Basics Of Coshh

Risk management basics - Nanomaterials

COSHH requires employers to protect workers from exposure to harmful substances in the workplace. Embodying the principles of proportionality and risk assessment, COSHH enables employers to make a valid decision about the measures necessary to prevent or adequately control the exposure of their employees.

Due to the chemical and physical properties of some nanomaterials, and depending on how they are handled or used they can give to a risk of fire and explosion. If so, then the principle legislation applying to the control of substances that can cause fires and explosions in the workplace is the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002 (DSEAR).

The key requirements in DSEAR are that risks from dangerous substances are assessed and eliminated or reduced so far as is reasonably practicable. Again the principle of risk assessment applies under these regulations.

The REACH regulation is the key EU/UK legislation which covers the full life cycle of chemicals including nano-sized ones.

Sensible risk management We believe that risk management should be about practical steps to protect people from real harm and suffering - not bureaucratic back covering. If you believe some of the stories you hear, health and safety is all about stopping any activity that might possibly lead to harm. This is not our vision of sensible health and safety - we want to save lives, not stop them. Our approach is to seek a balance between the unachievable aim of absolute safety and the kind of poor management of risk that damages lives and the economy.

There are gaps in knowledge and understanding about the hazards to health and safety posed by nanomaterials. Many nanomaterials have not been fully evaluated. This should not stop risk management but a sensible precautionary approach should be taken to the risk management. More information on this can be found on HSE’s website at United Kingdom Interdepartmental Liaison Group on Risk Assessment (UK-ILGRA).

What is risk assessment? A risk assessment is simply a careful examination of what, in your work, could cause harm to people, so that you can weigh up whether you have taken enough precautions or should do more to prevent harm. Workers and others have a right to be protected from harm caused by a failure to take reasonable control measures.

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