Laserfiche WebLink
C <br />4.29.1 Introduction <br />Hearing loss may be the result of one or more factors including aging, disease, injury or <br />prolonged exposure to loud noise. The hearing loss due to exposure to excessive noise is the <br />result of nerve cell damage in the inner ear. <br />Noise has long been recognized as a cause of occupational loss of hearing. Hearing loss <br />can be either temporary or permanent. The hearing loss first experienced after being exposed to <br />loud noise is called a temporary threshold shift if the ear is able to recover after a quiet period of <br />a few minutes, hours or days. <br />However, if exposure to loud noise is severe enough or continues day after day, the <br />temporary shift in hearing ability can and will probably become permanent. Regardless of <br />recovery time, a permanent hearing loss cannot be repaired. <br />The Site Safety and Health Officer is responsible for administering the Hearing <br />Conservation Program. <br />4.29.2 Employee Monitoring <br />Employees who may be exposed to high noise levels must be monitored periodically to <br />determine their average workday noise exposure. In some cases, only a few people will be <br />selected for monitoring when their jobs are representative of those for a group of employees. <br />After initial determination of an employee's 8 -hour time -weighted average noise <br />exposure, it is required that these monitoring procedures be repeated for all job classifications <br />periodically on a continuing basis. Noise monitoring may be discontinued if the initial <br />determinations or actual exposure measurements indicate that employee's TWA noise exposures <br />are less than 85 dBA. <br />37 <br />