Nature of Hazards

The chemistry laboratory presents a wide assortment of risks. These risks are outlined briefly here so that you can begin to think about the steps necessary to make the laboratory safer  

Physical hazards. Injuries resulting from flames, explosions, and equipment (cuts from glass, electrical shock from faulty instrumentation, or improper use of instruments). 

External exposure to chemicals. Injuries to skin and eyes resulting from contact with chemicals that have spilled, splashed, or been left on the bench top or on equipment. 

Internal exposure. Longer term (usually) health effects resulting from breathing hazardous vapors or ingesting chemicals. 

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UN type approval mark Confirm nature of hazards from labels Visual check on condition of CTU... 

Seleetion of the SSHO is based on skills and experienee proportionate to the hazards and diffieulties of the job. Additional support staff ean be matrixes to support the SSHO in the teehnieal safety diseiplines in aeeordanee with projeet size and the nature of hazards eneountered. 

Have loeal emergeney responders been provided with information on the nature of hazardous substanees present at the site and the potential hazards assoeiated with exposure to those substanees ... 

In tracing the life of a new chemical, a definition of the intensity and nature of hazard is necessary at the general stages of development shown in Table II. 

The Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) program in the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 are examined with reference to compliance by the coatings industries. The nature of hazardous air pollutants, (HAPs) are discussed, and methods to determine the HAP content of coatings are outlined. Compliance options under... 

Nature of the hazardous materials. Consideration of the nature of hazardous materials includes recognition of ... 

Records retention and paper flow Record retention policies will have to be established and, as the nature of hazard communications change, revised. The nature and the timing of the routing of internal corporate conunu-nications will have to be reviewed so that those persons with ultimate hazard communication responsibility receive appropriate information in a timely fashion. 

EPA has issued an Enforcement Response Policy (ERP) for 4 violations that follows the basic format of aU its TSCA ERPs. Each type of violation is categorized by its nature, extent, and circumstances and then a monetary penalty is calculated and upwards and dovmwards adjustment factors are determined. All 4 violations are assigned a nature of hazard assessment violations. EPA assigns higher penalties to violations involving studies of longer duration simply because they will disrupt the EPA s schedule more significantly. 

Secondly, warning sign should describe the potential hazard present in the situation. The hazard description should be specific and complete so that people can catch up the nature of hazard. It needs to notice that brevity should be considered as well as completeness. 

An understanding of the nature of hazards and the risks that derive from them is necessary in determining what performance measurement systems can give reasonably accurate assessments of the quality of safety management, and the extent to which those systems can be predictive. To help in developing that understanding, this outline of thoughts is offered. 

In order to select, purchase or use protective gloves, it is necessary to obtain information concerning current standards, quality requirements, nature of hazards, performance data, acceptable level of exposure to hazards, and the nature of adverse dermatological effects caused by protective gloves of rubber and plastics. 

A hazard is defined, broadly, as the potential for harm to people, property, or the environment. If there is no potential for harm, injury or damage cannot occur. (In ZIO, a hazard is defined as a condition, set of circumstances, or inherent property that can cause injury, illness, or death.) The dual nature of hazards must be understood. Hazards encompass all aspects of technology or activity that produce risk. Hazards include the characteristics of things (equipment, dusts, etc.) and the actions or inactions of people. 

Is the occupational health program adequate for the size and location of the site, as well as the nature of hazards found here ... 

As seen from Fig. 1/4.3-2, at any point duty-holders need to balance between sacrifices like trouble, time, and cost with additional risk reduction. Duty-holders need to first identify risks to be avoided, then find the cost, effort, and time to be sacrificed and compare with risk reduction involved. Such judgments are done on the basis of nature of hazard, risk involvement, safety measure, and implementation of safety measures. Therefore, it needs significant analysis to determine how to get into the ALARP range, since values are the main prime mover for this principle. 

Building or structure, types of systems and system design, etc. Here also hazards vary with the size of the building or structure, etc., for example, nature of hazard for a tall structure (say Chimney) is different from that of, say, a turbine building. 

Table X/3.2.1-1 Class—Qeneral Nature of Hazardous Materials Class Area...

Systems go bad for various reasons. Many of these reasons cannot be eliminated, but they can be controlled when they are known and understood. Potential mishaps exist as hazards in system designs (see the definition of hazard in Chapter 2). Hazards are inadvertently designed-in to the systems we design, build, and operate. In order to make a system safe, we must first understand the nature of hazards in general and then identify hazards within a particular system. Hazards are predictable, and if they can be predicted, they can also be eliminated or controlled, thereby preventing mishaps. 

Nature of hazards and hazard avoidance Safety management and organization Institutional policies Responsibilities of the supervisor and worker... 

While many products on the market claim to be cut-resistant, they don t offer protection from the variable nature of hazards in the workplace. This claim of cut-resistance is made based on industry tests like the EN388 and ASTM F1790, which only test resistance to straight and circular blades. These tests do not account for things like metal burrs, wood slivers, glass shards, and angled blades that are commonly seen in the workplace. 

As we have seen specification errors contribute a large proportion of safety system failures. Recognizing and imderstanding the safety problem to be solved is the first essential step in avoiding this problem. This in turn requires that we imderstand the nature of hazards and the contributing factors. Hence the emergence of systematic hazard study methods. 

Engineering controls design the environment, the process, equipment, and/or materials to directly eliminate or control the hazard(s).The hazard may be completely removed or if it stiU exists, mechanisms are in place to contain it. This level attempts to remove latent human error potential from the process as well as control the scope and nature of hazards and associated risks (Prevention through Design, 2012). 

A Safety Assessment involves detailed predictions of the likely hazardous behaviour of a system, often before it enters service. Before such an assessment can be made it is necessary to understand the nature of hazards and how system failures/inadequacies contribute to accidents and incidents. There is a causal chain from causes to hazards to accidents. Rhys (2002, page 4) defines an accident as an unintended event or sequence of events which causes death, injury, environmental damage or material damage . The accident is the undesired outcome, rather than the initiating event or any intermediate state or hazard. 

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