Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-92-166-2318: Pennsylvania Department of Revenue; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Details

• Personal Author:
  Burr, Gregory A. ; Klein, Matthew K. ; Malkin, Robert
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from employees, an investigation was undertaken of possible hazardous working conditions at the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue (SIC-9311), Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Health problems reported included headaches, body aches, dizziness, sinus problems, flu symptoms, low energy levels and constant colds. All of the carbon-dioxide (124389) levels measured were below the required limits. In some places the temperature and relative humidity measures exceeded the summer comfort range. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) identified included acetone (67641), toluene (108883), xylene (1330207), pentane (109660), hexane (110543), tetrachloroethane (79345), and 1,1,1-trichloroethane (71556). None of the compounds exceeded any applicable exposure limits. Symptoms most often reported included tired or strained eyes, stuffed nose, sinus congestion, irritation of the eyes, tiredness, headache, and dry throat. Several potential problems were noted with the air handling units such as leaking control valves, out of calibration controllers, incorrectly selected or placed sensors, and malfunctioning control systems. The authors conclude that no specific exposure was identified that would explain the symptoms reported by workers. The authors recommend measures to improve the work environment, including implementing a more effective smoking policy, minimizing pesticide spraying, and improving the temperature and humidity control in the building.
• Subjects:
  Air Pollution, Indoor Environmental Health Occupational Health Safety Ventilation Workplace
• Keywords:
  Air-quality-control Carbon Dioxide Hazard-Unconfirmed HETA-92-166-2318 Humidity IAQ IEQ Indoor-air-pollution Indoor-environmental-quality Indoor Environmental Quality NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Office-workers OSHA Region 3 Public Finance, Taxation, And Monetary Policy Temperature Ventilation Ventilation-systems Volatile Organic Compounds Work-environment

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA921662318
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Pennsylvania ; OSHA Region 3
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  59 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00215686
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB94-110327
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, Ohio: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 92-166-2318, 1993 May ; :1-59
• CAS Registry Number:
  Carbon dioxide (CAS RN 124-38-9) ; Acetone (CAS RN 67-64-1) ; Toluene (CAS RN 108-88-3) ; Xylene (CAS RN 1330-20-7) ; n-Pentane (CAS RN 109-66-0) ; n-Hexane (CAS RN 110-54-3) ; 1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethane (CAS RN 79-34-5) ; 1,1,1-Trichloroethane (CAS RN 71-55-6)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1993
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  9311 - Finance, taxation, & monetary policy - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:ed344e9972680b1fcc2014afb95bed91e6784e652b98ce034d2ebce97ded242853d05e9933c7870a2cced1525b8bda47d24acc86448b4123ad08f8e4c4c2c380
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/171474/cdc_171474_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 3.62 MB ]