Jobsite Safety and Environmental Compliance
Protect people first, then the site
Construction safety questions rest on OSHA 29 CFR 1926, enforced in Nevada by Nevada OSHA (which also covers state and local government employers). Learn the Focus Four hazards - falls, struck-by, caught-in/between, and electrical - because most fatalities fall into them.
Numbers to memorize: fall protection is required at 6 feet in construction (guardrails, nets, or personal fall arrest); scaffolds trigger fall protection at 10 feet; ladders must extend 3 feet above the landing and be set at a 4:1 angle. Excavations 5 feet or deeper require a protective system (sloping, benching, shoring, or a trench box) and inspection by a competent person daily and after rain; ladder access is required at 4 feet, and spoils and equipment stay at least 2 feet from the edge. A competent person also governs scaffold erection and fall-protection training.
Environmental compliance runs in parallel. Land disturbance of one acre or more requires NPDES construction general permit coverage and a SWPPP with best management practices for erosion, sediment, and track-out; Nevada dust rules are strict, so watering and covering loads matter. Demolition requires an asbestos survey before disturbance, and hazardous waste, used oil, and spills carry their own handling and reporting rules.
Worked example: an 8-foot-deep utility trench in Type B soil. That is past 5 feet, so a protective system is mandatory - slope at 1:1 (45°) or install shoring or shielding, keep the spoil pile 2 feet back, provide a ladder within 25 feet of each worker, and have the competent person inspect before entry.
Traps: applying the 6-foot fall rule to trenches; dropping a trench box in without a ladder; skipping the asbestos survey during renovation.