Transportation of Dangerous/ Hazardous Goods in Ghana

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Transportation of Dangerous/ Hazardous Goods in
Ghana

• Presented by
• Lambert Faabeluon
• Director/Manufacturing Industry Dept
• EPA-Accra

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Introduction

• Generally, the transport sector is bedeviled with
  a number of problems ranging from Air pollution,
  noise pollution, tragic (road, air and water)
  accidents and attendant spillages of goods and
  loss of human lives and properties.
• Over the last couple of years, the increasing
  rate of urbanization, motorization and economic
  activity in sub-regional countries has resulted
  the increased use of heavy duty haulage transport
  (long vehicles) to move goods of all kinds
  including hazardous ones at the expense of human
  health, the environment and the quality of life

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Introduction continues

• Most of the long distance haulage trucks are
  diesel powered, often home use and mostly
  over-aged with very weak engines
• One of the major contributors to air pollution in
  Ghana is emissions from road transport
• Other nuisance of heavy duty haulage vehicles are
• Noise
• Recklessness of drivers on the road/accidents
• Spillages of goods

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Introduction
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Definition of dangerous/hazardous Goods

• Simply put, hazardous goods are goods that are
  detrimental to human health and the environment
  whether through contamination with water, air,
  soil /land or
• through ingestion, contact with any part of the
  body or inhalation.
• hazardous goods may also be inflammable or toxic
• The goods can be in different states i.e
  solid (powder), liquid (fluid), pasty or gaseous

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Definition continues

• "Dangerous goods" means those substances and
  articles the carriage of which is prohibited or
  authorized only under the conditions prescribed
  and having the following characteristics
• (a) combustion or evolution of considerable heat
• (b) evolution of flammable, asphyxiant, oxidizing
  or toxic gases
• (c) corrosive or the formation of corrosive
  substances
• (d) the formation of unstable substances or
• (e) dangerous rise in pressure (for tanks only)

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State Policies Regulations

• There is no single policy or regulation in Ghana
  governing the entire scope of dangerous/hazardous
  goods handling and transport except for diffused
  institutional mandates. There are however a
  number of laws regulating the importation,
  handling, transportation of individual hazardous
  substances eg the mercury ordinance, explosives,
  petroleum products, etc
• However, the Ghana Chamber of Mines and the
  Environmental Protection Agency have developed
  guidelines for the management of
  hazardous/dangerous goods/substances. These
  guidelines are however not enforceable and assist
  stakeholders to avoid accidents

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Scope of dangerous goods handling

• All transporters (sea, air, road, rail) of
  dangerous/hazardous goods/substances must
  understand that transport regulations
  internationally recognizes
• (a) dangerous goods which are barred from
  international carriage
• (b) dangerous goods which are authorized for
  international carriage and the conditions
• attaching to them (including exemptions)
  particularly with regard to
• - classification of goods, including
  classification criteria and relevant test
  methods
• - use of packagings (including mixed packing)

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• - use of tanks (including filling)
• - consignment procedures (including marking and
  labelling of packages and
• placarding and marking of means of transport as
  well as documentation and
• information required)
• - provisions concerning the construction, testing
  and approval of packagings and
• tanks
• - use of means of transport (including loading,
  mixed loading and unloading).

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• Exemptions related to the nature of the transport
  operation
• Exemptions related to quantities carried per
  transport unit
• Applicability of regulations of other countries
  in the corridor (axle load)
• Carriage other than by road
• Training and certification of persons involved in
  the carriage of dangerous goods
• Safety obligations of the participants
• Checks and other support measures to ensure
  compliance with safety requirements
• Transport restrictions by the competent
  authorities and security provisions

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SAFETY OBLIGATIONS OF THE PARTICIPANTS

• The participants in the carriage of dangerous
  goods shall take appropriate measures according
  to the nature and the extent of foreseeable
  dangers, so as to avoid damage or injury and, if
  necessary, to minimize their effects. They shall,
  in all events, comply with the safety
  requirements.
• When there is an immediate risk that public
  safety may be jeopardized, the participants shall
  immediately notify the EPA or other emergency
  services within 8 hours and shall make available
  to them the information they require to take
  action.
• Where any participant fails in their
  responsibilities, the criminal code shall be
  applied in determining legal consequences
  (criminal nature, liability, etc.) stemming from
  the fact that the participant in question is e.g.
  a legal entity, a self-employed worker, an
  employer or an employee.

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Handling Responsibilities of participants

• Consignee
• The consignee has the obligation not to defer
  acceptance of the goods without compelling
  reasons and to verify, after unloading, that he
  complied with his obligations.
• He shall in particular
• -carry out in the prescribed cleaning and
  decontamination of the vehicles and containers
• -ensure that the containers once completely
  unloaded, cleaned and decontaminated, no longer
  bear danger markings
• -If the consignee makes use of the services of
  other participants (unloader, cleaner,
  decontamination facility, etc.) he shall take
  appropriate measures to ensure that the Safety
  requirements are complied with.
• -If verifications bring to light any infringement
  of the requirements, the consignee shall return
  the container to the carrier only after the
  infringement has been remedied.

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Loader

• the loader has the following obligations in
  particular
• (a) he shall hand the dangerous goods over to the
  carrier/transporter only if they are authorized
  for
• (b) he shall, when handing over for carriage
  packed dangerous goods or uncleaned empty
  packagings, check whether the packaging is
  damaged. He shall not hand over a package the
  packaging of which is damaged, especially if it
  is not leakproof, and there are leakages or the
  possibility of leakages of the dangerous
  substance, until the damage has been repaired
  this obligation also applies to empty uncleaned
  packagings

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• (c) he shall, when loading dangerous goods in a
  vehicle, or a large or small container, comply
  with the special requirements concerning loading
  and handling
• (d) he shall, after loading dangerous goods into
  a container comply with the requirements
  concerning danger markings conforming to
  international codes
• (e) he shall, when loading packages, comply with
  the prohibitions on mixed loading taking into
  account dangerous goods already in the vehicle or
  large container and requirements concerning the
  separation of foodstuffs, other articles of
  consumption or animal feedstuffs.

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• Packer
• the packer shall comply with in particular
• (a) the requirements concerning packing
  conditions, or mixed packing conditions and
• (b) when he prepares packages for carriage, the
  requirements concerning marking and labelling of
  the packages.

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Transport unitsA transport unit loaded with
dangerous goods may in no case include more than
one trailer (or semi-trailer).Documents to be
carried on the transport unitIn addition to the
documents required under other regulations such
as EPA transport form, the following documents
shall insurance, road worthy be carried on the
transport unit(a) The transport documents
covering all the dangerous goods carriedand,
when appropriate, the container packing
certificate(b) The instructions in writing
relating to all the dangerous goodscarried e.g
MSDS, invoices(c) Means of identification,
which include a photograph, for each crew member
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• (d) The certificate of approval for each
  transport unit or element hereof-The driver's
  training certificate-The permit authorizing the
  transport operationThe instructions in writing
  shall be kept in a readily identifiable form in
  the driver's cab. The carrier shall ensure that
  the drivers concerned understand and are capable
  of carrying out these instructions properly.
• Instructions in writing which are not applicable
  to the goods which are on board the vehicle shall
  be kept separate from pertinent documents in such
  a way as to prevent confusion.

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Hazardous goods transport related realities in
Ghanas Transport Corridors

• The goods involved are limited to sodium cyanide,
  acids, bases, mixtures containing heavy metals,
  petroleum products including LPG and still have
  issues with.
• Documentation
• Packaging and Labeling
• Transportation (vehicle) suitability and road
  worthiness
• Drivers competence
• Definition of route and hazard mapping
• Movement times
• Reporting during accidents

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Introduction

• From 2001 to 2012, 5,380 people were killed in
  only the chemical transport related cases
• The accidents ranged from collisions, tipping
  over, spillages resulting in fires, explosions,
  toxic emissions, leakages and occupational and
  accidental exposure of hazardous chemicals
• In 2012 alone 10 industrial and 18 warehousing
  fires/explosions have been recorded ALL related
  to chemicals and fuel/gas
• The chemical poisoning units of 8 hospitals in 4
  regions have reported 14,890 domestic chemical
  poisoning (mostly agro-chemicals) with 3,400
  deaths between 2001 to 2012.

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Impact of non-compliance with requirements

• From 2001 to 2012, 5,380 people were killed in
  transport related cases
• Between 2001 and 2008, 110 chemical related
  accidents were reported in Ghana and of this 80
  of this occurred in 3 regions (Greater Accra,
  Eastern and Ashanti) .
• From 2010 to 2012, 1,862 undifferentiated road
  haulage accidents were reported
• Of this, 462 serious cases were transport related
  chemical accidents on the Tema-Kumasi-Tamale-Paga
  corridor involving acids, solvents, caustics,
  fuel gas , agro-chemicals
• 100 of them within Ghana outside the
  Tema-Ougadougou corridor and are transported to
  industries and mines
• 30 warehousing, 8 fuel stations and others as
  miscellaneous accidents in nature
• Of the 462 chemical related (transport) accidents
  1,860 people were directly affected, 80 drivers
  and 259 persons died and the rest with serious
  degrees of injuries.

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Fire from naphthalene accident -flat bed
overloaded with drums with nylon ropes fastening
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Impact

• The accidents ranged from collisions, rollovers,
  spillages resulting in fires, explosions, toxic
  emissions, leakages and occupational and
  accidental exposure of hazardous chemicals
• In 2012 alone 10 industrial and 18 warehousing
  fires/explosions have been recorded ALL related
  to chemicals and fuel/gas
• Between 2001 and 2012, the poisoning units of 8
  hospitals in 4 regions reported 14,890 chemical
  poisoning cases (mostly agro-chemicals) with
  3,400 deaths between 2001 to 2012.
• Some of the chemicals were stolen from accidents
  and/or spillage scenes

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Chemical Safety management in Transport corridors

• Building capacity to deal with hazardous goods
  safety management along the supply chain
  involving NADMO, Ghana Road Safety Committee,
  MTTU, Drivers certified to carry restricted
  cargo, DVLA (with vehicles defined to carry
  categories of cargo)
• Elaborate capacity building for staff of GPHA and
  critical stakeholders as Train-the-trainer group
  for sustainability and institutionalization in
  the Ports operation. (some the groups will
  include Customs, clearing agents, hazardous goods
  importers, security agencies, transport owners
  and companies etc)
• Set up dedicated terminals/depots for (specific)
  dangerous cargo and train staff in cargo handling
  and to ensure right vehicles, drivers, fastening
  before dispatch

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Thank you