Managing Hazardous Material Spillage - Essay Example

The fourth flammable drum has been knocked off the pallet and is also lying on its side next to the punctured drum. But there is no evidence of any spill.
Problem to be solved: Identify the chemical from the spilled drum as a strong oxidizer, strong acid, or strong base raw material. Ensure the safety of the plant and its employees.
Situation Analysis And Solution: Let’s assume that the production employee does not know how to identify the material, as the Hazard Communication Standard requires that all chemicals be appropriately labeled. “Under the provisions of the Hazard Communication Standard, employers are responsible for informing employees of the hazards and the identities of workplace chemicals to which they are exposed”, says OSHA in its information booklet.

The emergency response team and the plant manager have already been informed about the incident. Entry to the area is restricted except for those involved in the clean-up operations. The first step to entering the area of the incident involves wearing protective gear such as Positive Pressure Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus, gloves, and shoe covers by the team coordinators. A quick survey of the area is done and it is declared as a restricted area. Next is to identify the material that is spilled by identifying the label. Identifying the spill is half work done, as this is will tell what procedure needs to undertake to limit the hazardous situation. The HazMat Team is then given relevant spill response instructions. The following will be the action list they would follow:

The team members also needed to be appropriately protected with personal protective clothing and equipment. Restrict the entry of any unauthorized individuals. As the spillage is from a 55-gallon drum, two or three team members will take care of transferring the contents into a larger drum as soon as possible. Two or three of the members work on limiting the spill from spreading further. A part of the hazard management team involves relocating the other hazardous chemical containers to safer areas. As fumes are being produced, let us assume that the chemical that spilled was a strong acid.

The next step is to use the appropriate acid spill kit to absorb the chemical. The most important point to remember is not to get any spilled material into any body of water, including storm sewers or drains, no matter how small the spill, says a report from Penn State. Once the spill is absorbed the place is decontaminated or neutralized using appropriate cleaning material. Dispose of all the absorbents which are now classified as hazardous waste as they take in the properties of the spilled chemical. The disposal should be done as per the hazardous waste disposal guidelines. As the scale of spillage is small there is no need to evacuate employees from the plant. Read More