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November 2016

Wood dust: controlling the risks

27 Oct 2016, Feedback, Prove Your Know How, Safety

If you’re a PCBU involved in woodworking activities, this article outlines the health risks from wood dust and some reasonably practical ways you can protect your workers

Wood processing causes small particles of dust to become suspended in the air, which can be inhaled by workers.

A person’s upper respiratory system can filter out the larger particles but smaller particles can go deep into the lungs, causing damage and scarring to lung tissue. Each time this happens, a small amount of irreversible damage occurs.

This damage reduces the lungs’ ability to take in oxygen and, over time, makes it increasingly difficult to breathe. The presence of glues, resins, formaldehyde and other wood treatment chemicals in some wood products increases the health risks from wood dust.

Why is it necessary to control wood dust?

  • Wood dust poses the following health risks:
  • Inhaling dust into the lungs can cause breathing problems and lead to lung diseases, such as occupational asthma and lung cancer. Breathing in dust is the most common type of exposure.
  • Swallowing wood dust can affect the intestines, bloodstream and vital organs and make people ill.
  • Getting dust in the eyes can cause irritation and damage.
  • Skin contact with wood dust can cause ulceration of the skin, irritation and dermatitis.

What causes high dust exposures?

  • The following activities are likely to cause high dust exposures:
  • Sawing and cutting.
  • Routing and turning.
  • Sanding.
  • Dry sweeping of dust.
  • Bagging dust from dust extraction systems.

What are my responsibilities?

If you’re a PCBU, you have a duty to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of your workers and other workers whose activities you influence or direct. PCBUs must eliminate risks so far as is reasonably practicable and, where this is not possible, they must minimise them.

PCBUs have a duty to monitor the health of their workers and their workplace conditions to ensure that they aren’t injured or made ill by their work.

How to control wood dust exposure

When selecting controls, WorkSafe expects, so far as is reasonable practicable, preference be given to controls that protect multiple workers at a time. For example, local exhaust ventilation (LEV) will protect everyone in the workplace, whereas respiratory protective equipment (RPE) only protects the person wearing it.

You should apply the most effective and practical control measures. In most cases, personal protective equipment (PPE), such as RPE, shouldn’t be the first or only control considered. Listed below are some controls that can be used to manage wood dust:

  • Eliminate the risk by buying pre-cut or processed wood materials.
  • Local exhaust ventilation (LEV) is one of the most effective ways to control dust at the source. Use LEV systems to capture dust from cutting, shaping and sanding wood.
  • Use on-tool extraction saws and grinders to control wood dust at the source.
  • Refer to the manufacturer’s operating instructions for equipment use and maintenance. For example, use the correct saw blade or planer.
  • Use water-damping methods where practical.
  • Don’t use blowers, fans or compressed air to move wood dust.
  • Provide a suitable industrial vacuum to remove dust from work areas.
  • Minimise worker exposure by limiting the time each person spends doing dusty work.
  • Advise workers to wear RPE when emptying vacuum cleaner bags or collection bags.
  • Ensure workers wear RPE and other PPE suitable for the task. Advise workers to carefully remove work clothing at the end of the task or shift to avoid generating dust clouds.
  • Provide washing facilities at work, so that dust is not taken home.
  • Advise workers to wash their face and hands immediately after finishing the task and before eating, drinking or smoking.

When should exposure monitoring be carried out?

If you’re not certain if dust levels could be harmful, exposure monitoring should be undertaken by occupational hygienists or other suitably trained personnel.

This monitoring will help determine the most appropriate wood dust control methods and respiratory protection for workers. Exposure monitoring should be undertaken regularly to check the effectiveness of controls. If the controls are not working, seek advice from an occupational health specialist or LEV engineer.

When should health monitoring be carried out?

Health monitoring is a way to check if workers are getting sick from exposure to hazards while carrying out their work; the aim is to detect early signs of ill-health or disease. It can also show if control measures are working effectively.

Where workers are routinely exposed to wood dust, you should arrange health monitoring for them. Monitoring should include a baseline and annual lung function tests, as well as a respiratory questionnaire.

Follow the recommendations of an occupational health practitioner with experience in health monitoring when determining what type of monitoring is required.

Respiratory protective equipment

It’s important to ensure that you provide your workers with a respirator that will protect against airborne wood dust (different respirators protect against different types of contaminants).

Some respirators need a tight seal between the mask and the worker’s face to provide protection.

If you provide this type of RPE, you need to arrange for your workers to have an annual fitting to ensure it fits properly. Workers also need to be clean-shaven to ensure a tight seal.

You can get information on RPE selection, fit testing and training from occupational health specialists and suppliers of RPE.

Worker training

Educate your workers about risks from wood dust and the control measures. Regular training is important to ensure worker awareness remains high.

If you’d like to discuss this at your toolbox talks, you can download factsheets from the Worksafe website.


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