What best describes the primary difference between formal inspections and site-specific hazard assessments?

• A. Formal inspections monitor ongoing conditions; site-specific hazard assessments identify unforeseen hazards before work starts.
• B. Site-specific hazard assessments monitor ongoing conditions; formal inspections identify hazards before work starts.
• C. Both occur before work starts; one focuses on PPE.
• D. Formal inspections occur after work; site-specific hazard assessments occur during work.

Answer: (A)

The key idea is about when and why each is done: formal inspections are ongoing checks of the workplace and its conditions to ensure safety while work is happening, focusing on monitoring and verifying that things remain within safe limits. Site-specific hazard assessments are done for a particular job before work begins, aiming to identify hazards that could arise from that task or site conditions and to establish controls in advance. Because of that timing and purpose, the primary difference is that inspections monitor ongoing conditions, while site-specific hazard assessments identify potential hazards before work starts. This explains why the described option is the best: it assigns ongoing monitoring to formal inspections and pre-task hazard identification to site-specific hazard assessments.