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It is not just enough to provide your employees with spill control equipment, you must also make sure that they are adequately trained to deal with any spill that you may have on site.

Spill training can teach employees of the necessity to react quickly and safely in the event of a spill. They will thus be able to use the spill control and containment equipment properly and effectively and hence will stand a better chance of rectifying the situation before it worsens.

It’s not however just important that you know how to cope with general spillages, you should also try to relate this training to site specific issues. This means that employees should be aware of the different substances that may be spilled at their industrial site and know how to effectively contain and clean up the spill.

You can carry out spill training with your employees and have regular spill drills to keep your emergency contingency plans refreshed. However initially, employees who may be the first to respond to a spill should have professional training, so they can be made fully aware of spill prevention, containment and cleaning.

In a new development in the Gulf of Mexico, a Deepwater Horizon oil worker has told the BBC that a leak was identified in the oil rig’s safety gear a few weeks before the explosion that killed eleven workers.

It is alleged that the leak was not repaired at the time and a backup device was used instead. When the rig exploded on the 20th of April, the blowout preventer failed causing the huge oil spill.

The rig worker Tyrone Benton has stated that a problem found was with the blowout preventer control pod that is the brains behind shutting down the well in the event of an emergency.

It is alleged that Mr Benton’s supervisor emailed BP and Transocean detailing the problems when they were initially discovered.

To repair the pod would have meant stopping drilling and hence cost BP a huge amount of money. And in response, Henry Waxman, who is observing congressional examinations into the catastrophe has accused BP of taking shortcuts to save cash.

Waxman said "BP appears to have made multiple decisions for economic reasons that increased the danger of a catastrophic well failure".

The US has identified various issues with the preventer including design issues, modifications and flat batteries.

In response, BP has stated that Transocean was responsible for the maintenance activities on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig.

Many industrial sites are now highly automated. And automatic guided vehicles that follow a PLC controlled program are becoming more common all the time. These vehicles commonly use banks of batteries as a power source and sit at recharging points when not in use.

Automation in factories has simplified many processes and meant that speed of manufacturing has increased. However because of this, health and safety has increased also.

Having autonomous machines in a factory environment is becoming commonplace. And even though these machines can perform their duties with little supervision, they still need some maintenance themselves. And one such maintenance activity that should be done on a regular basis is checking whether the batteries are topped up so the electrolyte fluid is at the right level.

The problem of performing this activity is there is the potential for a battery acid spill. That is why a battery acid spill kit should be made readily available to employees who have to perform the maintenance duties on battery operated automated machines.

It should also be noted that battery acid spill kits can also be kept near the charging area of other machines that use batteries, such as forklift trucks, in case an accident or spill occurs.

One of the best ways to clean up spills is by using appropriate absorbent materials, as can be seen by their extensive use at the recent highly publicised oil spill off the Gulf of Mexico. Absorbent materials can come in many types that can absorb and hence clean up spills or leaks from substances such as fuel oils and dangerous chemicals.

Absorbent socks

Absorbent socks are a great way to reduce the spread of a spill whilst at the same time containing the spill so it can be treated more effectively. Absorbent socks are available in chemical, general or oil absorbent types and are really quick and effective to use.

Absorbent pads

Absorbent pads are available in different weights and can absorb different types of spills dependant on the pad used. General absorbent pads are perfect for cleaning spills such as fuels, oils and solvents and also mild chemicals, whereas chemical absorbent pads are specifically made to absorb acids, oils, caustics and petrol. They are fast acting and a suitable pad to use to clean up unidentified spills.

Having absorbent pads and socks on hand at your industrial facility is really important, as prompt action if a spill occurs can greatly reduce the financial and environmental impact.

In the last two articles we have discussed the various ways by which employees may come into contact with harmful substances. Here we will discuss contact through cuts or skin abrasions and contact via inhalation.

Contact with dangerous substances through a cut or skin abrasion

When working on an industrial site, it can be common to get the odd scratch or scrape as part of your daily working life. And, while some harmful chemicals may not be able to enter your body thorough the skin surface when it is intact, they may be able to enter if you have a cut or skin abrasion. That’s why it’s so important to clean and protect any cuts or abrasions you have when you notice them.

Contact with dangerous substances by inhalation

One of the biggest risks employees face when working on industrial sites is breathing in harmful substances. Sometimes the damage is not noticeable until many years later and damage may not be restricted to the lungs and may affect body parts such as the kidneys also. Suitable masks should be worn on all occasions when dealing with spills of dangerous liquids and employees should be able to have to hand the right equipment to deal with spills and leaks such as appropriate spill kits.

In the last article we discussed the different ways by which employees can be exposed to harmful substances and concentrated on direct exposure to skin. In this article we will discuss the other ways by which employees may be exposed to harmful substances.

Inadvertent swallowing of a substance

Dangerous chemicals can be transferred to the mouth more easily than you may think. And it may only take a small amount of the substance to cause considerable damage. Substances can be transferred into the mouth when employees eat or smoke, or by using their mouths to hold screws or tools that may have come into contact with the dangerous substance.

Harmful substance contact with the eyes

Some chemicals are irritating to the eyes because of the vapour that they release. And fluid splashes can cause permanent damage to the eyes depending on the type of chemical used. Both employees and employers need to be aware of this so appropriate eye safety wear is available for all employees.

In the next article we will discuss contact to harmful substances through skin abrasions or inhalation and ways to clean up spilled substances using spill kits.

In our last article we discussed how it is the employer’s duty to make sure that all employees stay healthy whilst at work. So as an employer you need to assess the risks that you may have on site and then introduce safe working practices and equipment as appropriate.

Perhaps one of the first things to do as an employer, is to look at the different substances that your industry use and work out how your employees might be affected by them.

Workers can be exposed to dangerous substances by the following methods:

• Contact with exposed skin

• Inadvertent swallowing of the substance

• The substance comes into contact with the employee’s eyes

• The substance enters the employees body through a cut or skin abrasion

• The substance is inhaled into the lungs as a gas, or dust

When you determine the different substances you use, you can take preventative measures. However we will first discuss the above exposure methods in a little more detail.

Dangerous substance exposure to skin

There are some harmful substances that can seriously damage the surface of your skin, whilst others may pass through the skin surface into your bloodstream. Skin can be contaminated in such ways as by inadvertent splashes with the harmful substance or even through protective gloves if the substance is highly corrosive. Employers must thus provide the employees with appropriate safety equipment and also spill containment equipment so exposure is kept to a minimum.

In the next article we will discuss the other ways by which employees may be exposed to harmful substances.

It’s really important to make a profit if you are a business owner, but the profit you make should not be at the detriment to your employees. Ensuring your workers stay healthy and happy will make your business a better place to work and may also lead to greater profit margins.

Thousands of employees are made ill every year by being exposed to hazardous substances. And the costs incurred can run into hundreds of thousands of pounds. These costs are separated between different sections of society, with us as taxpayers meeting some of these costs by contributing to disability allowances and allowances for medicines. The costs are also met by industry who have to replace the injured worker and of course the employer who has to pay the injured worker whist off sick and also for any rehabilitation if it was found the employer was not following safe working practices.

As an employer you are responsible for the health and safety of all your employees. And it is your duty as an employer to use correct working practices, train your employees in using hazardous substances and provide them with appropriate safety equipment and the right type of equipment to do their jobs properly.

Introducing work items such as drum storage units that protect workers from exposure to harmful chemicals and spill kits so that any spills from liquid drums are quickly controlled, are just two ways by which you can make a difference.

US President Barak Obama is beginning a two day visit of the Gulf Coast today, to review the damaged caused by the oil spill from the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. During the visit he hopes to talk to local residents and view the damage caused himself. The President is then due to have a meeting with high level BP bosses on Wednesday to discuss the matter further.

Estimates vary as to how much oil has leaked from the stricken rig since the explosion on the 20th of April. The well has now been capped but it estimated that as much as 40,000 barrels of oil a day leaked for the six week period it took BP to contain the leak. However, the problem has not been contained fully and even though the cap has been fitted, oil is still leaking. BP now claims to be retrieving 15,000 barrels of oil per day, which means 25,000 barrels is still leaking into the Gulf. Spill containment booms, surface water skimming, dispersants and localised controlled burns have so far been used in attempts to lessen the environmental impact of the spill.

President Obama has suggested that BP compensate all those persons who have legitimate claims caused by the spill and wants money to be ring fenced for those people. Meanwhile, BP directors are in discussions as to whether to suspend dividends to shareholders, a move that may further enrage those affected by the spill.