CODE BROWN HAZARDOUS SPILLS Purpose & Authority This plan addresses the procedures to be followed in the event of a spill involving a hazardous substance. All hazardous substance spills shall be reported in writing to the Joint Worksite Health & Safety Committee, regardless of size. The report shall include the date, time, location, chemical(s) and their volume, and names of all persons involved, including any visitors who were exposed and personnel involved in the clean up. A copy of this report shall also be kept by the WHIMScommittee. Hazardous substance spills are considered a workplace incident and must be reported; for Covenant Health St. Mary s Trochu call the OHS&W Incident/Injury Reporting Line (780)482-8550 or 1-866-428-8550). Definitions Hazardous Substance A chemical, biological or radioactive material that may pose a threat to human health or the environment. Minor Spill Less than 9 inches in diameter, or 23 centimetres. Emergency Spill Equals or exceeds 23 centimetres in diameter, but less than 1.5 meters or 5 feet. Incident Commander Person assuming command and directing the response and cleanup. Site Lead/Maintenance Manager or Designate on Call Senior manager for the department or facility. This person may be on site or on-call at the time of the incident. 1
Spill Occurs Evacuate immediate work area. Isolate area and deny entry except to Emergency Responders Notify Supervisor/Site Leader/Maintenance Manager or Designate No Staff injured or exposed? Yes First Aide and/or Immediate Medical Care provided Establish Incident Command and classify spill No Emergency Spill? Clean up spill following Minor Chemical Spill Cleanup Procedure. Yes Notify Maintenance Services Incident Command, Maintenance and other spill experienced personnel determine most appropriate method of containing spill, responding to spill and spill clean up: No Clean up spill following Emergency Chemical Spill Cleanup Procedure. Are external resources required? Yes Access Emergency Responders (Call 9 911) Appropriate resources cleans up spill. Incident Commander determines if incident if over and if it is safe for employees to enter evacuated area. Report Incident to OHS and W/Complete documentation. End 2
Upon Identification of a Spill All emergency operations shall be conducted in accordance with the following incident management procedure: Move people away from the spill area to prevent exposure Establish Incident Command Assume that the spill is hazardous. Assist any injured or contaminated persons. Isolate area.contact maintenance deparment. Deny entry to unauthorized personnel. Close doors and windows, as necessary. Evaluate the hazard and risk: What spilled? How much? Hazards of the material Location of the spill. The need to shut down mechanical systems The potential for environmental contamination Determine if it is an Emergency Spill or a Minor Spill. Refer to the appropriate section below. Incident Command Upon determining the incident level, the Incident Commander (IC) will take reasonable measures necessary to ensure that the incident is appropriately contained, responded to, and cleaned up. These measures may include: Stopping operations Evacuating work areas or buildings Shutting down air handling systems Protecting nearby storm sewers Collecting and/or containing released wastes and removing containers Where necessary, the Incident Commander will direct the Emergency Response Team and Security to initiate evacuation of an area or building. The Incident Commander will direct the Emergency Response Team members to provide medical assistance, if necessary. The Incident Commander will assess available information, analyze potential hazards, and relay pertinent information to Emergency Response Team members at the scene. The hazard assessment will consider both direct and indirect effects of the release. The Incident Commander may notify and request outside assistance as necessary. 3
Emergency Spills A chemical spill is classified as an emergency spill whenever it: Causes personal injury or chemical exposure that requires medical attention; Causes a fire hazard or uncontrollable volatility; Requires a need for breathing apparatus of the supplied air or self-contained type to handle the material involved; Involves or contaminates a public area or an occupied patient room; Causes airborne contamination that requires local or building evacuation; Causes a spill that cannot be controlled or isolated by site personnel; Causes damage to property that will require repairs; Cannot be properly handled due to lack of local trained personnel and/or equipment to perform a safe, effective clean up; Requires prolonged or overnight clean up; Involves an unknown substance; or Enters the land or water. Although the following tactics are prioritized in terms of usual preferred action sequences, each spill incident is unique and involves persons with varying levels of spill expertise and experience. Thus, for any individual incident, isolation of the spill and/or securing the area might best occur prior to or simultaneously with contacting the Site Administrator/Maintenance Manager/Designate in charge. Contact Site Administrator /Maintenance Manager/Designate in charge. Don t panic. Always send for help first, if possible. If the spill presents an immediate danger, leave the spill site and warn others. Control entry to the spill site, and wait for Site Administrator/Maintenance Manager/Designate in charge response. Remove contaminated clothing. Flush skin/eyes with water for at least 15 minutes to 30 minutes or as recommended on the MSDS. Use soap for intermediate and final cleaning of skin areas. Protect yourself, then remove injured person(s) to fresh air, if safe to do so. Notify nearby persons and evacuate as necessary. Prevent entry as necessary, by posting a guard in a safe area and/or shutting doors. If flammable vapours are involved, do not operate electrical switches unless to turn off motorized equipment. Try to turn off or remove heat sources where safe to do so. If the substance involved is an unknown, then emergency spill response procedures are limited to self-protection, notification of supervisor or Site Administrator/Maintenance Manager/Designate in charge, isolation of the chemical, and evacuating and securing the area involved until assistance arrives from fire department or other source. Do not touch the spill without protective clothing. 4
Emergency Spill Procedures - Continued Where the spill does not present immediate personal danger, try to control the spread or volume of the spill. This may mean shutting a door, moving nearby equipment to prevent further contamination, repositioning an overturned container, or one that has a hole in the bottom or side, creating a dike by putting an absorbent around a spill or opening the sashes on the fume hoods to facilitate removal of vapours. Never assume gases or vapours do not exist or are harmless because of lack of odour. Use absorbents to collect substances. Reduce vapour concentrations by covering the surface of a liquid spill with absorbent. Control enlargement of the spill area by diking with absorbent. Refer to the Material Safety Datasheet, WHIMIS Manual Chemical Spill Program or area/chemical specific spill response procedures for information on handling spills of a specific chemical. Minor Spills - Minor spills are those spills that do not fit the requirements for Emergency Spills. The following general procedures should be used for all minor spills Attend to any persons who may have been contaminated. If these persons require medical attention, this is an emergency spill (see above). Notify persons in the immediate area about the spill. Evacuate all non-essential personnel from the spill area. If the spilled material is flammable, turn off ignition and heat sources. Avoid breathing vapours of the spilled material. If respiratory protection is necessary it is an emergency spill (see above). Leave on or establish exhaust ventilation if it is safe to do so. Secure supplies to effect clean up. Don appropriate personnel protective equipment. Confine or contain the spill to a small area. Do not let it spread. For small quantities of inorganic acids or bases, use an neutralizing agent or an absorbent mixture (e.g., soda ash or diatomaceous earth). For small quantities of other materials, absorb the spill with a non-reactive material (such as vermiculite, clay or dry sand). Refer to the Material Safety Datasheet, OHS&W Chemical Spill Program or area/chemical specific spill response procedures for further information. Mop up the spill, wringing out the mop in a sink or a pail equipped with rollers. Carefully pick up and clean any cartons or bottles that have been splashed or immersed. If needed, vacuum the area with a HEPA filtered vacuum cleaner approved and designed for the material involved, located in Natural Gas Meter room in LTC. (yellow grey vacuum.) If the spilled material is extremely volatile, let it evaporate and be exhausted by the laboratory exhaust hood (provided that the hood is authorized for use with the spilled chemical 5
Solid Spills Generally sweep low toxicity spilled solids into a dustpan and place them into a container suitable for that chemical. Additional precautions, such as the use of a vacuum cleaner equipped with a HEPA filter, may be necessary when cleaning up spills of more highly toxic solids. HEPA filter vacuum located in LTC Natural gas room in boiler room. (Yellow grey vacuum.) Dispose of residues according to safe disposal procedures, remembering that personal protective equipment, brooms, dustpans, and other items may require special disposal procedures. Refer to the Material Safety Datasheet, WHIMIS Manual Chemical Spill Program or area/chemical specific spill response procedures for further information. Clean Up Responsibility Department where spill occurred: Initiate immediate clean up and / or response procedures Provide trained personnel and clean up procedures Occupational Health, safety and Wellness: Assist in clean up or advise as appropriate Incident Termination The Incident Commander or designate shall determine when an emergency incident is over. This decision may be based on input from the Emergency Response Team and / or outside emergency responders. When determining an emergency has ended, the Incident Commander will consider: Remaining potential threat to human health and the environment Whether the incident has ceased or is under control Whether it is safe for workers to enter evacuated areas Clean up of site Radiation Decontamination Initiation of radiation decontamination procedures is the responsibility of the Radiation Safety Officer. 6
Preparation for Radiation Decontamination General Precautions Inform persons in the area that a spill has occurred. Keep them away from the contaminated area. Cover the spill with absorbent material to prevent the spread of contamination Minor Spills (Typically less than 100 exemption quantities of a nuclear substance) Wearing protective clothing and disposable gloves, clean up the spill using absorbent paper and place it in a plastic bag for transfer to a labelled waste container. Avoid spreading contamination. Work from the outside of the spill towards the centre. Wipe test or survey for residual contamination as appropriate. Repeat decontamination, if necessary, until contamination monitoring results meet the Nuclear Substances and Radiation Devices licence criteria. Check hands, clothing, and shoes for contamination. Report the spill and cleanup to the person in charge and, if necessary, to the Radiation Safety Officer. Record spill details and contamination monitoring results. Adjust inventory and waste records appropriately. Major Spills (Major spills involve more than 100 exemption quantities, or contamination of personnel, or release of volatile material) Clear the area. Persons not involved in the spill should leave the immediate area. Limit the movement of all personnel who may be contaminated until they are monitored. If the spill occurs in a laboratory, leave the fume hood running to minimize the release of volatile nuclear substances to adjacent rooms and hallways. Close off and secure the spill area to prevent entry. Post warning sign(s). Notify the Radiation Safety Officer or person in charge immediately. The Radiation Safety Officer or person in charge will direct personnel decontamination and will decide about decay or cleanup operations. In general, decontaminate personnel by removing contaminated clothing and flushing contaminated skin with lukewarm water and mild soap. Follow the procedures for minor spills (if appropriate). Record the names of all persons involved in the spill. Note the details of any personal contamination. The Radiation Safety Officer or person in charge will arrange for any necessary bioassay measurements. If required, submit a written report to the Radiation Safety Officer or person in charge. The Radiation Safety Officer or person in charge must submit a report to the CNSC. Major spill procedures should be implemented whenever minor spill procedures would be inadequate. If an exposure may have occurred that is in excess of applicable radiation dose limits, the CNSC shall be contacted within 24 hours of the occurrence under Section 16 of the Radiation Protection Regulations For more information, contact: Directorate of Nuclear Substance Regulation, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, P.O. Box 1046, Station B, Ottawa, ON K1P 5S9. Telephone: 1-888-229-2672. Fax: (613) 995-5086. 7
Product WHIMS Classification Chemical Inventory Location Total Volume Volume of Single Largest Container 8