Absorb the environmental risks of oils, chemicals & everyday liquids

Absorb the environmental risks of oils, chemicals & everyday liquids.

Part 1 Presented By New Pig UK

www.newpig.co.uk • www.facebook.com/newpiguk • www.newpigukblog.co.uk • Freephone 0800 919 900

Environmental Health & Safety Manager

Waste Manager

Facilities Manager

Site Manager

Maintenance Manager

Warehouse Manager

Operations or Production Manager

Technical Specialist

Stores Manager

Purchasing Officer

Lab Technician


This presentation will be of special interest if you hold any of the following positions:

Oil spills lead to environmental damage. But did you know

that by properly storing and cleaning up oil, you are only

addressing 25% of the

potential risks?

Chemical spills and other non oil-based liquid spills can lead to environmental pollution, fines, prosecution, expensive clean up costs, and damage to a company’s reputation.

This presentation details the hazards that non oil-based liquid spills can pose to the environment and the steps you can take to protect our environment.

Oil spills are a very common and highly visible form of environmental pollution. In fact, according to Oil Bank Line, oil spills account for 25% of all pollution incidents with over 6,000 such occurrences in the UK each year.

By law, you are obliged to ensure that you eliminate or minimise the risk of contaminating water and causing environmental damage by storing oils properly.

The Oil Storage Regulations that exist include:

• The Control of Pollution (Oil Storage) (England) Regulations 2001

•The Water Environment (Oil Storage) (Scotland) Regulations 2006

• Control of Pollution (Oil Storage) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010

But what about the 75% of water pollution incidents that aren’t caused by oil? Out with the oil storage regulations, there are no liquid specific regulations to guide us to do the right thing which may lead to a greater risk of causing pollution if we don’t identify and assess all of the liquids in our workplace.

Liquids such as trade effluent, wash waters, milk, food additives, acids & caustics can be just as harmful to the environment as oil.


Oil spills in water don’t mix

Water pollution occurs when one or more substances have been allowed to enter the water environment that can cause harm to animals and humans.

The key causes of water pollution, other than oil, to consider when assessing the risk in your workplace include:


Causes of water pollution

The Health & Safety Executive prosecuted a chemical company £150,000 after a tank collapsed, releasing a large amount of waste solvents and water at a chemical plant in Rye, East Sussex.

• Spills from chemical containers• Spills of food products e.g. dairy products and fruit juices• Wash waters and waste products• Run-off containing fertilisers and pesticides into surface waters• Silt and soil from construction sites• Trade effluent entering surface water drains instead of foul water drains• Hot water releases

TOWARDS A MORE SUREFOOTED WORKPLACE

There are additional consequences that may occur when non oil-based liquids are not carefully stored or managed:

1. Risk of prosecution – Threats of environmental pollution should be reported to The Environmental Agency.

2. Cleanup costs – The polluter must pay. Even if a case doesn’t go to court, the cost of repairing the damage must be met.

3. Increased insurance premiums – Pollution cleanup claims are likely to boost insurance fees.

4. Danger to human life – Harm can be caused to human health as rivers are a source for public drinking water.

5. Damaged reputation & loss of business – Negative publicity loses you customers which hurts your profitability.


Consequences of Water Pollution

According to The Environment Agency, fish re-stocking can cost thousands of pounds and serious groundwater pollution can cost over a million pounds.

Throughout your workplace, a variety of everyday liquids will be stored and used in various processes. These include:


Identify & re-evaluate potential liquid hazards

Specific areas in your workplace pose more risk than others, but it is important to determine the different processes and the liquids that are used.

• Anti-freeze• Coolants• Cleaning detergents• Emission reduction solutions• Screen wash fluids• Food and drink – milk, fruit juice, beer, wine, food additives and food waste that decomposes

and breaks down into a liquid

Areas of your facility to review include:

• Chemical & drum storage• Vehicle maintenance• Food production• Wash down locations• Warehouses• Stock rooms• Offices• Canteens• Bathrooms• Janitorial cupboards

1. Identify the nature of your liquids – determine all liquids stored and used on site from MSDS’s and COSHH assessment forms.

2. Determine the volume of your liquids – establish the largest amount of liquid that could spill from a single container in one area.

3. Know the location of your liquids – Store liquids as far away as possible from watercourses, open drains, sinks and gullies.

4. Re-assess the liquids in your process – try your best to avoid using hazardous liquids or find alternatives.

5. Determine minimum quantities needed – re-evaluate the amount you need to store on site.


Five steps you can take to identify and evaluate liquids at your facility

Consider storing the minimum amount of liquids as possible to reduce your chances of a spill that can lead to environmental pollution.


Summary of findings

Communicate relevant legislation and response plans to employees and re-visit them periodically with training session.

What you have learned:

Oil spills only represent 25% of the potential risks of spilled liquid in your facility.

Non oil-based liquids such as coolants, detergents, milk and food additive,

anti-freeze and other chemicals account for 75% of the water pollution incidents.

Unless properly identified and addressed in risk assessments, non oil-based liquids can cause environmental damage and pose financial consequences to your business such as a risk of prosecution, considerable cleanup costs, increased insurance premiums and a damaged reputation.


In part 2 of New Pig UK’s White Paper, you’ll discover techniques to protect the environment and safely store, handle, transport and dispense non oil-based liquids.

Self Improvement

Absorb the environmental risks of oils, chemicals & everyday liquids