DIRECTIVE NUMBER: CPL 02-00-151 EFFECTIVE DATE ... - OSHA

A. Compliance Safety and Health Officers (CSHOs) shall not perform any type of diving
during the course of an investigation or inspection without the prior approval of the
Director, Directorate of Enforcement Programs.
B. It is preferable that CSHOs be familiar with diving operations and equipment before
conducting an inspection at a worksite that includes diving operations. More
importantly, however, the CSHO should be familiar with other OSHA standards that
may pertain to the worksite, such as: construction (e.g., pile driving, cranes and
derricks); shipyard employment (e.g., dry-docking a vessel); and general industry
(e.g., powerplant inspection and maintenance).
C. Area Offices that have offshore activities may obtain Oil and Gas Development Maps
for each State having such operations. These maps are available from the respective
State for State territorial seas (example: in Alaska these maps are available from the
Alaska Department of Natural Resources – Department of Oil and Gas), and from the
U.S. Department of the Interior – Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Regulation
and Enforcement (BOEMRE) (formally Minerals Management Service (MMS)) for
coastal waters beyond State territorial seas.
D. Normal variance procedures are in effect with respect to the diving standard. When
employers indicate that they have a variance request pending that OSHA has not yet
acted upon, a citation shall still be issued for any violation. The employer should be
informed that the variance request will be taken into account in considering the
proper abatement period or proposed penalty. Questions regarding variances shall be
referred to OSHA’s National Office, Directorate of Technical Support and
Emergency Management (DTSEM), Office of Technical Programs and Coordination
Activities (OTPCA).
XII.
General Inspection Procedures.
A. 29 CFR 1910.401 Scope and application.
1. Scope.
This standard applies (except as noted in section XII., paragraph A.5.b., of this
instruction) to all commercial diving and related support operations subject to
OSHA authority. As with all OSHA standards, the legal responsibility for
compliance rests solely on the employer. Employers are expected to comply
with all standards or parts of standards that apply to the tasks in which their
employees are engaged.
2. Authority.
In general, OSHA authority over commercial diving operations is the same as
OSHA authority over any other industry as expressed under Section 4(a) of the
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. Since OSHA covers all
employment and places of employment within a State that is under Federal
OSHA jurisdiction, the Act’s requirements apply to both inland commercial
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