Health and Safety Processes at Work: Chemical Hazards

Published Date: 18 Oct 2017

• France Ogagarue

Managing Health and Safety Process at Work

Topic: Chemical Hazards

1.0 Introduction

Chemical Hazard under the (WHS Directives) is any material, mix or article that satisfies the criteria of one or additional internationally harmonised system of category and classification of chemical hazards classes, counting in (WHS Directives in schedule section 6 of the directive) in relative to chemical, a chemical hazard is a set of natural properties of the material, mix article or process that may cause unfavourable effect to the organisms, community or environments.

(WHS Directives) analysis further, there are two main types of chemical hazards connected with hazardous chemicals, which may present an instant or long term damage or health illness to worker well-being and creature. The two main types of chemical hazards are classified as follows.

• According to (WHS Directives) health hazards, this are properties chemical that contain the potential to cause unfavourable health effect, for examples, exposure frequently occur throughout inhalation, and skin contacts or ingestion, unfavourable health effect can been either, (acute short term) or (chronic long term) classic acute health effects comprise of headaches, vomiting or skin decay, while chronic health effects comprise of dermatitis, nerve damage, cancer and asthma.
• Further examination from (WHS Directives) physicochemical hazards, this are physical or chemical properties of the material that mix or article that pretence risks to worker health, and other than health risks, they do not arise as result of the organic contact of the chemical with peoples. They arise throughout unsuitable handling or use and can frequently effects in damage to peoples and or harm to properties as effect of the intrinsic physical hazard, examples, of physicochemical hazards contain explosive, corrosive or flammable, therefore, chemically reactive and oxidising chemicals both have health and physiochemical hazardous.
  1. Management Intervention

Bretherick, L. Handbook of Reactive Chemical Hazards. 2^nd ed. (1979) chemical analysis the role of management intervention must included risk appraisal under (WHS Directive) although it’s necessary for specific situation, for examples, when working with hazardous chemical materials. However, management though in many situation it will be the greatest way to establish the measure that have to be implement to control hazards and risks in the workplace including the environment, (EMS-ISO 4001) BS.

In addition, management intervention will assist the following for examples.

• Recognize which worker well-being, are at risk to chemical hazards exposure
• Establish which sources and process are causing the chemical hazards and risks
• Categorize what kind of control and monitoring measure should be implement
• Verification of the efficiency of the existing control measure and monitoring systems in place

When the hazards and the related risks are well know, and have well be set up and established suitable adequate control measure to monitor the hazards chemical risk in the work environments, the risk appraisal must also judge anticipated failure of plant and machinery tooling equipments, as well as any additional control measure to avoid the hazards chemical risk of workers, community and the environment issue in line with (EMS-ISO 4001) BS.

1.2. Management Best Practice

Hilado, C.J. Clack. Organic Solvent, Chem. Eng, NY, (1972), (19), (75-80) beliefs, management must implement their best safety practice to intervene with reference to (WHS Directives. R. 330) to ensure the producer or the importer must put in practise a safety symbol of safety date sheet for the hazardous chemical before initial developed or import hazardous chemical or as quickly as best practicable after the initial developed or import and before initial supply, to any work place. Therefore, the producer or the importer of the hazardous chemical must supply up to date the safety data sheet for the hazardous chemical.

1.3 Labels

NIOSH OSHA Product Guide to Chemical Hazards, (NIOSH) September (1978), Public, No, (78) analysis, the producer and the importer of a hazardous chemical must ensure it’s properly label as quickly as best practicable, after developed or importing the hazardous chemical substances under (WHS Directive. R. 335), hazardous chemical information will be accessible from the label, some product labels do not enclose all chemical hazards information, and i.e. all hazards chemical substances that are dangerous goods are full labelled to meet safety transport requirements. Below some examples of safety hazardous chemical label cautions and the types of hazardous hazards you can simply identify.

Flammable Acute Toxicity Warning Human Health Corrosive

Sources: Http://www.HSG 65

1.4 Control Measure

Proctor, N. Hughes, Hazards in the Workplace, (1978) analysis the hierarchy of control of hazards chemical readily available in a quantity of ways to control the risks related with hazardous chemical substances, several machines control measure are extra effective than others, control measure can been rank starting the highest levels of defence and dependability to the lowest levels. These ranking is recognized as the hierarchy of control measure and monitoring systems.

Management of hazards chemical substance, must always aim to eliminate a hazards and related risks initial, if these is not reasonably best practicable, the risks should be minimised by means of one or the following approach techniques either by for examples, the followings.

• By Substitution.
• By Isolation and,
• By implementing engineering control guards.

If a risk then leftovers, it must be minimised by implement an administrative control measure in places, so far as is reasonably best practicable means, any leftover risks must be minimised with appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE).

In summary it’s advisable to implement local exhaust ventilation systems to arrest airborne contamination substance that will cause hazardous chemical harm to workers well-being, working environment and the community the ventilation must be in safety order to stop contamination of chemical substance harm from incoming contact toward the breathing zone in relation to the workers health and safety.

1.5 Conclusion

In occupational health and safety, chemical hazard is any material that has be mix or article of difference combination of chemical substance, under (WHS Directive) that can lead to cause harm to well-being of workers health and safety at the working place and environments or the community in general. The health effect from hazardous chemical can contribute to either acute short term or chronic long term health effects; therefore, risk appraisal is necessary for a specific situation to manage the hazards chemical substance within the working place to recognize which worker at risk to hazardous chemical. Therefore, hierarchy of control measure of hazards chemical issue have be implements in the working place to monitors and minimised the risks level of workers expose to the above hazards, the risks control measure must aim to eliminate the risks and hazards associated the chemical substances either by the following ways, by substitution, isolation or implementing engineering or an administrative control measure including the use of appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE)