Pertinent international and national regulations, advisories, and guidelines regarding ethylene oxide in air, water, and other media are summarized in Table 7-1. This table is not an exhaustive list, and current regulations should be verified by the appropriate regulatory agency.
ATSDR develops MRLs, which are substance-specific guidelines intended to serve as screening levels by ATSDR health assessors and other responders to identify contaminants and potential health effects that may be of concern at hazardous waste sites. See Section 1.3 and Appendix A for detailed information on the MRLs for ethylene oxide.
| Agency | Description | Information | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air | |||
| EPA | RfC | Not assessed | EPA 2016, IRIS 2021 |
| OEHHA | RfC (chronic) | 30 µg/m3 (18 ppb) | OEHHA 2008 |
| WHO | Air quality guidelines | No data | WHO 2010 |
| Water & Food | |||
| EPA | Drinking water standards and health advisories | Not listed | EPA 2018d |
| National primary drinking water regulations | Not listed | EPA 2009 | |
| RfD | Not assessed | EPA 2016, IRIS 2021 | |
| WHO | Drinking water quality guidelines | No data | WHO 2017 |
| FDA | Substances added to food | No longer FEMA GRASa | FDA 2021 |
| Cancer | |||
| HHS | Carcinogenicity classification | Known to be a human carcinogen | NTP 2016 |
| EPA | Carcinogenicity classification | Carcinogenic to humans | EPA 2016 |
| Inhalation unit risk (lifetime-based for lymphoid and female breast cancer combined) | 5.0×10-3 per µg/m3 (9.1×10-3 per ppb) for environmental ethylene oxide exposures up to about 40 µg/m3 (20 ppb) | ||
| Inhalation unit risk (adult-based for lymphoid and female breast cancer combined) | 3.0×10-3 per µg/m3 (5.5×10-3 per ppb) for environmental ethylene oxide exposures up to about 40 µg/m3 (20 ppb) | ||
| IARC | Carcinogenicity classification | Group 1b | IARC 2012, IARC 2021 |
| Occupational | |||
| OSHA | PEL (8-hour TWA) for general industry, shipyards, and construction | 1 ppm (1.83 mg/m3) | OSHA 2021a, 2021b, 2021c |
| Excursion limitc (15-minute) for general industry, shipyards, and construction | 5 ppm (9.15 mg/m3) | ||
| NIOSH | REL (up to 10-hour TWA) | <0.1 ppmd (<0.183 mg/m3) | NIOSH 2019 |
| Ceiling REL (10-minute/day) | 5 ppm (9.15 mg/m3) | ||
| IDLH | 800 ppm (1,464 mg/m3) | NIOSH 1994 | |
| Emergency Criteria | |||
| EPA | AEGLs-aire | EPA 2018e | |
| AEGL 2f | |||
| 10-minute | 80 ppm (146.4 mg/m3) | ||
| 30-minute | 80 ppm (146.4 mg/m3) | ||
| 60-minute | 45 ppm (82.35 mg/m3) | ||
| 4-hour | 14 ppm (25.62 mg/m3) | ||
| 8-hour | 7.9 ppm (14.46 mg/m3) | ||
| AEGL 3f | |||
| 10-minute | 360 ppm (658.8 mg/m3) | ||
| 30-minute | 360 ppm (658.8 mg/m3) | ||
| 60-minute | 200 ppm (366 mg/m3) | ||
| 4-hour | 63 ppm (115.29 mg/m3) | ||
| 8-hour | 35 ppm (64.05 mg/m3) | ||
| DOE | PACs-air | DOE 2018a | |
| PAC-1g | 5 ppm (9.15 mg/m3) | ||
| PAC-2g | 45 ppm (82.35 mg/m3) | ||
| PAC-3g | 200 ppm (366 mg/m3) | ||