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Spill Response and Reporting Policy

PURPOSE

Federal and provincial laws require ABC Company (“Company”) and its employees to respond to environmental spills immediately and, if necessary, report them to the proper authorities. Failure to comply with these laws could result in significant harm to the environment and the Company’s employees, as well as stiff governmental penalties, including fines and jail time.

The Company is adopting this spill response and reporting policy to ensure the safety of the environment, employees, and other persons affected by a spill, as well as to describe the procedures that all workers must follow in the event of any unexpected release of any contaminant into the workplace or surrounding environment.

SPILL RESPONSE PROCEDURES

  1. Spill Response Coordinator. The Company has identified a Spill Response Coordinator (insert name of person in charge of handling spills) and backup (insert name of backup response coordinator) who will be responsible for ensuring that spills are contained, cleaned up and reported properly and for handling media inquiries.
  2. Notification and Safety. Workers with knowledge of a spill must notify the Spill Response Coordinator about all unanticipated spills at the Company’s facility or off-site locations, no matter how small. Additionally, they must also notify all people in the immediate area about the spill and warn them about any hazards associated with the spilled product.

To the extent they can do so without jeopardizing their own safety, workers must also:

  • Attend to any persons who may have been contaminated, removing contaminated clothing and applying first aid where appropriate.
  • Control sources of ignition if the spill contains flammable material.
  • Activate the fire alarm, if the spill poses an immediate health threat.
  • Evacuate the immediate area, closing doors to the affected area on the way out.
  1. Spill Clean Up. Workers should be familiar with the information on the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) for the materials they normally work with and should understand the hazards associated with each of those materials. It shall be the responsibility of each department supervisor to ensure that sufficient quantities and appropriate types of spill control materials and protective equipment, as prescribed in each relevant MSDS, are available and readily accessible to contain and clean up spills.
  2. Minor Spills: After notifying a supervisor and the Spill Response Coordinator of a spill, a worker may clean up a minor spill, provided that the worker has been trained on proper cleanup procedures.

A minor spill is defined as a spill that: (1) is of a known material and quantity, (2) doesn’t pose a significant safety or health hazard to workers or others in the immediate vicinity, (3) doesn’t pose a significant threat to the environment, and (4) doesn’t have the potential to become an emergency within a short time frame.

Typical clean up procedures for minor spills include:

  • Wear appropriate protective equipment and avoid breathing harmful vapours.
  • Use appropriate spill control material to contain and absorb the spill in conformance with MSDS requirements. In most instances, loose spill control material should be distributed over the entire spill area, working from the outside and circling to the center, which reduces the chance of splashing or spreading of the spill. DO NOT ALLOW SPILLED MATERIAL TO ENTER FLOOR OR SINK DRAINS.
  • For spills of acids and bases, use a brush or scoop (spark-resistant if the spill involves flammable material) to place materials in an appropriate container. Store the container in a secure ventilated area and contact the Spill Response Coordinator for disposal instructions.
  • Decontaminate the surface where the spill occurred before allowing normal work activities to resume in the area.
  1. Major Spills: All spills that are not minor must be cleaned up under the direct supervision of the Spill Response Coordinator.

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

If a contaminant is spilled in a greater quantity than that identified in [insert appropriate section of environmental law], the Spill Response Coordinator shall immediately notify the following persons:

  • Provincial/Territorial Emergency Program (insert number)
  • Company president
  • Relevant department managers
  • All other persons who may be directly affected by the spill

SPILL REPORT FORM

The Spill Response Coordinator will also be responsible for ensuring the completion of a Spill Report Form, a copy of which is attached. In the case of minor spills, the form may be completed by the worker responsible for cleaning up the spill.