Control of Lead at Work Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

• “action level” means a blood-lead concentration of—

  (a)

  in respect of a woman of reproductive capacity, 25 μg/dl;

  (b)

  in respect of a young person, 40 μg/dl;

  (c)

  in respect of any other employee, 50 μg/dl;

• “appointed doctor” means a registered medical practitioner appointed for the time being in writing by the Department for the purpose of these Regulations;

• “approved” means approved for the time being in writing by the Department;

• “biological monitoring” includes the measuring of a person’s blood-lead concentration or urinary lead concentration in accordance in either case with the method known as atomic absorption spectroscopy;

• “control measure” means a measure taken to prevent or reduce exposure to lead (including the provision of systems of work and supervision, the cleaning of workplaces, premises, plant and equipment, the use of engineering controls and the provision of personal protective equipment);

• “the Department” means the Department of Economic Development;

• “employment medical adviser” means an employment medical adviser appointed under Article 48 of the Health and Safety at Work (Northern Ireland) Order 1978;

• “glaze” does not include engobe or slip;

• “lead” means lead (including lead alkyls, lead alloys, any compounds of lead and lead as a constituent of any substance or material) which is liable to be inhaled, ingested or otherwise absorbed by persons except where it is given off from the exhaust system of a vehicle on a road within the meaning of Article 2 of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1995(1);

• “lead alkyls” means tetraethyl lead or tetramethyl lead;

• “leadless glaze” means a glaze which contains less than 0·5 per cent lead by weight of the element of lead calculated with reference to the total weight of the preparation;

• “low solubility glaze” means a glaze which does not yield to dilute hydrochloric acid more than 5 per cent of its dry weight of a soluble lead compound when determined in accordance with an approved method;

• “medical surveillance” includes clinical assessment and biological monitoring;

• “occupational exposure limit for lead” means—

  (a)

  in relation to lead other than lead alkyls, a concentration of lead in the atmosphere to which any employee is exposed of 0·15 mg/m³; and

  (b)

  in relation to lead alkyls, a concentration of lead contained in lead alkyls in the atmosphere to which any employee is exposed of 0·10 mg/m³,

  in either case—

  (i)

  assessed by reference to the content of the element lead in the concentration; and

  (ii)

  assessed in relation to an 8 hour time-weighted average reference period when calculated by an approved method;

• “personal protective equipment” means all equipment which is intended to be worn or held by a person at work and which protects that person against one or more risks to his health or safety, and any addition or accessory designed to meet that objective;

• “registered medical practitioner” means a fully registered person within the meaning of the Medical Act 1983(2);

• “relevant doctor” means an appointed doctor or an employment medical adviser;

• “significant” in relation to exposure to lead means exposure in the following circumstances—

  (a)

  where any employee is or is liable to be exposed to a concentration of lead in the atmosphere exceeding half the occupational exposure limit for lead;

  (b)

  where there is a substantial risk of any employee ingesting lead; or

  (c)

  where there is a risk of contact between the skin and lead alkyls or other substances containing lead which can be absorbed through the skin;

• “suspension level” means—

  (a)

  a blood-lead concentration of—

  (i)

  in respect of a women of reproductive capacity, 30 μg/dl;

  (ii)

  in respect of a young person, 50 μg/dl;

  (iii)

  in respect of any other employee, 60 μg/dl; or

  (b)

  a urinary-lead concentration of—

  (i)

  in respect of a women of reproductive capacity, 25 μg Pb/g creatinine;

  (ii)

  in respect of any other employee, 110 μg Pb/g creatinine;

• “territorial waters” means United Kingdom territorial waters adjacent to Northern Ireland and “within territorial waters” includes on, over, or under them;

• “woman of reproductive capacity” means an employee in respect of whom an entry has been made to that effect in that employee’s health record pursuant to regulation 10(9) by a relevant doctor;

• “young person” means a person who has not attained the age of 18 and who is not a woman of reproductive capacity.

(2) Any reference in these Regulations to either—

(a)an employee being exposed to lead; or

(b)any place being contaminated by lead,

is a reference to exposure to or, as the case may be, contamination by lead arising out of or in connection with work which is under the control of the employer of such employees as may be affected by such exposure or contamination.