Back when I was getting started in the industry, I was cutting a fallen honey-locust tree by a community pool. As inexperienced people often do, I pinched the saw. Then, also as inexperienced people do, I went full throttle on the trigger while yanking the handle back and forth to try to free it. The chain saw, as they do in the hands of the inexperienced and frustrated, immediately threw the chain back in my face and it connected, despite the chain grabber. No PowerPoint presentation on safety has ever matched that lesson in the need for eye/face protection.

Today, a common component of modular hard hats is an attachable, mesh face shield. Sometimes referred to as a brush guard or forestry guard, these shields can be helpful in protecting you from a branch whipping you in the face or from other flying debris. Where they seem not to be as effective is with fine particulates, which can still work their way through or around the shield and into your eyes. Plastic visors are becoming more common today.

What factors play into tree workers using just a face shield as eye protection? Are there environmental or ergonomic factors involved? Is it more of an issue among climbers, who might not want to risk that pair of $200 prescription safety glasses falling 60 feet? Do they fog up too easily?

This article will look at when tree workers need to wear eye protection or a face shield and when they need to wear both. We’ll also look at the applicable standards for arboriculture/forestry.

The standards

So, what do the standards say?

ANSI Z133-2017 states:

3.3.6: “Eye protection shall comply with ANSI Z87.1 and shall be worn when engaged in arboriculture operations.”

3.3.9: “Face protection shall comply with applicable federal regulations as well as with ANSI Z87.1.”

So, that means heading on over to ANSI Z87.1, which determines the performance requirements and testing that acceptable face and eye protection must meet. Anyone who has purchased a pair of safety goggles is probably familiar with seeing “ANSI Z87.1 impact rated,” or similar wording, on the packaging or etched on the gear itself. You should be aware that this wording does not always mean the same thing. For instance, “Z87.1+” indicates the protection has passed high-mass-impact or high-velocity testing. Without the “+,” it may not necessarily have been tested for that.

Tree-service companies in the United States also should be aware that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) regulations say all protective eyewear must meet ANSI Z87.1.

Gerard “Gerry” Breton, director of safety and training at Lucas Tree and a voting member of the 2017 Z133 revision committee, says eye-protection and face-shield considerations played a larger part in updates prior to the 2017 revisions, but not as much during the 2017 revision itself. This was due to previous revisions already bringing Z133 in line with other standards. For example, each job should receive a PPE Hazard Assessment Certification in line with the OSHA 1910 standard. The required PPE is then determined from this assessment certification and is intended to be the last line of defense following administrative and engineering controls.

Breton says mesh face shields, or forestry screens, are an option for Lucas employees when running a chain saw or chipper, but Z87.1+ eye protection is always a requirement. Recent advancements in safety glasses (high-impact lenses) and the use of debris curtains on chippers have triggered some employers to forgo the use of forestry screens during certain operations. An additional issue in utility line clearance is that the black mesh of a face shield can potentially obscure overhead conductors when working aloft.

The industry professionals

To understand a bit more about current practices in the field, we reached out to a handful of industry professionals.

“I think some prefer the airflow and lack of fogging,” says Mark Chisholm, director of operations for Aspen Tree Expert Co., Inc., about the preference for a [ANSI Z87.1-rated] visor over safety glasses. “Some may even prefer the look over other options. I prefer the visor on my Kask helmets more than the mesh, because I feel it has better visibility for me personally.”

“Over the years, we have had issues with staff (all 20-year-plus employees) wearing a mesh screen and no safety glasses,” says Todd Kramer, training and performance manager with Kramer Tree Specialists. “After investigations as to why, we found out it was simply a lack of understanding and communicating what our standards are. With these veteran employees, it was simply a lack of training. This issue has been corrected.”

“I live in California, where there is often fog and other such conditions that can render safety glasses useless,” says Lawrence Schultz, a contract climber in California. “I will often rely on my mesh shield. However, my Pfanner helmet also has built-in glasses should I want to use both.

“I find that during most operations, unless you’re making chain-saw cuts near shoulder level, the saw dust isn’t being directed toward your face. In those instances, the mesh shield works just fine. If I know I will be making lots of cuts near shoulder level, like cutting or rigging wood, I opt to use a clear face shield. They tend to fog up less, don’t put pressure behind the ears and keep saw dust out of your eyes as well as your nose and mouth.”

“I believe a number of factors contribute to this behavior (wearing just the shield and no safety glasses),” says Tim Bushnell, arborist skills specialist with The Davey Tree Expert Company. “These include:

• Lack of proper training;

• Incorrect training;

• Bad examples delivered via:

        ° social media

        ° industry publications

        ° manufacturer marketing materials

        ° distributor marketing materials; and

        ° industry events that don’t bother to enforce these standards; and

• Workers aware of the requirement but choosing not to comply.”

There are some additional workarounds to help ease acceptance of having to wear eye protection, such as wire-mesh safety goggles that meet the Z87.1 standard for eye protection, or a variety of products that can be applied to clean the safety-glass lenses or reduce fogging. Check with your favorite arborist supplier to see what is available.

The manufacturers

What do the manufacturers and distributors of PPE have to say on the intended use of their products in light of the standards?

“Mesh face shields are a great option for arborists, as they’re designed to protect the user from flying wood chips, which is exactly what Petzl’s Vizen Mesh is designed to do,” says Rudy Rutemiller, eastern sales manager at Petzl America. “The Vizen Mesh, like our Vizi, Vizir Shadow and Vizen, is certified to ANSI Z87.1.

“An interesting point within Z87.1, under the selection-guide annex, is that it recommends (“should”) wearing spectacles underneath a mesh face shield, which the Vizen Mesh allows,” says Rutemiller. “It’s imperative for Petzl to meet the Z87.1 standard, especially as OSHA 1910 and 1926 reference Z87.1, making Z87.1 law for those specific OSHA standards. One additional benefit of Petzl’s eye and face shields is our Easyclip system for installation. The user can quickly switch out different eye/face protection systems for the specific task, whether pruning, chipping or performing plant-health-care work.”

“[The shields] are ANSI Z87.1 certified, and I receive a lot of positive feedback from customers, that they are impressed with the robustness of the shield, the visibility through the fine mesh and its ease of use from an active to a passive position,” says Ally Turner, sales and business development manager at Pfanner (makers of the Protos helmet).

“As for the glasses, they are also ANSI Z87.1 certified, with varying degrees of UV protection,” says Turner, adding that all versions have a UV protective filter. “The most unique thing about the Protos glasses is that they snap right into the Protos helmet and can be moved into a passive or an active position as required. They are tucked inside the shell of the helmet so there is no risk of lost, forgotten or damaged safety glasses. This is one of the biggest benefits for my customers.”

Conclusion

It seems that reinforcing the standards and explaining the difference between Z87.1-compliant face and eye protection can certainly help with any gaps in safety-equipment use among tree workers. There are newer products to help with air flow and other environmental factors that may cut down on safety-versus-comfort issues.

For now, it may simply be a matter of making a point to bring it up and review the requirements again and again (and again and again …)

For more information on how to conduct a job-hazard analysis, visit https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/
publications/osha3071.pdf.

If you are looking for some assistance in selecting appropriate eye/face protection for specific job duties, the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) has published a helpful guide at https://safetyequipment.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Eye-and-Face-Selection-Guide-tool.pdf.

Richard Jones, an ISA Board Certified Master Arborist, is the campus arborist for the University of Maryland, College Park, and one of the founders of Maryland Sustainable Ecologies, a company that provides tree care training to municipalities and nonprofits.