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0 <br /> -3- <br /> 0 <br /> your tissues, which can cause symptoms similar to those described above under <br /> Nervous System. Since smoking increases the CO in your blood, smokers may <br /> experience these symptoms at lower exposure levels than non-smokers. In <br /> addition, people with angina (chest pains) from coronary artery disease are <br /> extremely sensitive to CO, and may have Increased angina from exposure to <br /> methylene chloride even below the legal exposure limits. <br /> LEGAL EXPOSURE LIMITS <br /> Workplace exposure limits are set and enforced by the California Division of <br /> Occupational Safety and Health, or "Cal/OSHA". The limits apply to the amount <br /> of methylene chloride measured in your breathing zone. The current <br /> permissible exposure limit (PEL) for methylene chloride is 100 parts of <br /> methylene chloride per 1 million parts of air (100 parts per million, or 100 <br /> "ppm"). Your exposure may exceed the PEL at times, but only If It is below <br /> the PEL at other times, so that your average exposure for any 8-hour workshift <br /> is 100 ppm or less. <br /> There are also "excursion" and "ceiling" limits for methylene chloride. The <br /> excursion limit of 400 ppm can be exceeded for no more than five minutes in <br /> any two hour period. The ceiling limit of 1000 ppm must never be exceeded at <br /> any time. <br /> Methylene chloride is considered to have "poor warning properties" since most <br /> people can not smell it until It reaches a hazardous level (100 - 500 ppm) . <br /> If you can smell It, you may be overexposed. <br /> Whenever it is reasonable to suspect that any worker is exposed to a substance <br /> at a level higher than the legal limits, the employer must monitor the work <br /> environment. You have a legal right to see the results of air sampling <br /> relevant to your work. (See the "Resources" section on page 4 for information <br /> about Cal/OSHA and how it can assist you and your employer.) <br /> Note on Carbon Monoxide: If you are exposed to both methylene chloride and <br /> carbon monoxide at work, the law requires your employer to keep those <br /> exposures at lower levels in order to protect you from overexposure to carbon <br /> monoxide. <br /> Medical Tests for Exposure, Measurement of carboxyhemoglobin in your blood <br /> can give a rough estimate of your exposure to methylene chloride. To be <br /> accurate, the test must be performed within a few hours of exposure and you <br /> must not have been recently exposed to carbon monoxide, including carbon <br /> monoxide from smoking. <br /> REDUCING YOUR EXPOSURE <br /> Employers are required to use control methods to reduce exposures that are <br /> above the PEL. <br /> Substitution: One way to control hazardous exposures is to substitute safer <br /> chemicals In place of more hazardous ones. However, the hazards of other <br /> organic solvents must be considered before choosing a substitute. Many <br /> (especially those which contain chlorine, such as trichloroethane ("TCA"), <br /> trichloroethylene ("TCE"), and perchloroethylene ("pert") ) share most of the <br /> hazards of methylene chloride. <br />