Introduction to Health and Safety at Work

substances by road
Although this topic is not in the NEBOSH National 
General Certifi cate syllabus, a brief mention of the main 
precautions required to safeguard the health and safety 
of those directly involved in the transport of hazardous 
substances and of general members of the public is 
important.
Data sheets from the manufacturer of the hazard-
ous substance should indicate the safest method of 
handling it and will give information on emergency 
procedures (e.g. for spillages and fi re). These sheets 
should be available to all concerned with the transpor-
tation of the substance; in particular those responsible 
for loading/unloading, as well as the driver. The hazard-
ous substance should be loaded correctly on the vehicle 
in suitable containers and segregated from incompat-
ible materials. There must be adequate emergency 
information with the substance containers and attached 
to the vehicle. Drivers of the vehicles must receive 
special training which covers issues such as emergency 
procedures and route planning. There should also be 
emergency provisions for fi rst aid and personal protect-
ive equipment on the vehicle. Finally, the Transport of 
Dangerous Goods (Safety Adviser) Regulations require 
the appointment of a trained and competent safety 
adviser to ensure the safe loading, transportation and 
unloading of the hazardous substance. HSE have 
produced several guidance publications which offer 
more detailed advice on this topic.
Figure 14.14
Health 
commitment.

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Introduction to Health and Safety at Work
244
14.13 
An illustrative example using 
COSHH controls
Organic solvents are widely used throughout indus-
try and commerce in paints, inks, glues and adhesives. 
The COSHH hierarchy discussed under 14.9 should 
be applied to minimize the health risks from the use of 
these solvents. The top of this hierarchy is to eliminate 
or substitute the use of the organic solvent by using a 
less volatile or water-based alternative. If this is not pos-
sible, then some from of engineering control should be 
applied, such as dilution or local exhaust ventilation. 
Alternatively, the workplace, where the solvents are 
being used, could be enclosed or isolated from the main 
work activities. Other engineering type controls could 
include the use of properly labeled anti-spill containers, 
the use of covered disposal units for any used cloths 
and the transfer of large quantities using a pumping/pipe 
arrangements rather than simply pouring the solvent.
Supervisory controls include the reduction in the 
length of time any employee is exposed to the solvent 
and the provision of good housekeeping, such as 
ensuring that containers are kept closed when not in 
use and any spills are quickly removed. The provision of 
barrier creams and personal protective equipment (eye 
protection, gloves and aprons) and respiratory protect-
ive equipment may also be required. Welfare issues 
will include fi rst aid provision, washing facilities and 
the encouragement of high levels of personal hygiene. 
Smoking and the consumption of food and drink should 
be prohibited where there might be contamination from 
organic solvents. All these supervisory items should be 
reinforced in training sessions and employees given 
appropriate information on the risks associated with 
the solvents. Finally, some form of health surveillance 
will be needed so that employees who show allergies 
to the solvents can be treated and, possibly, assigned 
other duties.