Hazardous Materials: Overview (Fire Fighter I) © Lon C. Diehl/PhotoEdit, Inc. CHAPTER 28 Hazardous Materials: Overview (Fire Fighter I) 1

Fire Fighter I Objectives Define a hazardous material and hazardous waste. List the common locations that may contain hazardous materials. Distinguish between a regulation and a standard. 2

Fire Fighter I Objectives Describe which regulations and standards govern how fire departments respond to hazardous materials incidents. Describe the roles and responsibilities of awareness-level, operations-level, technician- level, and specialist-level personnel. 3

Fire Fighter I Objectives Describe the roles and responsibilities of a hazardous materials and hazardous materials safety officers. Describe the roles and responsibilities of hazardous material technicians with specialties. List the laws that govern hazardous material response activities. 4

Fire Fighter I Objectives Explain the differences between hazardous materials incidents and other emergencies. Explain the need for a planned response to a hazardous materials incident.

Hazardous Materials Overview Fire fighters may be called to incidents involving chemical spills, emergencies at industrial plants, or railroad or truck crashes. These incidents threaten lives, property, and the environment. 6

What Is a Hazardous Material? A material that poses an unreasonable risk to the health and safety of people and the environment if it is not properly controlled © FIORENTINI MASSIMO/ShutterStock, Inc. 7

What Is a Hazardous Material? A hazardous material can be almost anything. Hazardous materials can be found anywhere. © Richard Goldberg/ShutterStock, Inc. © Harris Shiffman/ShutterStock, Inc. © michael rubin/ShutterStock, Inc. 8

What Is a Hazardous Material? More than 80,000 chemicals are registered for use in commerce in the United States. An estimated 2000 new chemicals are introduced annually. 9

Hazardous Waste The material that remains after a process has used some of the material and it is no longer pure Can be just as dangerous as pure chemicals Can be mixtures of several chemicals, resulting in a hybrid substance 10

Regulations Regulations are issued and enforced by governmental bodies such as: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 11

Standards Issued by nongovernmental entities and are generally consensus based National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) issues consensus-based standards. NFPA 472 NFPA 473 12

Levels of Training The NFPA levels are awareness, operations, technician, technician with specialty, and incident commander (IC). OSHA has issued the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) regulations. 13

Levels of Training HAZWOPER identifies five levels of training: Awareness Operations Technician Technician with specialty Incident commander 14

Awareness Level Awareness-level responders can: Recognize a potential hazardous materials incident. Protect themselves. Most likely to witness or discover hazardous substance Awareness-level responders take emergency response sequence. 15

Operations Level Responders can: Act in a defensive fashion Recognize a potential incident. Meet competencies at awareness level and core competencies of operations level Act in a defensive fashion 16

Technician Level Enter heavily contaminated areas using the highest levels of protection. Hazardous materials technicians take offensive actions. Courtesy of Staff Sgt. Brandie Session/U.S. Air Force 17

Specialist Level Fire fighters at this level receive more specialized training than a hazardous materials technician. The technician and specialist levels are not very different. Most training relates to a specific product or mode of transportation. 18

Hazardous Materials Branch Director/Group Supervisor Assume command of a hazardous materials incident beyond the operations level Trained to act as branch director or group supervisor for hazardous materials component of the incident 19

Incident Commander Develops strategies, tactics, and acquisition of resources needed for response 20

Hazardous Materials Safety Officer Assigned to hazardous materials branch Ensures safety of hazardous materials personnel and recognizes appropriate hazardous materials/weapons of mass destruction (WMD) practices are followed 21

Hazardous Materials Technician With Specialties Is hazardous materials technician with training in specialized areas listed in NFPA 472 Three levels: A, B, C, describe capabilities in regard to response on or off site 22

Government Agencies Department of Transportation regulates the transportation of goods by highways, rail, air, and, in some cases, marine transport. EPA regulates environmental aspects of hazardous materials. OSHA also issues guidance on a multitude of other topics regarding worker safety. 23

Laws Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) Original driver for HAZWOPER regulations Laid the foundation that allowed fire departments and the community to obtain information about hazardous materials in the community 24

Laws Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA) EPCRA requires a business that handles chemicals to report storage type, quantity, and storage methods to the fire department and the local emergency planning committee. Documentation called tier reports 25

Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs) Gather and disseminate information about hazardous materials Composed of members of industry, transportation, media, fire and police agencies, and the public at large LEPCs collect material safety data sheets. 26

Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) Profile of a chemical or mixture of chemicals Provided by the manufacturer and/or supplier of a chemical Chemical’s properties and all pertinent information about it 27

State Emergency Response Commission (SERC) Each state has a SERC. The SERC is a liaison between local and state levels of authority. 28

Hazardous Materials Incidents Are Different Fire fighters cannot approach a hazardous materials incident with the same mindset used for a structure fire. Suppressing a fire is usually more straightforward than handling a hazardous materials incident. 29

Hazardous Materials Incidents Are Different At a hazardous materials incident, actions taken are largely dictated by the chemicals involved. Response objectives, the choice of personal protective equipment (PPE), and the type of decontamination depend on the chemical properties of the hazardous material. 30

Planning a Response The response begins before the alarm. Agencies should conduct incident-planning activities at target hazards and other potential problem areas. Focus on the real threats that exist in the community. Once threats are identified, agencies must determine how they will respond. 31

Planning a Response Established parameters guide response to incidents. These parameters are based on the nature of the chemical, the amount released, and the type of occupancy involved. 32

Summary Hazardous materials pose an unreasonable risk to the health and safety of operating emergency personnel, the public, and/or the environment if not properly controlled. Fire fighters should be able to recognize the presence of hazardous materials. 33

Summary Recognizing potential hazardous material is critical to your own safety. Be alert to the possibility of hazardous materials Fire fighters must be able to identify and isolate the released material at a hazardous materials incident. 34

Summary Hazardous materials can be found anywhere. Regulations are issued and enforced by governmental bodies. Standards are issued by nongovernmental entities. 35

Summary Training or competencies levels of proficiencies are found in HAZWOPER. A person able to recognize, identify, and notify agencies of the presence of hazardous materials is operating at the awareness level. Operations-level responders respond to hazardous materials and WMD incidents. 36

Summary Technician-level personnel enter heavily contaminated areas using PPE. Specialist-level personnel have additional training related to specific chemicals, container types, or transportation modes. Hazardous materials officers assume command of hazardous materials incidents. 37

Summary Hazardous materials safety officers ensure the safety of hazardous materials personnel and the use of appropriate hazardous materials and WMD practices. LEPCs gather and disseminate to the public information about hazardous materials.

Summary Hazardous materials incidents cannot be approached in the same manner as a structural fire. Actions taken at hazardous materials incidents are dictated by the chemicals involved and available resources. A hazardous materials response begins with preincident planning.