Environmental Health

Lesson 2: Regulation Boards

Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA)

Under CFR 1910.1200, OSHA requires all manufacturers of dangerous chemicals to provide sellers (grocery stores, hardware store, etc.) with copies of Material Safety Data Sheets. These are commonly referred to as "MSDS’s." If you have a question concerning the potential hazard of a household product or chemical, ask the seller to give you a copy of the MSDS. If they do not have it available, they should be able to obtain one from the manufacturer within 24 hours.

These sheets are useful as they provide information concerning all ingredients used in the product as well as identifying the level of hazard or risk associated with the use or misuse of the product, while also identifying what to do in case of overexposure.