OPERATION OF UAVS Let’s say your employer is building a large indoor arena. The arena has an enclosed roof, and several pieces of equipment with diesel engines are operating inside the structure. Employees for the contractor and subcontractor have complained to the union about the haze of diesel exhaust in the building, and the job is in jeopardy of being shut down. The contractor’s IH consultant has proposed using a UAV to sample for diesel particulate matter while work continues below. While you admire the consultant’s ingenuity, you should consider the following ethical and legal issues:

GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR USE OF UAVS Given these concerns, some employers are developing guidelines for use of UAVs. The guidance discussed here comes from a fact sheet prepared for my employer that was reviewed by more than 20 safety and health professionals. ​ It is best practice for property owners to approve all UAV operations on or over private property in advance of the flight. The request for approval should specify the flight plan, including flight routes, times and dates that flights will occur, forecasted duration of the flights, name of the pilot in command, purpose of the flight, name of the sponsoring entity or organization, and documentation of adequate general liability insurance. If the flight plan details change, a modified request should be submitted and reapproved. The property owner should reserve the right to cancel or terminate UAV operations at any time. When the UAV is operated over private property, the pilot should remain within the line of sight of the UAV, and the UAV should not exceed vertical travel of 400 feet above ground level. When a UAV is operated off of privately owned property, such as over a wilderness area or through a canyon, reasonable efforts should be made for the pilot to remain within line of sight of the UAV. Employers should use only licensed, properly insured operators. The operators should have documentation such as a professional license or certification showing hours of piloting experience as well as previous flights performed. The drone should be commercially produced or contain commercially produced equipment. Basic safety design features should be integrated into the UAV, such as self-test before takeoff, GPS homing, automatic landing, virtual fence (aerial boundary), real-time alert system, and automatic safe landing on critical battery level or invalid command and control input. Flying the UAV directly over a crowd, mass gathering, or individual people should be prohibited. Avoid flying UAVs over or near government buildings, schools, airports, hospitals, unusually congested or trafficked areas, and areas where there might be security risks.

 

Flights in national parks are currently prohibited until the National Park Service determines otherwise. Some state parks have also issued UAV bans. If UAVs are not banned in a specific park, permission should be obtained prior to the operation of a UAV in these areas. ​ AWARENESS AND BEST PRACTICES UAVs are an impressive emerging technology with many applications, and we should be prepared to integrate the use of UAVs into the practice of industrial hygiene. However, we need to be aware of emerging regulations and best practices for UAVs so that we can help protect employees and the public, and advise commercial UAV users on regulatory issues, EHS risks, and potential liability issues.