DSEAR challenges FOCUS
Elimination Can the process, practice or storage arrangement be eliminated from the area and relocated to a more suitable external location in the fresh air, where the dispersal rate of flammable vapour, gas or dust will significantly increase?
Substitution Is there an alternative process, practice or storage arrangement which reduces the risk of release of flammable vapours, gas or dusts? For example, instead of using open top containers. simply providing additional safety equipment. such as safety funnels and safety containers, can reduce the rate of release.
Engineering controls Is there an automated means of transferring liquids from bulk storage tanks to smaller containers, such as mechanical transfer systems? By implementing these systems, we are able to reduce the risk to life, as people are not continuously required to form part of the process.
Administrative controls Where high risk materials and processes form part of the work environment on a daily basis, education of staff is an essential component. Good practice arrangements can significantly reduce the overall risk to both life safety and
property protection. These include proactively sealing containers; removing funnels from bulk storage tanks; decanting only necessary volumes of product; removing gas hoses following use to reduce the likelihood of damage; removing unnecessary storage or potential fuel sources; and eliminating potential ignition sources.
Personal protective equipment Are there additional measures that can be implemented to reduce the risk to people operating in close proximity to hazardous work activities? Where decanting is undertaken, anti static footwear and anti static high visibility vests can further reduce the risk of ignition by static electricity.
Sources and grades
There are three basic grades of release, listed in order of decreasing frequency and likelihood of the explosive atmosphere being present: 1. Continuous grade. 2. Primary grade. 3. Secondary grade.
A source of release may give rise to any one of these grades of release, or to a combination of more than one. Since an explosive gas atmosphere can exist only if a flammable gas or vapour is present with air, it is necessary to decide if any of these flammable materials can
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