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Taiwan’s Ministry of Labor (MOL) issued on 25 Sep 2017 the draft amendments on the PEL standards (Permissible Exposure Limits) for airborne hazardous chemicals in the workplace (MoL notice). The public consultation period ended on 27 Nov 2017. The proposed amendments were expected to come into force on 1 Jul 2018, although it hasn’t been officially announced as was expected in Jan of 2018.
Given the accidents caused by over exposure to 1-Bromopropane in the workplace, the MOL proposed to provide PELs for it. In addition, based on updated hazard data and the expanded use of some hazardous substances, the authority recognized that some PELs are outdated and inadequate for ensuring worker safety. Thus the PELs for three substances were proposed to be updated.
The proposed updates are specified as below.
| Chinese Name | English Name | CAS No. | Current PELs (version 2014) | Proposed PELs |
| 溴丙烷 | 1-Bromopropane | 106-94-5 | NA | 0.5 ppm; 2.6 mg/m3 |
| 丙酮 | Acetone | 67-64-1 | 750 ppm; 1780 mg/m3 | 200 ppm; 475 mg/m3 |
| 氯乙烯 | Vinyl Chloride | 75-01-4 | 3 ppm; 13 mg/m3 | 1 ppm; 2.6 mg/m3 |
| 溴化氫 | Hydrogen Bromide | 10035-10-6 | 3 ppm; 9.9 mg/m3 | 3 ppm; 9.9 mg/m3 (ceiling*) |
* The PELs marked with “Ceiling” (Chinese “高”) means the concentration cannot be exceeded during any time of the day.
The PEL standards were formulated according to Article 12 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (Taiwan OSHA). The current version took effect on 3 Jul 2014. Before the actual implementation of the updated version, employers should follow the current PEL standards to limit the concentration of hazardous substances in the air of workplaces accordingly.
