ACGIH Accepting Input on TLV Changes through Next Week

Comments related to the ACGIH development process for Threshold Limit Values (TLVs) and Biological Exposure Indices (BEIs) are due by Sept. 30. The current comment period—the second of this year—provides an opportunity for occupational and environmental health and safety professionals to submit feedback on draft documentation for substances and agents on ACGIH’s Notice of Intended Changes (NIC) and Notice of Intent to Establish (NIE) lists. Ratification of documentation and proposed values will occur in November, and ACGIH plans for updates to be posted online in December.

The NIC list includes substances and agents for which a limit or BEI is proposed for the first time, for which changes are proposed, for which retention as an NIC is proposed, or for which withdrawal of the adopted TLV or BEI is proposed. The proposals that appear on the NIC list are considered “trial values.” Chemical substances and physical agents on the 2023 NIC list include benzene, diacetyl, fentanyl and fentanyl citrate, infrasound and low-frequency sound, and whole-body vibration. Above-shoulder work appears on this year’s NIE list.

Comments must be submitted to the ACGIH Science Group. Information about relevant policies and procedures as well as instructions for submitting comments can be found on the ACGIH website.

ACGIH’s updated development process allows industry professionals to provide comments for draft documentation on the NIC and NIE lists twice per year.

“This compressed schedule [allows] ACGIH scientific committees to finalize critical agents in half the time—providing critical information to the field when it is needed, while still allowing for input on all TLV changes,” the organization’s website explains.

ACGIH’s next comment period will be open Jan. 1–March 31, 2024.