There is no shortage of environmental, health, and safety concerns for companies that utilize toxic chemicals and other hazardous substances in the workplace. However, a chemical spill or release is certainly near the top of the list with regard to potential consequences. It’s beyond critical for businesses that work with chemicals to understand how to prevent spills and releases while also knowing how to address them if they happen. Therefore, it’s best to go over some of the best practices for prevention and preparedness as it relates to chemical spills and releases in the workplace.
The first step in handling spills and releases is understanding the difference between the two. While the two words are often used interchangeably, they aren’t the same.
The spill occurs anytime that a chemical or hazardous substance leaks or gets released accidentally from a container, hose, or pipe. As long as the substance is confined to the company’s property, it remains a spill.
However, if the substance goes beyond the property, it’s updated to a release. Needless to say, a release is more serious because it can have an impact on the outside environment, as well as people outside the company. This is why it’s critical for businesses to have a plan in place for how they are going to prevent spills in the first place and how they can prevent a spill from becoming a release. Not all spills can be prevented, although steps can be taken to reduce the frequency and seriousness of them because the consequences can be serious for a variety of parties if a spill becomes a release.
For preventing spills and releases, prevention is always the top priority. By taking the following steps, companies that work with potentially harmful substances can better reduce the possibility of a spill while also limiting the possibility that it could become serious enough to be categorized as a release.
Proper storage of hazardous substances should always be taken seriously. Areas of the workplace used to store chemicals should be as far away as possible from fire hazards and any natural phenomenon, including rainfall. Keep in mind that any source of water can help to spread the spill quicker, so storage areas need to be kept dry. It’s also critical to store chemicals close to the ground or on shelves that are secure. Keeping chemicals away from other chemicals that could create a negative reaction is also critical because contamination is also a big concern if there is a spill.
Workplace safety inspections are always a good idea, but they become a lot more important when chemicals are involved. Frequent safety inspections of areas where chemicals are stored can help to check for potential leaks in containers, loose caps, or any signs of deterioration that could make a spill more likely. Whenever chemical spills are a concern, being proactive with inspections is always the best policy.
Another thing to do during inspections – not to mention during the daily course of work – is to check the labels of chemicals. Employees should always be aware of what chemicals they’re working with and double-check that labels are accurate. Just in case there is a spill, it’s vital that employees know what substance has been spilled because it could alter their response.
While this goes without saying, employees need to handle chemical containers with the utmost care. After working with substances for an extended period of time, some employees can get too comfortable or complacent. But working with chemicals should always be taken seriously and substances treated with respect. While some spills can’t be prevented, any chemical spill caused by employee carelessness is unacceptable.
To help prevent spills as much as possible, every company should have a set of protocols for handling hazardous substances. How and when should they be used? How should they be transported? Are there quantities that are acceptable and unacceptable? The specific protocols will vary based on the specific substance and how it’s used. However, creating a well-defined set of protocols for using hazardous chemicals in the workplace is a necessity for preventing spills.
Along with these protocols, every company needs to have a training program that’s specific for employees who work with hazardous substances. In some cases, this might need to be a separate training program from standard workplace safety training. Anyone who works with chemicals should receive training that is 100% related to working with hazardous substances in a safe manner. It’s always better to be safe than sorry, which means there is no such thing as too much training when it comes to chemicals.
Last but not least, there should be a clear set of procedures for how employees should dispose of excess chemicals and waste. It’s during this process that companies are usually most vulnerable to spills. There needs to be crystal clear directions for how this should be done. In most instances, companies should consider bringing in outside help to make sure chemical waste is disposed of safely. Again, it’s better to be safe than sorry, so companies should take no chances with something this risky.
While prevention is obviously critical, knowing what to do after a spill to prevent a release can be just as important. After all, accidents are still possible even for companies that work diligently to prevent spills. Therefore, companies need to be equally aware of what steps to take if a spill occurs.
Any spill or leak of a hazardous substance should be reported immediately. Anyone in the vicinity should be notified so that they can take steps to avoid the substance. Remember that nobody should touch or walk near a hazardous substance that’s been spilled unless they are part of the clean-up team. Anyone who isn’t part of this process needs to be warned of the danger right away.
If there is a spill, it immediately becomes the top priority of everyone working. Everything else will become non-essential until the spill is no longer a danger. Anyone who can’t help contain the spill should stop working and be evacuated from the area. Any other employees whose work could interfere with containing the spill or go anywhere near the location of the spill should cease work immediately. In other words, the entire focus should be on containing the spill as quickly as possible and getting everyone else far away.
One of the first things that employees should understand when a spill occurs is what else could happen. What types of safety hazards are created in the event of a spill? Could certain substances mix poorly with other chemicals? Could the chemical spill lead to a fire? Could it become necessary to call first responders? Obviously, a chemical spill is a big deal and the top priority. But employees also need to be thinking about what else could go wrong during a spill to prevent the seriousness of the situation from escalating further.
Other than protecting employees and being aware of other hazards, the top priority after a chemical spill is containing and stopping the spill. The cause of the spill, such as a leak in a container, needs to be addressed. But the substance that’s been spilled also needs to be contained before it gets too far and threatens to become a release. The methods used to contain and stop the spill can vary based on the specific substance. Therefore, employees must have in-depth knowledge of each substance present in the workplace so they know how to react to a spill.
Containing a spill is going to require proper tools and equipment. Any company that uses chemicals in the workplace needs to have spill kits located in close proximity to any place chemicals are used or stored. Pallets and chemical bunds can be critical to limiting the scope of spills, allowing spill kits to absorb the chemicals as quickly as possible. Of course, in addition to safety training on how to prevent spills, employees also need to be instructed on how to use spill kits and other tools that are needed to clean up a spill.
Once the spill has been contained and stopped, cleaning up is the next priority. This may not be as easy as it sounds because parts of the workplace may have been contaminated. Companies need to have neutralizers and sanitizing agents on hand to ensure the area is safe. If the spill is serious enough, a team of hazardous material experts may need to be called to help. The bottom line is that employees shouldn’t be allowed to return to the area until it’s been double-checked and completely safe.
Whether it’s a big spill or a small one, all companies should write a report about the incident. In some cases, a report may need to be filed with a regulatory agency. But even if that’s not a requirement, an internal investigation should be conducted This is the only way to learn more about what happened, including why the spill happened in the first place and how it was handled. With the information that will be gathered in the report, it will be easier to understand what happened and be better prepared for similar incidents in the future. Even if the incident wasn’t serious, there are still important lessons that can be learned.