substances, an advisory body of the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (BMAS). Associations from the wood industry and the carpentry and joinery trades also contributed to the revised TRGS 553. The updated TRGS now also takes into account the requirements of the EU Directive on the protection of workers from carcinogenic and mutagenic substances, which was amended in 2017. The main aim of the new version of TRGS 553 was to integrate the necessary high level of occupational health and safety into operational practice.
TRGS 553
The Technical Rule for Hazardous Substances covers the obligations on the employer side, in particular with regard to risk assessment, protective measures and prevention.
TRGS 553 applies to all activities in the treatment and processing of wood and wood-based materials that generate wood dust. It also covers activities in the danger zone of wood dust. This includes, for example, work on woodworking machines and systems, changing filter elements, driving into silos and more. It does not include contaminated waste wood that is contaminated by wood preservatives, for example.
Wood dust
The term “wood dust” includes hardwood dusts according to TRGS 906 (“List of carcinogenic activities”). It also includes processes according to Section 3 (2) No. 3 GefStoffV and softwood dusts according to TRGS 905 “List of carcinogenic, germ cell mutagenic or reprotoxic substances” and mixtures of both.
Danger from wood dust
The dusts generated during the processing of wood and wood-based materials often cannot be sufficiently avoided. As wood dust as hazardous substance poses health hazards and cancer risks, companies must comply with the applicable limit values for workplaces when handling it.
Wood dust can pose a considerable health risk. The finer it is, the deeper it can enter the lungs via the respiratory tract. In this context, diseases such as respiratory diseases can be triggered. In particular, lung or nasal mucosa cancer can also develop. In order to protect the respiratory tract from potentially dangerous diseases, employers are obliged to take appropriate protective measures for their employees. These legal regulations are described in the technical rules and in explanatory letters.
Essential regulations of TRGS 553
EU-wide occupational limit value
The updated TRGS 553 uses some new terminology compared to the previous edition. While the previous TRGS still stipulated that an “assessment standard” of 2 mg/m³ over an eight-hour work shift must be observed and dust-reduced work areas must be set up for activities involving inhalable wood dust, these terms have been dropped in the new version of the TRGS.
The revision was necessary in order to adapt TRGS 553 to the EU Cancer Directive already in force. Essentially, this involved setting a limit value for dust exposure. The revised TRGS 553 now describes an occupational limit value for the first time.
Based on EU Directive 2017/2398/EU, the introduction of a binding “exposure limit value” for inhalable hardwood dusts and mixed dusts containing hardwood of 2 mg/m³ was required. In Germany, a corresponding “occupational limit value” of 2 mg/m³ was set in March 2021, which was adopted in the new version of the TRGS. In operational practice, this means that machines and systems must be operated in such a way that the average shift value (average value of a work shift) of 2 mg/m³ is complied with. This applies regardless of the type of wood dust and requires the proper use of low-dust machines with emissions below 2 mg/m³.
Protective measures for health – occupational health care
In general, it should be noted that even if the occupational limit value of 2 mg/m³ of wood dust is complied with, a residual health risk remains, especially for cancer. Activities involving hardwood dust can cause cancer. For softwood , the occupational limit value for inhalable dust (E-dust) is 10 mg/m³. The regulations therefore cover all activities involving wood dust in order to minimize the exposure of employees to wood dust.
More information and assistance – Risk assessment
The new version of TRGS 553 contains more and more specific instructions for determining information, carrying out the risk assessment and reviewing its effectiveness. For example, it describes the extent to which the company doctor must be involved in the risk assessment. The STOP principle should be applied when prioritizing protective measures. According to this principle, it should first be checked whether a less hazardous type of wood or a less dust-generating processing method is possible. Only then should technical, organizational and personal protective measures follow.
Information on the instruction of employees
As a limit value of 2 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m³) of air for wood dust now applies to woodworking machines, activities on woodworking machines that cannot comply with this limit value despite technical protective measures may only be carried out with shortened running times. These running times must also be specified in the risk assessment. For example, joineries and carpentry workshops may only operate the table band saw for a maximum of one hour per work shift in compliance with the occupational limit value.
Revision of DGUV Information 209-044 “Wood dust” for operational practice
As the revised TRGS 553 cannot adequately regulate all aspects for implementation in operational practice, the necessary revision of DGUV Information 209-044 “Wood dust” is now to be worked on promptly. The associations have informed their member companies about the most important changes to the new TRGS 553.
Wood dust measurement with GSA measuring devices
Several GSA measuring devices are suitable for measuring potentially hazardous concentrations of wood dust, depending on the intended use. The measuring device SG10-2A was specially developed for personal hazardous substance measurement, especially for high volume flows, and has a replaceable battery. It can also be used for stationary measuring purposes and offers a volume flow of 1-12 l/min, which can shorten the measuring time. With the appropriate IFA-licensed sampling heads, total dust (E-dust), which also includes wood dust, can be measured. Finer concentrations of the alveolar dust fraction (A-dust) can also be sampled.
In addition, the measuring device SG5100ex is also suitable for measuring wood dust. This device can also be used for personal and stationary sampling of other hazardous substances such as other dusts, fibers, gases, molds and fumes. The SG5100ex measuring device has been specially designed for sampling in potentially explosive atmospheres.
Sources:
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