INITIAL FEEDBACK FROM BUNCEFIELD SAFETY ALERT

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published the initial feedback from the safety alert it issued to operators of fuel storage depots in February 2006. The full report is available on the HSE website at: www.hse.gov.uk/comah/alert.htm

The initial findings from HSE's safety alert show a generally good level of compliance with current standards at facilities similar to Buncefield, although the Environment Agency has started to identify some deficiencies in bunding and environmental awareness through its separate inspection activity.

There were, however, five instances where compliance levels were not to the appropriate standard, and where direct action has been taken by industry and the COMAH Competent Authority (CA) to address this. The review also recognised aspects of current industry and HSE guidance that could be strengthened.

As a result, HSE is reviewing the guidance with representatives across industry, with a view to providing further clarity as soon as possible, and revised published guidance by mid-2007. HSE will consider the Safety Alert findings and the contents of the Buncefield Investigation’s initial report, expected in July, and will use the information it learns from both to determine what future measures need to be taken to improve safety even further. This is being done in consultation with a Task Group that has been established with relevant industry representatives at HSE's request.

The Task Group is made up of key industry trade association representatives as well as the CA, who will provide appropriate regulatory oversight and direction. HSE will manage this important programme with an aim to ensure further enhanced safety standards are implemented to further improve major accident prevention as soon as possible.

As a separate strand of the work, the Buncefield incident will also have implications for the advice HSE provides to planning authorities. HSE should be in a position to issue revised Land Use Planning policy later this year.

WORKPLACE TRANSPORT - HSE CONSULTS ON NEW SAFETY ROUTE MAP

Workplace transport claims 66 lives a year with over 6300 people suffering injury. In the reporting year 2004/05, these incidents cost the British taxpayer over £200 million with the cost to industry considerably more. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is holding a series of events to debate the content of a proposed new route map. The map, an on-line tool, is aimed at helping employers and workers manage workplace transport risk by providing a framework of current law with links to existing guidance, whilst filling any gaps with new guidance.

Several sets of regulations govern workplace transport and there are many guidance documents, some generic, others for specific industry sectors. The route map will aim to provide a clear path for all employers to follow best practice and meet their legal responsibilities, including setting out alternative ways to comply where these exist. It will focus specifically on site layout and design, vehicle selection and maintenance, personnel matters and management responsibilities. The events, to be held in early Jul y at Cardiff, Birmingham and Edinburgh, will be an opportunity to comment on the proposals and help shape the development of the route map.

A public consultation exercise on the proposals also runs until 22 September and is available to view and comment on, on-line at www.hse.gov.uk/consult/condocs/routemap.htm

Terry Rose, Head of HSE's Field Operations Directorate in Wales and the South West and keynote speaker at the Cardiff event, said: "These events are aimed at employers and workers who might be affected by risks from vehicles in the workplace. They will provide a real opportunity to influence the way these proposals are taken forward. Every year people are killed and seriously injured in incidents involving vehicles at work. HSE aims to reduce this by ten per cent over three years by introducing clearer methods of identifying problems and providing guidance on how to put them right."

Details of the events are as follows:

4 July 2006	6 July 2006	11 July 2006
Angel Hotel	Holiday Inn	Thistle Edinburgh
Castle Street	Birmingham	107 Leith Street
Cardiff	Smallbrook	Edinburgh
South Glamorgan	Queensway	Lothian
CF10 1SZ	Birmingham	EH1 3SW
West Midlands	B5 4EW

All events start at 10am. To book a place please contact the Workplace Transport Team on 020 7717 6059/6840/6366 or email workplace.transport@hse.gsi.gov.uk

CHILD SAFETY REMINDER

As the summer holidays approach the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) offers its support to Child Safety Week by reminding the construction industry and parents to be alert to the dangers faced by children playing on or near building sites.

"Long summer evenings are a time for fun and adventure, unfortunately, all too often it can also be a time of tragedy", said Stephen Williams, Chief Inspector of Construction. "Understandably some children are drawn to construction sites as exciting places to play, but they are not playgrounds and playing on them can have fatal consequences. Industry and parents need to work together to ensure children's safety."

Between 2001/02 and 2004/05, 3 children died and 235 were injured during construction works, in most cases simple precautions would have prevented the incidents ever happening.

A child swinging on a rope, hanging from a tree, on a construction site fell from the rope and landed on a metal bar sticking up from concrete. Workers on the site had noticed the rope; realised local children had used it as a swing for much of the summer, but had done nothing about it. The following practical advice for parents and workers will help keep children safe this summer:

warn children against playing in dangerous areas, including building sites
make sure you know where your children are going, and when they will be back
encourage them to play only in safe areas such as playgrounds
workers should watch out for children playing around sites, if you see children, stop work and make sure they are off site before you begin again; ay heavy objects on the ground or fix them firmly upright so they cannot fall onto children and injure them;
secure sites adequately when finishing work for the day
never allow children to ride in construction plant machinery.

These examples demonstrate just how easy it is for children to be killed/injured during construction projects:-

A two-year old child fell 30ft from scaffold placed around social housing. He received life threatening head injuries. The scaffold had been erected to replace windows and carryout other refurbishment work on a block of flats in north London.
A nine year-old boy was killed and another injured when they were crushed by a heavy steel water pipe being rolled by a group of children. Pipes were being stored in an area open to the public, whilst awaiting installation. They were not fenced off and had not been adequately secured to stop them being rolled.

MINISTER RECOGNISES LARGE ORGANISATIONS' PUBLIC COMMITMENT TO HEALTH AND SAFETY

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, minister for health and safety has presented awards to the first 25 organisations to complete the Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) Corporate Health and Safety Performance Index (CHaSPI).

1 CHaSPI is a web-based tool that allows large organisations to track their health and safety performance year on year and to compare their performance against others. Lord Hunt commented,

"Growing support and use of CHaSPI will help drive health and safety improvements in large organisations."

Health and Safety Commission Chair Bill Callaghan said, "We see good health and safety management as part of good management in general. CHaSPI can help this and it promotes the Commission's strategy of working with and through others."

"We see CHaSPI as a long term measure, so it is gratifying to see the steady increase in organisations whose results already appear on the website."

CHaSPI is designed for completion by organisation with over 250 employees. Results are publicly available, thereby allowing key stakeholders, like current and potential investors, to view the results. Good health and safety management is often a sign of a well managed organisation as it shows that the organisation takes the welfare of its staff seriously.

Health and safety failings cost companies in terms of lost productivity, staff time, reputation and also the possibility of formal enforcement being taken against them.

The organisations represented were:

Amec NNC
Anglian Water Services Ltd
Arvin Meritor HVBS
The Corps of Commissionaires
Geologistics Management Ltd
Health and Safety Executive
Historic Scotland
Hortech Ltd
London Borough of Havering
McCarthy and Stone plc
North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust
Oxoid Ltd
RWE npower
SDC Builders Ltd
SMG plc
Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council

2 Details of CHaSPI, including how to complete it and the results of those companies which have already completed can be found on the website www.chaspi.info-exchange.com/ which can also be accessed from the HSE website.

ENERGY DEVELOPMENTS AND RISK MANAGEMENT

A new report by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) concludes that Britain's existing health and safety system is flexible enough to deal with any hazards and risks from energy developments, and to achieve sensible risk management.

HSE's report, published today, is in response to a request from Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks for an expert report to the Government's energy review on health and safety issues associated with a range of energy developments, and on the potential role of pre-licensing assessments of nuclear reactor designs should the Government decide to look further into new nuclear electricity generation.

Announcing the report, HSE Chief Executive Geoffrey Podger said:

"The analysis of the risks and hazards associated with the energy developments reviewed in our report suggests that the existing framework of controls is adequate. We have identified a number of areas where a more specific review of current arrangements is required. The urgency and priority that attaches to these areas, and the resourcing consequences for HSE, will depend on the decisions the Government takes at the conclusion of its review."

The report covers gas storage; carbon capture and storage (CCS); some renewable sources (wind, wave, tidal and biomass); distributed generation, including hydrogen; nuclear power; and clean coal technology. Its key findings are:

Hazards and risks of gas storage are significant but generally well understood and can be managed through existing arrangements and standards.
Some review of the current legal framework is needed to ensure adequacy of major hazard controls in this area;
CCS is a large scale, potentially challenging new technology but enough is known to conclude that the risks of its deployment are tolerable.
Maintaining safety standards will depend on filling gaps in the knowledge base, developing new standards and reviewing the regulatory framework;
Current law is generally adequate to cover risks associated with wind energy. The main need is for more attention to safe design and integrity and (onshore) closer scrutiny at the land use planning stage. Wave and tidal energy are much less developed, but the risks are expected to be comparable to offshore wind;
Biomass processes are not particularly novel and any expanded use is not likely to require change to current arrangements. The main need is for training and familiarisation of those operating the processes;
Distributed generation involves a wide range of applications and associated risks.

The risks are no different from those commonly encountered elsewhere, so can be adequately controlled through current arrangements. There is a greater need in future to isolate parts of the network to ensure safe working.

Nuclear risks are well known and understood. HSE's expectation is that "third generation" reactor systems will demonstrate appropriate levels of safety with risk no greater than those of existing reactors.

On nuclear prelicensing, the report proposes a two-phase approach; a reactor design authorisation process based on a generic site concept and a site- and operator-specific assessment on which to base the granting of a nuclear site licence. This process is intended to provide a more transparent, rigorous and robust regulatory approach to the safety of any new nuclear reactors. Cleaner coal technologies are developed from well-understood techniques and present acceptable risks, which can be controlled under current arrangements. There is a need for more information and close monitoring ofcritical areas, especially underground gasification.

Copies of the report, The health and safety risks and regulatory strategy related to energy developments: An expert report by the Health and Safety Executive contributing to the Government's Energy Review, 2006, can be seen atwww.hse.gov.uk/consult/condocs/energyreview.htm Printed copies are also available free from HSE Books, PO Box 1999, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 2WA, tel: 01787-881165 or fax: 01787-313995.

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