DSEAR doesn’t have to be daunting
Many clients come to us to query whether the require to have a DSEAR Risk Assessment, based on their site or business circumstances. In this useful guide we give you an overview of the basics on the question of “When is DSEAR Applicable?”.
We also discuss other key questions that come up when considering the DSEAR Regulations 2002. These are the regulations which apply in the UK to manage fire and explosion hazards for locations where “dangerous” substances are handled, used or produced. DSEAR is the UK’s implementation of the ATEX Directives in line with the Health and Safety at Work Act. If you’re interested to know what a typical risk assessment might cost, we have written about this too.
This post only covers discussion on the risk assessment part of the regulations, for typical queries on hazardous area classification, look out for our other posts.
Dangerous substances covered under the DSEAR Regulations
Materials handled on site which are covered by the DSEAR Regulations includes any material which is flammable or combustible at the conditions of use. This includes liquids, gases, dusts and solid materials which could generat combustible dust atmospheres. DSEAR should also be considered with any compressed gases and storage of incompatible materials that might lead to chemical reactions (such as storage of acids and alkalis in the same area).
There are some exclusions, but generally if you have any of the materials above you are likely to need to carry out a DSEAR Risk Assessment. If you are not sure if your storage or use of chemicals will be relevant, we’re always happy to help clients decide so feel free to send us a quick enquiry and we can advise what you might need to do to comply.
Am I legally required to have a DSEAR Risk Assessment?
If you are a company in the UK handling, storing or producing dangerous substances as defined by the DSEAR Regulations then you have a legal requirement to comply with the DSEAR Regulations 2002. Compliance with DSEAR is a legal requirement and you are likely to be prosecuted under the regulations if there is an incident or accident at your premises related to dangerous substances and you have not carried out a suitable assessment of risk.
There are some minor exceptions to this (for example very small organisations) however generally in line with the Health and Safety at Work Act there is a requirement for suitable and sufficient risk assessment in a workplace – a DSEAR Risk Assessment provides that route to compliance related to the dangerous materials it covers.
Compliance with this does not need to be scary or expensive, DSEAR can be a very simple and low cost process if you only have small amounts of relevant materials.
If you already have a fire risk assessment, do you still need a DSEAR Risk Assessment?
Most simply: Fire risk assessments and DSEAR risk assessments are separate pieces of work and if DSEAR applies, you should have both. In some cases a Fire Risk Assessment can adequately assess the risk of DSEAR relevant substances, but this needs should be decided by someone competent. Fire Risk Assessments generally cover basic fire protection measures, site procedures and arrangements, methods of recording, and assess overall fire risk from all sources on a site or workplace.
DSEAR looks in focus at the handling of flammable and combustible substances on site and goes into much more detail to understand the risks in line with relevant guidance and good practice. For example a fire risk assessment might note the storage of IBCs on a site containing a flammable material and might assess whether there is adequate fire protection in case of an incident; however DSEAR would assess the storage of the IBCs in line with latest HSE guidance and consider aspects such as ventilation, secondary containment (bunding) and loss of containment procedures.
A fire risk assessment should identify where a DSEAR Risk Assessment is required for a site or workplace however it is up to the person responsible for the workplace to comply with the regulations, so don’t wait for your Fire Risk Assessment to identify this.
When DSEAR Risk Assessments should be carried out
A DSEAR Risk Assessment for an existing site which does not have one should be done as soon as possible. Often our clients have the need for this assessment highlighted by their insurer or a fire risk assessment, in this case it is a gap in compliance and should be scheduled as soon as practical. It is preferrable to have a DSEAR Risk Assessment carried out when the site is operating, so the assessor can see the site in action and any potential failures or equipment issues can more readily be identified.
If you are planning or building a new site, the DSEAR Risk Assessment should be carried out as soon as there is sufficient level of detail to assess the risks. This means that provision for improvements can be made, such as the need for ventilation, secondary containment (bunding) or emergency control measures. Typically for a chemical process a design stage assessment should be carried out at HAZID or HAZOP stage.
This should be validated at as-built stage and the assessment updated to confirm that actions have been taken which might have been identified in the design stage assessment.
How often should a DSEAR Risk Assessment be updated
There is no stated frequency for when a DSEAR Risk Assessment should be updated, however we normally recommend our clients review and update their assessments every 3 to 5 years. The frequency will depend on the amount of changes over the time period, in some cases with very little site or organisational change the review period can be longer, but if there have been lots of changes such as plant modifications, operating practice changes or personnel changes the risk assessment might need updated sooner. The other time that an assessment might need updated is when a major change occurs on site, such as installation of a new process, introduction of a new substance to the site or if there has been a near miss or incident related to DSEAR.
As you can see from the range of discussion topics above on the basics of DSEAR, it is a relatively complex area which could be daunting. However with a bit of preparation and understanding, it does not need to be a big challenge and there is plenty of guidance and advice out there. At OTECSA we are happy to help clients understand what they might require from a DSEAR compliance perspective.