Precautions Other Than Personal Protection
The employer should aim for the most adequate measures, or combination of measures, listed in the Health and Safety Commission's Approved Code of Practice. This sets out the recommended hierarchy of measures in terms of their effectiveness.
1. Prevent Hazardous Exposure By Removing The Hazard Source - Eliminate the use of the substance hazardous to health.
2. Lessen The Hazard - Substitute the substance hazardous to health by one that is less hazardous (e.g. an irritant instead of a carcinogen) or by the same one in a less hazardous form (e.g. in paste form rather than powder form).
3. Control Measures:
- Totally enclosed process and handling systems.
- Plant or process or systems of work that minimise generation of, or suppress or contain, the hazardous dust, fume, micro-organisms, etc. and that limit the area of contamination in the event of spills and leaks.
- Partial enclosure, with local exhaust ventilation.
- Local exhaust ventilation.
- Sufficient general ventilation.
- Reduction of number of people exposed and exclusion of non-essential access.
- Reduction in the period of exposure for people.
- Regular treatment of walls, surfaces etc by cleaning, disinfection, etc.
- Provision of means for safe storage and disposal of substances hazardous to health.
- Suitable personal protective equipment.
- Prohibition of eating, drinking, smoking etc in contaminated areas.
- Provision of adequate facilities for washing, changing and storage of clothing, including arrangements for laundering of contaminated clothing.