OSHA has announced that Ballard Marine Construction has applied for a Permanent Variance and Interim Order to work under compressed air in constructing the Suffolk County Outfall Tunnel in New York. The variance would allow Ballard to use different decompression methods than those specified by OSHA's existing standards, relying instead on the 1992 French Decompression Tables and other safety measures like the use of a hyperbaric operations manual and a detailed training program for workers. OSHA has granted an Interim Order allowing the use of these methods temporarily and is seeking public comments before deciding whether to grant a permanent variance. The agency emphasizes that these measures aim to ensure worker safety and are backed by past successful variances for similar projects.
Simple Explanation
Ballard Marine Construction wants permission to use special rules to keep workers safe when working with high pressure air while building a big tunnel in New York. They’re testing these special rules for now, and need opinions from everyone to decide if they can use them forever.