Hazardous Materials Training Safety Requirements For Cleanups And Emergency-Response Operations

Hazardous materials training requirements and who is covered by OSHA’s Hazwoper standard.

• General site workers:
  • Initially require 40 hours of instruction, three days of supervised hands-on training and eight hours of refresher training annually.
• Workers limited to a specific task, or workers on fully characterized sites with no hazard above acceptable levels:
  • Requires 24 hours of initial training, one day of supervised hands-on training and eight hours of refresher training annually.
• Managers and supervisors:
  • Requires the same level of training as those they supervise, plus eight hours.
• Workers at a treatment, storage or disposal facility handling RCRA waste:
  • Requires 24 hours of initial training and eight hours of refresher training annually.
• The first responder operations level:
  • Requires Awareness-Level training plus eight hours.
• Hazardous materials technicians:
  • Requires 24 hours training plus additional training to achieve competence in specialized areas.

Who Is Covered By OSHA’s HAZWOPER Standard

The Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER) applies to five distinct groups of employers and their employees. This includes the employees who are exposed or potentially exposed to hazardous substances — including hazardous waste — and who are engaged in one of the following operations as specified by 1920.120(a)(1)(i-v) and 1926.65(a)(1)(i-v): Clean-up operations — required by a governmental body, whether federal, state, local, or other involving hazardous substances — that are conducted at uncontrolled hazardous waste sites; corrective actions involving clean-up operations at sites covered by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA) as amended (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.); voluntary clean-up operations at sites recognized by federal, state, local, or other governmental body as uncontrolled hazardous waste sites; operations involving hazardous wastes that are conducted at treatment, storage, and disposal facilities regulated by Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations Parts 264 and 265 pursuant to RCRA, or by agencies under agreement with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to implement RCRA regulations; and emergency response operations for releases of, or substantial threats of releases of, hazardous substances regardless of the location of the hazard.

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