DSEAR challenges FOCUS
• the dangerous substance presents a risk to the safety of persons
‘Workplace’ means any premises, or part of a premises used for work, which includes all industrial and commercial premises.
Requirements and responsibilities
The regulations impose requirements for the purpose of eliminating or reducing risks to safety from fire, explosion or other events arising from the hazardous properties of any dangerous substance used in connection with work processes being undertaken. The employer is required to carry out a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to their employees and other relevant persons where a dangerous substance is or may be present in the workplace. Article 22 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire
Safety) Order 2005 states that where two or more responsible persons share premises (whether on a temporary or a permanent basis) in which an explosive atmosphere may occur, the responsible person who has overall responsibility for the premises ‘must co-ordinate the implementation of all the measures required by this Part to be taken to protect relevant persons from any risk from the explosive atmosphere’. There is a legal requirement to notify a
competent authority (such as the Health and Safety Executive [HSE] or the fire and rescue service [FRS]), if any site stores greater than 25 tonnes of dangerous substances, as per The Dangerous Substances (Notification and Marking of Sites) Regulations 1990).
Activities and substances
Examples of the types of activities and/or substances that fall under the scope of DSEAR are highlighted in the following list: •
storage, use and handling of highly flammable liquids
• •
storage, use and handling of flammable gases
storage, use and handling of inert gases which are stored under pressure and may explode if heated
• handling and storage of waste dusts as a result of woodworking operations
• dry food products that create a dust, which when mixed in a cloud with air can – in certain circumstances – be ignited and explode
• handling and storage of flammable waste including fuel oils
• use of flammable solvents and paints
Checking if present
Dangerous substances are defined as substances or preparations that are classified as explosive, oxidising, extremely flammable, highly flammable or flammable. A first step should be to check if the substances stored, used or created have been classified as explosive, oxidising, extremely flammable, highly flammable or flammable. This should be relatively straightforward
for most materials, as suppliers must provide safety data sheets that identify whether the products fall under any these headings. An additional source of information is the HSE’s approved supply list, which contains commonly used substances together with the relevant classification. As of June 2015, the classification of diesel
fuel, sometimes known as ‘gas oil’, and similar fuel oils changed due to amendments to the CLP (Classification, Labelling and Packaging) Regulation. This European Union regulation aims to move the EU towards a harmonised system of classification and labelling of substances and mixtures. The changes mean that as of June 2015, the upper flashpoint for classification as a flammable liquid has increased from 55°C to 60°C, and consequently diesel fuels and other similar fuels are now classified as flammable liquids. Under the CLP Regulations, flammable liquids
are categorised as:
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