Risk assessment in the light of the Legislative Decree 1° August 2016 n. 159: operational criteria and critical issues

Directive 2013/35/EU has introduced remarkable innovations in the protection of workers from the risks arising from electromagnetic fields, particularly with regard to exposure to low frequency fields. The directive were transposed in Italy by the Legislative Decree n. 159 of 1 August 2016, which amended Chapter IV of Title VIII of the Legislative Decree 81/2008. The Decree 159/2016 fully adopts the system of protection of the directive introducing at the same time few more stringent measures aimed at greater protection of workers. Compared to the first formulation, the current Chapter IV introduces greater complexity in the management of risks arising from exposure to electromagnetic fields (eg, the derogations system). On the other hand, the decree introduces some novelties to carry out the risk assessment aimed at simplify it whenever possible. Indeed the articulation of Article 209 provides that the employer may use, at least in the first instance, operational references such as the European Commission's non-binding Practice Guide, relevant European and Italian technical standards as well as information available at INAIL or regional databases, taking into account also the information provided by the manufacturers for a safety use of the equipment. This formulation therefore qualifies the Physical Agents Portal and validate its content. Risk assessment  becames more complicated if it is not possible to establish with certainty that Exposure Limit Values (VLE) are respected on the basis of easily accessible information. In this cases it is necessary to carry out measurements and/or calculations. This articulation of the risk assessment process is aimed at supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), for which the outlined path avoids, in most exposure conditions, heavy burdens related to measurements and/or to dosimetric evaluations. The news introduced in the risk assessment do not substantially alter the approach for the workers with active implantable medical devices whose susceptibility to the electromagnetic fields requires specific criteria and operational measures. The aim of the present work is provide employers with useful information to carry out a proper risk assessment whit regard also to the workers bearing active implantable medical devices. Critical situations derived from experience or pointed out from users of the Physical Agents Portal are also presented and discussed.