OSHA Announces Updated National Emphasis Program on Trenching and Excavation
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Oct 30, 2018
The OSHA Training Institute Education Center at Chabot-Las Positas Community College District, the only OSHA authorized OTI Education Center headquartered in Northern California, is announcing that OSHA has updated its National Emphasis Program (NEP) on preventing trenching and excavation collapses. The updated program, which began on October 1, 2018, is designed to increase training and enforcement efforts by expanding education and prevention outreach through the end of 2018.
“OSHA has updated its National Emphasis Program in response to a recent resurgence of trenching and excavation fatalities and serious injuries,” says Cari Elofson, Assistant Director of the OSHA Training Institute Education Center at Chabot-Las Positas Community College District. “In order to reverse the current upsurge in preventable accidents, OSHA has determined that an increased education and enforcement presence is warranted at trenching and excavation work sites.”
During the current three month period of education and prevention outreach, OSHA will continue to respond to complaints, referrals, hospitalizations and fatalities related to trenching and excavation. In addition, OSHA-approved State Plans are expected to carry out enforcement procedures that are at least as effective as the updated instructions outlined in the NEP.
OSHA has compiled a variety of training and compliance assistance materials and resources on the Trenching and Excavation area of its website, including:
- The National Emphasis Program on Trenching and Excavation Directive, which describes policies and procedures for continued implementation of an OSHA NEP to identify and reduce hazards during trenching and excavation operations;
- A “Hazards and Solutions” section that describes how soil analysis should be conducted and how employees should be trained on all trenching hazards before beginning work;
- Trenching and excavation publications, fact sheets, booklets, videos, QuickCards and much more in the “Additional Resources” section.
The OSHA Training Institute Education Center will be offering OSHA 3015-Excavation, Trenching, and Soil Mechanics, a 3 day course on the OSHA standards and safety aspects of excavation and trenching, at several locations in 2019. OSHA 7410-Managing Excavation Hazards will be offered at the 2019 Pacific Coast Safety Fest. Registration opens Jan. 15, 2019.
