The purpose of this document is to establish standard instruction for the safe handling, storage and disposal of hydrocarbons at a Project.
Instruction should apply to all departments involved in the handling of hydrocarbons for a project or an organization.
Identified Hydrocarbons include but not limited to:
a) Diesel Fuel
b) Hydraulic oil
c) Engine oil
d) Gear oil
e) Lubricating oil
f) Grease
Plant Manager / Plant & Equipment Engineer workshop maintenance Manager is responsible for the safe handling of all fuels, oils and lubricants from the time of receipt on site, until the waste oil is correctly stored in the waste oil container at the designated area.
Procurement Department is responsible for the handling of the full waste containers and appropriate means of disposal.
Responsible manager will ensure that a MSDS has been provided for the product and all persons required to use the product have been given a copy of the MSDS and been trained in the safe use of the product.
COSHH Alerts to be displayed at storage and discharge areas.
A copy of the MSDS is to be filed in the Responsible Manager’s and HSE office.
Receiving the Materials
When any supply of hydrocarbons are requested by the Responsible Manager and have been approved by the project manager they are to be received on site in either of the following ways.
- Responsible superintendent will nominate a point of delivery; the crane operator will unload the oil to the nominated unloading point.
- Crane operator will, (under construction supervisor supervision) assist the stores personnel to place the oil in a nominated position within the workshop.
Before signing the stores receivable docket to say the product has been received the receiver must inspect the product and container(s).
Any containers with the following faults will be rejected and returned to the supplier.
i. No information labels
ii. Excessive rust
iii. Leaks
iv. Damaged lid seals
v. Patches covered with tar
Any drums without the manufactures batch numbers or production information on the containers may also be rejected.
Rejected drums will be stored in the waste oil designated storage area prior to collection by the supplier.
Storage of HazMat / Hydrocarbons
Signage in both English and any other appropriate language or local language will be displayed to clearly identify the hydrocarbon storage area.
No smoking (No open flame) signs should also be posted.
Fire extinguishers in near vicinity to be available.
The containers (including waste oil) will always be stored in bunded areas. Bund walls must be able to take 110% of total capacity.
An oil or fuel container (waste or new oil) will only be stored outside of a bunded area to facilitate a maintenance requirement.
The period that a drum is stored outside a bunded area should not exceed 24hours.
Safety Instructions should be prepared by personnel with relevant experience and / or qualifications for the activity to be conducted.
Bunded Areas
Oil and lubricants can be stored in the following areas.
i. Workshop oil storage area
ii. Diesel storage tanks at bunded area
iii. Waste oil area
Note that oil and lubricant drums are prohibited to be stored in other areas of the site.
Maintenance of Sumps
Cleaning and maintenance of Sumps of the bunded areas will be controlled by regular inspections.
The procedure for collection and clean up of contaminants from a sump will be the same as for spillages.
Safety instructions should be prepared by personnel with relevant experience and / or qualifications for the activity to be conducted from Logistics/HSE department.
Ensure that the drain valve is closed at all other times.
All personnel that are charged with the control of, including the draining of bunded areas will be conversant with the project site environmental control procedures for the safe handling of hydrocarbons.
Communications & Trainings
The importance of effective communication is reflected in Policies and Procedures, which requires employees to be provided information, instruction and training as may be necessary to ensure the health and safety of all employees.
Consistent with these requirements, Project Managers are to ensure that:
- Induction training includes details of Chemical / Hazardous Substances and control practices.
- Employees are actively involved in the development of control measures eg. Development of Job Safety Analysis.
- Supervisors receive training in Chemical / Hazardous Substances Awareness.
Records of training provided to employees should be maintained in accordance with the requirements of the site Project HSE Management Plan.
Hydrocarbon Waste Handling
Contaminated Solid Waste
Any contaminated solid waste including, rags, old oil containers, oil filters and fuel filters, will be collected and transported to a draining station in a leak free drum to prevent oil spillage.
All oil contaminated solid waste will be drained for 24 hours at the draining point.
After the drain period the solid waste will be compressed at the workshop waste oil station to remove any residual oil.
The waste will then be enclosed in a plastic bag and disposed of in accordance with local legislation.
Any contaminated soil will also be disposed of in accordance with local legislation.
Contaminated Liquid Waste
All contaminated liquid waste from sumps or any other source will be treated as if it is waste oil.
All waste liquid will be placed in leak free sealable drums.
These drums will be marked “Waste oil” and when full, they will be placed into the waste oil storage area until collection by an approved dealer.
Cradle to grave concept and a buy back system for excess waste to be implemented.
Transporting Hydrocarbons
Fuels, oil and grease will only be transported in approved containers.
The containers will be inspected for leaks prior to placing them on the vehicle.
Any leaks will be repaired before moving the container.
The drums or containers will be placed and secured on the vehicle in such a way that they are upright and cannot fall over.
If no other restraining device is provided then the containers will be secured with rope to prevent them falling.
The driver of the vehicle is responsible for ensuring the drums/containers are secure and in good condition.
Third Party Proof for the compliance of all applicable requirements shall be kept on site.
Hydrocarbon Spillage Control
All employees will endeavor to prevent Hydrocarbon contamination or spills of any size from occurring.
In the event of a spill the following steps will be followed mainly by using effective drip trays:
The spill must be stopped at the source and the spread of the contaminant reduced to a bare minimum, by the use of sand or clay absorbing berms or other inert material.
Spill will immediately be reported to the project Manager and workshop superintendent.
The Project Manager will report the spill to the client Project Manager.
Spill will be cleaned up and any contaminated materials will be disposed of as listed above.
HSE department will give advise on recommended methods and equipment, i.e. spill kits.
The responsible person will submit an incident report to the project manager.
Workshop superintendent will follow up the project manager’s recommendations resulting from the incident report.
Relevant Documents/Records
Project Health & Safety Plan
Project Environmental Management Plan
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