Written Silica Exposure Control Plan
The written plan OSHA requires from every construction employer covered by the silica rule, 29 CFR 1926.1153(g). Fourteen pages, US Letter, built so a foreman can fill it in and an inspector can follow it. Fill-in blanks, not lawyer paragraphs.
A blank template isn't a plan, and a generic one isn't either. OSHA's own construction FAQ says the plan has to describe your tasks "in sufficient detail to enable the employer and employees to consistently identify and control silica-related hazards," and that using a broad term "such as 'construction' or 'demolition,' would not be sufficiently descriptive."
So if you write "concrete work" on the task line and file it, you've got paper, not a plan. This one makes you name the real tasks. Cutting block with a handheld saw. Tuckpointing brick. Coring slab. Chipping a footing. In the words your crew uses.
What the rule asks for, and where it sits in this plan
| The rule | What it asks for | Where it lives |
|---|---|---|
| 1926.1153(g)(1)(i) | The tasks that involve silica exposure | Section 2 |
| 1926.1153(g)(1)(ii) | Engineering controls, work practices and respiratory protection for each task | Section 2 |
| 1926.1153(g)(1)(iii) | Housekeeping measures | Section 3 |
| 1926.1153(g)(1)(iv) | Procedures to restrict access, including dust from other employers | Section 4 |
| 1926.1153(g)(4) | A designated competent person making frequent and regular inspections | Section 5 |
| 1926.1153(g)(3) | Kept readily available to employees, their reps, OSHA and NIOSH | Section 6 |
| 1926.1153(g)(2) | Reviewed and evaluated at least annually, updated as needed | Section 7 |
Real pages, not a brochure
What's inside the 14 pages
- Six task blocks, one per silica task: what the work is, the Table 1 row, the engineering control, the work practices, the respirator call, who does it.
- Housekeeping and keeping-people-out sections that match 1926.1153(f) and (g)(1)(iv), with fill-in lines.
- The competent person page, with the authority sign-off line. A title without the authority to stop work doesn't count.
- Where the plan lives, so it's readily available the way (g)(3) means it.
- An annual review log, and all 18 Table 1 tasks as a finder with the respirator columns.
- A plain list of what the plan doesn't cover: respirator program, medical surveillance, training, recordkeeping, your state's own rules.
The two halves of silica paper
The plan is the paper the boss has to hold. The talk is how the crew gets trained, which is its own requirement, 1926.1153(i). The silica toolbox talk with the sign-in sheet is here, and in English + Spanish here.
The honest part
This is a template. Filled in, it's your plan. Blank, it's paper. It supports your company's safety program and the current OSHA standards, it doesn't replace them, and it isn't legal advice. The standard itself is free at osha.gov, and if this file ever disagrees with it, the standard wins.
Training aid, not legal advice. It supports your company's safety program and current OSHA standards, it doesn't replace them. One purchase covers your company: print all your own crews need, on all your own jobs.
Built by ToolboxYear, written by a working steel erector. Take a free talk · Find my purchases · Bulk or company licensing: reply to your receipt and ask.