scope:

This standard shall specify the minimum requirements for the selection, care, and maintenance of hazardous materials, CBRN, and emergency medical operations (hazmat/CBRN/EMO) ensembles and ensemble elements, that are used for protection during hazardous materials emergencies, CBRN incidents, and emergency medical operations, and are certified against NFPA 1999 or NFPA 1990, which incorporates NFPA 1991, NFPA 1992, and NFPA 1994.

Individual clothing items addressed within this standard are limited to items certified against the NFPA 1992 and NFPA 1994 Class 5 portions of NFPA 1990.

Emergency medical operations (EMO) PPE addressed within this standard are limited to single-use and multiple-use ensembles certified against NFPA 1999.

This standard shall also specify requirements for hazmat/CBRN/EMO PPE manufactured to previous editions of NFPA 1991, NFPA 1992, NFPA 1994, and NFPA 1999.

This standard shall not be construed as addressing all of the safety concerns associated with the use of compliant hazmat/CBRN/EMO PPE. The persons and AHJs that use compliant hazmat/CBRN/EMO PPE shall be responsible for establishing safety and health practices and for determining the applicability of regulatory limitations before use.

Compliance with this document is not intended to be a substitute for compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.

This standard shall not apply to initial life-safety operations where personnel take immediate action using available PPE to perform a rescue or evacuate an area following a preliminary risk analysis.

This standard shall not specify requirements, such as appropriate use of hazmat/CBRN/EMO PPE for training, operations, or infection control, for other AHJ programs because these programs are under the jurisdiction of other NFPA standards.

This standard shall not apply to ensembles or ensemble elements that are compliant with NFPA 1951, NFPA 1971, NFPA 1977, and NFPA 2112.

Products compliant with NFPA 1951, NFPA 1971, NFPA 1977, and NFPA 2112 shall be permitted for use in certain hazmat/CBRN/EMO due to their unique protection capabilities.

This standard shall not apply to ensembles or ensemble elements for protection against ionizing radiation, cryogenic liquid hazards, or explosive atmospheres.

Nothing herein shall restrict any jurisdiction from exceeding these minimum requirements.

Purpose.

The purpose of this standard shall be to establish procedures as part of a program to provide selection, care, and maintenance requirements for hazmat/CBRN/EMO PPE to reduce the safety risks and potential health risks associated with poorly selected, poorly maintained, contaminated, and/or damaged hazardous materials, CBRN, and emergency medical operations protective equipment.

This standard shall establish a basic criteria for selecting, inspecting, cleaning, decontaminating, repairing, storing, and retiring hazmat/CBRN/EMO PPE compliant with the requirements of NFPA 1999 or NFPA 1990, which consolidates NFPA 1991, NFPA 1992, and NFPA 1994.