Why do people think Hydrogen Peroxide is less hazardous than Ethylene Oxide?

When you look at the EtO standard, 1910.1047, the first thing that comes to mind is that it is an enormous amount of information. The standard is very long and detailed concerning the use, storage, and monitoring of EtO. When you then research the H2O2 standard, it appears to be a simple one liner in 1910.1000. It would follow from this observation that H202 is much less hazardous than EtO because OSHA did not dedicate an entire standard to it as they did with EtO.

However, what you may not realize is that H2O2 is covered by more than just 1910.1000. It is also covered by the hazard communication standard (1910.1200), the emergency action plan standard (1910.38) and other standards. If you combine all these other standards, then the EtO standard does not look so much larger. It is important to remember that in the 1980s, EtO became recognized as a probable and later as a known human carcinogen, so OSHA developed individual standards for several known human carcinogens including EtO. H2O2 is generally not considered to be carcinogenic, although ACGIH says it is an animal carcinogen, and so hydrogen peroxide is covered under 1910.1000, where EtO used to be.

For comparison, OSHA’s 8 hour Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for both EtO AND H2O2 is 1ppm. However, NIOSH’s Immediately Dangerous to Life and Health Level is only 75ppm for H2O2, but 800ppm for EtO. While H2O2 is not a known human carcinogen, it can still inflict serious harm on those who are exposed such as permanent lung damage and neurological deficits.

To peruse the relevant standards, follow these links:

1910.1047
http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=standards&p_id=10070
1910.1000
http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_id=9991&p_table=STANDARDS
1910.1200
http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=standards&p_id=10099
1910.38
http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_id=9726&p_table=STANDARDS