Posted By John Aherne under the HAWSWA how do i know if i am competent to carry out a chemical spill ris assessment. If i do have a risk from chemical spills is there a requirement under the act for me to have spill kits or absorbents on site John

Posted By Robin V Boughton John, If you are using chemicals (substances hazardous to health) you should already have assessments made under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 to govern the use of the chemicals and the likely scenarios relating to their possible misuse eg spillages etc. The control measures specified in the assessment may well call for the use of absorbents, neutralising agents etc and these should be available in the vicinity of the chemicals use and or bulk/storage. As to competence to undertake such assessments it depends on your knowledge of the relevant substance and the possible chemical/health hazards that can arise from its use and in its potential to mix or come into contact with other chemicals or agents such as water/air in a given set of circumstances. Competence is a mixture of technical knowlege, experience, common sense and confidence in your own ablity to get it right or where necessary seek advice from others. Relate this to learning to drive, passing your test and eventually passing the Institute of Advanced Motorists Examination. If in doubt seek advice! Hope this helps! Robin

Posted By Bev John, If you do not have your company's COSHH Assessment to help you (or if this is what you are doing), try looking on the supplier's information for this chemical - the MSDS - Material Safety Data Sheet. It will tell you how people can be harmed, which chemicals, metals etc it reacts with, and how to dispose of and/or clean up any spills. If you have Stores at your company, they will probably have the safety data sheet, or if not, there should be a telephone number on the containers, which you can ring and suppliers will normally fax a copy to you. If on the other hand your company manufactures this, then speak to someone in your technical department and ask them for guidance. It's always a good idea to have spill kits available where ever there are liquids being stored or used, but you do need to know whether these are hazardous in any way so that precautions can be taken to protect those cleaning up a spill. Most hazardous chemicals in drums are in double skinned drums so they are less likely to leak. Keep your chemicals away from traffic routes, fork lifts and anything else that could collide with/damage them, including sources of heat. Keep all containers upright, preferably in drip trays or bunds, make sure all the containers are marked with what they contain and that lids are kept on. Hope this helps you a bit.