Respirators used for asbestos removal should be approved by which agency?

• A. OSHA
• B. NIOSH
• C. EPA
• D. CDC

Answer: (B)

Respirator approval for asbestos work comes from the agency that tests and certifies respirators for occupational use. That is NIOSH, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. NIOSH conducts the performance testing and issues approval labels and numbers so a respirator model is deemed suitable for workplace protection.

OSHA enforces that workers must use respirators that are NIOSH-approved and follow the respirator standard, but OSHA does not approve or certify the products itself. EPA handles environmental cleanup and regulatory aspects of asbestos Outside the immediate respirator certification, and CDC is the broader public health umbrella that includes NIOSH within its system. So the key reason this agency is the correct choice is that it directly certifies the respirators used in occupational asbestos removal.