Reducing Chemical Facility Vulnerability by Training Workers: Effective Models from the NIEHS Hazard

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Reducing Chemical Facility Vulnerability by
Training Workers Effective Models from the NIEHS
Hazardous Waste Worker CommunityDOE Chemical
Management WorkshopWashington, DCMarch 8, 2005

• Joseph Chip Hughes, Jr., MPH
• Bruce Lippy, Ph.D., CIH, CSP

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--DOE/NIEHS Training Partnership--Program
History Overview--Case Examples of Worker
Training and ISM Principles
Introduction and Objectives
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DOE-NIEHS Partnership

• NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT
• Section 3131
• Interagency Agreement with DOE to develop model
  
• worker safety and health training programs at
  DOE
• facilities for the past 12 years.
• Support worker safety health training for the
  purpose of DOE site clean-up activities, waste
  management and hazardous materials response.

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DOE/NIEHS Training Delivery

• Over 20,000 DOE workers trained annually at over
  30 cleanup sites
• Over 1,000 workers trained at Hanford, Oak Ridge,
  INEEL, Savannah River
• Over 500 workers trained at Rocky Flats, Paducah,
  Pantex Rocky Flats
• Wide range of hazardous waste emergency
  response classes offered

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DOE-NIEHS Training Goals

• Create training partnerships with DOE contractors
  drawing on skilled workers
• Promote a culture of continuous learning and
  integrated safety management
• Blend advanced training technology with classroom
  and hands-on learning
• Reduce redundancy and draw on DOE lessons learned
  in training delivery

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NIEHS and DOEA decade of partnership
Latest report available at www.wetp.org
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ImportanceofNIEHS Training

• Craft-specific for
• Critical populations
• Construction workers
• Fire fighters
• Chemical workers
• -- Professionals

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DOE Worker Trainers

• A cornerstone of the program is the use of
  worker-trainers, employees well-versed in
  performing a given task in a hazardous
  environment who are trained to instruct other
  workers.
• Trainers build partnerships by fostering
  cooperation between management and workers,
  improving efficiency and quality of training,
  improving the ability to address worker concerns
• Training goal is to empower all stakeholders to
  address site-specific safety and health needs.

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Importance of DOE/NIEHS Training

• Emphasizes Hazard recognition
• Incorporates ISM principles into all training
• Builds on the expertise of plant workers for
  training

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NIEHS Grantee Training atHAMMER for DOE/Hanford
Site

• More than 26,047 student days trained October
  2003 through March 2004 for workers in high risk
  tank farm jobs
• Over 2,000 workers trained in respiratory
  protection at the tank farm
• Worker Trainers spearheaded a site wide
  respirator certification program

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Operating Engineers DOE Refresher Classes

• IUOE includes skilled craft workers
  environmental, industrial hygiene, and radiation
  professionals waste treatment specialists and
  company managers.
• Build around ISM principles and site specific
  examples.
• Work Planning and Job Hazard Analyses are key
  components.

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PACE Refresher Training

• The PACE union has developed an innovative
  Systems of Safety (SOS) program
• employs peer trainers to teach other workers to
  evaluate accidents and near misses for root
  causes during refresher training
• management-labor teams perform system safety
  analyses, such as Failure Modes and Effects
  Analysis and develop Lessons Learned Process.

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Case Examples

• Bruce Lippy
• Director, National Clearinghouse for Worker
  Safety and Health Training

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The case for peer training
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Peer Training EvaluationMcQuiston et al., JOM,
12-94

• Long-term evaluation of chemical emergency
  training by ICWU
• Training used participatory empowerment approach
• Telephone interviews 12 months later
• 481 workers (91 response)
• 50 managers (62 response)

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McQuiston Results

• Less than 5 of students were familiar with
  written resources at start of training
• After training 88 of workers reported using the
  NIOSH pocket guide, 62 the DOT ER Guide
• 78 of trainees had taught coworkers
• Average number of coworkers taught, 70 (total of
  26,390)

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McQuiston StudyHandling Spills

• 20 reported a serious chemical spill or
  accident within last 12 months
• 342 serious chemical incidents
• 57 of workers and 62 of managers indicated
  spills were handled differently because of
  training

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Training of Skilled Support Personnel
NIEHS trained the workers at WTC 3 months late
and 3 hours of training
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OSHA-NIEHS PartnershipThe Disaster Site Worker
Course

• OSHA 7600 16 hour for workers
• OSHA 5600 32 hour for instructors
• Incident command
• Evidence preservation
• Stress management
• Two cards issued

www.osha.gov
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Respirators

• Not part of the safety culture
• Many are still ill as a result
• OSHA DSW course requires wearing respirator

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TOPOFF 2 Lesson Learned

• Dirty bomb scenario for Seattle
• ICS called in a crane that sat for 8 hours onsite
• Unaware of HAZWOPER and Rad II heavy equipment
  operators in Richland

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Graniteville Train Derailment January 6, 2005
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DOE-NIEHS Response Training

• International Association of Firefighters (IAFF)
  training of emergency responders at DOE Savannah
  River Site
• Included local volunteer responders and Hazmat
  Teams in the training
• Joint DOE-supported training helped with
  preparedness and coordination

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Vulnerability of Chemical Plants

• EPA 123 chemical facilities have toxic worst
  case scenarios with more than a million people
  at risk nearby
• GAO federal government has not comprehensively
  assessed chemical industry vulnerabilities to
  terrorist attacks.
• Process Safety Management is old but effective
• Inherent safety strategies reduce quantities
  available for terrorist actions

Sonat plant explosion, CSB, 1998
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PACE survey of members (10/04)

• Mailed survey to 133 sites, 125 responded
• 82 were chemical plants, primary paper mills, or
  oil refineries
• Self-administered by members at site

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PACE survey of members They reported that

• 67 had assessed vulnerability since 9/11
• 43 had improved communication systems
• 38 had improved training to prevent attacks
• 30 reported PPE more available
• 17 had reduced volumes of hazardous substances
• 46 had informed local fire and police about
  specific plant hazards

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PACE Training ApproachSmall Group Activity

• Small Group Tasks
• Report-backs
• Summary

Student manual graphic on PPE
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The approach emphasizes exercises like risk
mapping
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The training stresses root cause analysis
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Supporting ISM

• PACE SOS training meets requirements for 1910.120
  and DOE orders
• Workers will be writing their own lessons learned
• Peer trainers emphasize more worker involvement,
  a key part of ISM and VPP

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ICWUC Basic Chemical Emergency Response Class

• Focuses on what to do in the event of an
  uncontrolled release of hazardous chemicals
• Based on OSHA's HAZWOPER std
• Uses a mix of classroom, tabletop exercises, open
  discussions with subject matter experts, and
  hands-on simulations

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ICWUC has used major scenarios with chemical plant

• Worked with Cabot Chemicals
• Coordinated a community-wide emergency scenario
  of a catastrophic chemical release
• Provided findings at NIEHS conference

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Cabot Chemical ScenarioLessons Learned

• Getting outside plant is critical
• Emergency responders werent sure which of the 5
  plant entrances to use
• The plant straddles a county line so jurisdiction
  was unclear for emergency response

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Chemical incidents dont have to be large or
inside
November 2000 Explosion at Portsmouth, Ohio
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A personal case study The importance of
planning and design
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QUESTIONS?

• If it werent for the people, the damned people
  always getting tangled up in the machinery. If it
  weren't for them, earth would be an engineers
  paradise.
• Kurt Vonnegut, Player Piano