Environmental Hazards from Chemical Industries - Coursework Example

Course: Tutor: Name: Date: Introduction Chemical industries are known for releasing a lot of hazardous materials that may have an environmental impact. Environmental impact is any change that may occur in the environment, both harmful and beneficial as a result of activities from a particular facility, the facility’s products or services. Hazardous materials are substances that cause danger to the health of human beings and also to the environment. To ensure that the environment and the people are protected from the impacts of theses materials, there are strict control measures that may be adopted throughout the lifecycle of these materials starting from when they are imported, during the manufacturing process and also during the disposal. Chemical control is therefore a law enforcement issue in most governments where depending on the country; it is handled by the ministry of public health, ministry of trade and also the ministry of environment. For example, in Saudi Arabia, industries follow the Royal Decree M/34 which sets out the basic framework for environmental control and mandates the enforcement duty to the General Presidency of the Meteorology and Environmental Protection. In the United States, the chemical manufacturing sector is guided by a sector strategies program that has published an implementation guide for the specialty-batch manufacturing industry (Highland, 85). This report however looks at the environmental management aspects that necessary in a chemical manufacturing industry as dictated by environmental regulations such as OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) and EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) in the United States. Environmental hazards from chemical industries Release of chemical agents to the environment whether in the air, in the water or in the soil has been shown to have very adverse effects. Most of these effects are health related ranging from diseases such as cancer, respiratory infections, brain damage and also defects to the newly born children. The chemical pollutants have also been found to enhance the spread of infectious disease since they render the body unable to fight off infections. Some of these conditions may take very long time to manifest but they build up within the human bodies as a result of prolonged exposure to the pollutants. Environmental issues in the chemical industries are as a result of use of non-renewable resources such as fuel and also release of the pollutants into the environments during the processes of production. Each stage of chemical industry processing process can have negative environmental impact. One of the industrial wastes that come out of the chemical industries is waste water. This if not handled carefully, it can leak into other useful water bodies thus contaminating water that is safe for human use. The other environmental hazard may result from the solid wastes from an industry. Solid wastes also involve the packaging materials that are used for the chemicals. Packaging materials may no0t be toxic to the environment but the problem with most of them is that they do not easily degrade once they are disposed. They therefore keep pilling in the environment adding onto the solid wastes. This is because most of them are designed in a manner that they are to be thrown away once the content is over. They therefore end up being an environmental hazard since they fill up the land fills hence acting as breeding places for harmful organisms. Other hazards include hydrocarbons and mercury that is released from some chemical industries. Hydrocarbons once they get into the environment, they may be inhaled by humans resulting to respiratory infections. They may also be a threat to the lives of the wildlife. Some chemical industries may direct their liquid wastes such as mercury into the water bodies thus threatening the aquatic lives and also lives of human beings who consume that water. Noise may also be another environmental hazard caused by chemical industry. Noise may be from the company employees and also from the running of machinery during the manufacturing process. For example, my company of study has over 1000 employees who may be interacting with each other during their work. This group of people has the potential of making noise that may be heard by people in the surrounding. The running of machines may also produce noise that may be disturbing to the environment. It is therefore important for the chemical industries to ensure that the benefits obtained from the use of chemicals do not have adverse effects on the human health and also the environment. Recently, most chemical industries have improved their performance and adopted cleaner technologies even though the chemical industry still remains the top in contributing to environmental problems. Environmental laws governing chemical industries The International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA) has come up with a Responsible Care Program to be adopted by all chemical industries to ensure that with the maximization of benefits from the chemicals, there is minimization of adverse effects on human health and the environment. ICCA encourages the chemical manufactures in the world to adopt sustainable environmental principles of sustainable development. Responsible care program was formed in Canada in 1985 and is a voluntary global initiative by the chemical manufacturers to enable them address public concerns about the manufacturer, distribution and use of chemicals. The program has a membership of 47 countries in the world. In this program, all the chemical manufacturing industries in the member countries commit themselves to collaborate in working towards health improvement and environmental safety in all their processing activities. Membership to this initiative is voluntary but once signed in, it is binding that the management on behalf of the company has the role of implementing the guiding principles state in the initiative and the code of practice as well as cooperating with other companies (Woodside, 24). In the United States, two regulations that govern environmental protection are OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) and EPA (Environmental Protection Agency). OSHA’s main mission is to protect employees form injuries that are related to work, illnesses and fatalities in the workplace by issuing and enforcing standards for the workplace that ensures safety of every person in that place. This body conducts inspection of the workplaces whenever they notice a hazard that may cause injury to the workers or fatality in the future. It also conducts inspection following complains form the workers or after an accident has happened in a particular workplace. EPA is an agency of the US federal government whose role is to protect human health and the environment by enforcing laws that have been passed by the congress. It looks at all sectors of the environment including air pollution, water, waste management, fuel, pollution from oils, and protection from radiation among others. The agency has written acts on every sector that sets out the rules. These include safe drinking water act, solid waste disposal act, nuclear waste repository act, water pollution control act, national environmental policy act and toxic substance control act among others. Procedures for handling environmental hazards from chemical industries These are the procedures that can be followed to ensure waste minimization from the chemical industries. The Green Chemistry This campaigns for utilization of developed chemical principles and methodologies that may assist in reducing or doing away with the release of hazardous substances in the process of manufacturing and application of the chemical products. The Green process integrates practices that prevent pollution in the process of chemical manufacturing and also aims at achieving the goals of industrial ecology. The principle that is used here is that there can be modification in the synthesis process, that is feedstock and the reactions, and obtain a similar final product but at the same time reduce use of toxic materials, toxic byproducts and any wastes (Anastas & John, 15). This process involves use of alternative starting materials, reagents, safer chemicals as the final; products and safer manufacturing process. The figure below shows a summary of how the green chemistry can reduce hazardous waste materials. Alternative feedstock Atom efficiency Minimum transportation Minimal consumption Biodegradable Renewable resources Catalysts Minimal packaging Maximum efficiency Recyclable Zero wastes Eco-friendly packaging Minimal auxiliary Minimal energy Environmentally Avoid auxiliaries Solvent substitution needs compatible Minimize solvents Safer chemistry Minimize Minimum energy transportation No additives Basically, waste minimization defines the goals and procedures for reducing both the quality and quantity of wastes, on top of reducing the raw materials and the rate at which energy is consumed. It also sets out the strategies to be applied in the manufacturing process but it does not offer to tools to apply in this process. On the other hand, Green Chemistry is a tool for use in the chemical industry to reduce environmental pollution from the industries and reduce the amount of energy used in the production process. The Green Chemistry also focuses on the principle of strict avoidance of waste creation, waste reduction and improvement of waste quality from its source (Lewinsky, 24). Issues associated with working with the government officials With the adoption of hazard minimization measures by the chemical industries, there is also the challenge of complying with the government requirements on waste management. In most countries all over the world, the government conducts inspection on industrial compliance to its requirements. Some of the areas that are inspected in the chemical industries include bulk storage, package storage, waste storage, chemical handling, chemical packaging, and incident management among others. On the bulk storage, most of the government regulations require that large volumes of chemicals to be stored in storage tanks that are built with the best engineering methods such that they have an inert gas blanket to ensure minimal escape of vapors into the environment. They should also be protected with impervious walls to ensure there are no leaks and spills. On package storage, these regulations require that the dangerous products should be stored well labeled and in isolation away from incompatible materials. On wastes disposal, it is required that wastes be treated before they are discharged into the sewerage systems (Smith & Petley, 308). For general handling of the chemicals and their wastes, most governments require that in order to reduce the spills and leaks that may cause pollution during loading and offloading, there should be pollution control that may contain the leaks and the spills. On incident management, the government regulations states that the process of handling and transporting chemical liquids may sometimes result to environmental pollution. This therefore requires that the industries should have emergency risk management plans that may respond in case of any incident. How to handle the issues Since there will always be government intervention on every process carried out which may be of environmental concern, companies must have a way of handling the challenge of compliance with the government regulations. The best method that companies should adopt is to have the government regulations written in every corner of the premises so that as the workers carry out their duties, they are aware of them. Companies must comply with he government regulations however strict they may be an dit is therefore important to invest in them once and for all. This may involve technology and training but will completely eliminate any government interference on the company’s processes. Example of a checklist for hazardous wastes Main question: if your facility generates between 100 and 100 kg of hazardous wastes per month, do you: 1. Only accumulate the wastes in tankers? 2. Ensure that all the tankers containing the hazardous materials are labeled and kept in closed isolated places? 3. Have primary emergency coordinators and emergency numbers next to your telephone? 4. Train your personnel on waste management emergency response process that are specific to your industry? 5. Have a permitted transported for shipping your wastes? 6. Keep all the documents for waste management for a period of more than three years? 7. Have a waste minimization plan? (Stellman & ILO, 61) Challenges associated with ensuring company personnel follow environmental regulations It is very important to ensure that employees comply with the respective environmental regulations under which the company operates. This is because most of the issues that may result in environmental pollution arise from unethical actions of the employees. One of the challenges that may be experienced by the management result due to employee diversity. Employee diversity result due to differing experiences among the employees and difference in the level of knowledge. Some of the employees may be able to comply with the regulations because they may be having experiences working in a similar industry or may have experienced incidences that are common in a chemical manufacturing industry. Such employees may be able to understand and comply with the regulations as compared to those who do not have the experiences. Other employees may be of low level of knowledge such that they do not see the logic behind the environmental protection laws. Dealing with such a range of employees may be challenging especially in a high risk industry such as the chemical manufacturing industry. However, to overcome this challenge, it is important for the management to conduct regular trainings for their personnel so that they can always be informed of the importance of observing the environmental protection regulations. Ethical and professional dilemmas of a responsible environmental professional Ethics are the guiding principles for the operation of every organization. Some of the ethical obligations of an environmental professional include trustworthy, respect responsibility, justice and fairness, caring, civic virtue and citizenship. Environmental professionals are faced with dilemmas where they have to consider their clients, the cost of satisfying their clients and the environmental safety at the same time. Environmental professionals are faced with dilemmas where they have to follow the above ethics in carrying out their duties of environmental inspection but where they have to give and answer or an alternative to the clients, they lack the words. Some of the very challenging issues are on toxic waste disposal and reducing energy consumption. For example, most of the wastes from the chemical industries especially the liquid wastes are supposed to be recycled. Recycling is another process that will require use of energy and manpower. At the same time, the companies are encouraged to find ways of reducing their levels of energy consumption. This controversy therefore poses a dilemma to the environmental professional since he or she has to advice on a procedure that will be taken to ensure that the two concerns are addressed without one leading to the other. Another dilemma is on the cost where most of the companies are finding ways of cutting the operational costs. It therefore becomes a challenge trying to enforce regulations that bring in additional cost to the industry. However, with all these dilemmas, the environment cannot be neglected for the sake of continuity of the operations of these industries. The environmental professional has to look for ways that ensure both sides are addressed (Lagrega, & Evans, 602). Conclusion With the rising levels of industrialization in the whole world, there is need to ensure that all the operating industries have environment protection policies. This is because the world has become very commercial such that the environment is often forgotten. The chemical industry is among the leading industries in the level of wastes that are release from the production process. Failure to have environmental protection policy for such an industry will result in release of hazardous materials to the environment thus affecting the human health and the environment. However, most countries have set out regulations that every manufacturing industry must comply to in all its stages of processing. The governments conduct regular checks through its agencies to ensure that all the relevant industries meet the stated requirements. Works Cited Smith, Keith and Petley, David. Environmental hazards: assessing risk and reducing disaster. New York: Taylor & Francis, 2009. Woodside Gayle. Hazardous materials and hazardous waste management. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1999. Lewinsky, Allison. Hazardous materials and wastewater: treatment, removal and analysis. Hauppauge: Nova Publishers, 2007. Stellman, Jeanne and ILO. Encyclopaedia of Occupational Health and Safety: Chemical, industries and occupations. New York: International Labour Organization, 1998. Anastas Paul, and Warner John. Green chemistry: theory and practice. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. Lagrega, Michael and Evans Jeffrey. Hazardous Waste Management. Mexico: Waveland Pr Inc, 2010. Highland Joseph. Hazardous waste disposal: assessing the problem. Michigan: Ann Arbor Science, 1998. Read More

Environmental issues in the chemical industries are as a result of use of non-renewable resources such as fuel and also release of the pollutants into the environments during the processes of production. Each stage of chemical industry processing process can have negative environmental impact. One of the industrial wastes that come out of the chemical industries is waste water. This if not handled carefully, it can leak into other useful water bodies thus contaminating water that is safe for human use.

The other environmental hazard may result from the solid wastes from an industry. Solid wastes also involve the packaging materials that are used for the chemicals. Packaging materials may no0t be toxic to the environment but the problem with most of them is that they do not easily degrade once they are disposed. They therefore keep pilling in the environment adding onto the solid wastes. This is because most of them are designed in a manner that they are to be thrown away once the content is over.

They therefore end up being an environmental hazard since they fill up the land fills hence acting as breeding places for harmful organisms. Other hazards include hydrocarbons and mercury that is released from some chemical industries. Hydrocarbons once they get into the environment, they may be inhaled by humans resulting to respiratory infections. They may also be a threat to the lives of the wildlife. Some chemical industries may direct their liquid wastes such as mercury into the water bodies thus threatening the aquatic lives and also lives of human beings who consume that water.

Noise may also be another environmental hazard caused by chemical industry. Noise may be from the company employees and also from the running of machinery during the manufacturing process. For example, my company of study has over 1000 employees who may be interacting with each other during their work. This group of people has the potential of making noise that may be heard by people in the surrounding. The running of machines may also produce noise that may be disturbing to the environment. It is therefore important for the chemical industries to ensure that the benefits obtained from the use of chemicals do not have adverse effects on the human health and also the environment.

Recently, most chemical industries have improved their performance and adopted cleaner technologies even though the chemical industry still remains the top in contributing to environmental problems. Environmental laws governing chemical industries The International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA) has come up with a Responsible Care Program to be adopted by all chemical industries to ensure that with the maximization of benefits from the chemicals, there is minimization of adverse effects on human health and the environment.

ICCA encourages the chemical manufactures in the world to adopt sustainable environmental principles of sustainable development. Responsible care program was formed in Canada in 1985 and is a voluntary global initiative by the chemical manufacturers to enable them address public concerns about the manufacturer, distribution and use of chemicals. The program has a membership of 47 countries in the world. In this program, all the chemical manufacturing industries in the member countries commit themselves to collaborate in working towards health improvement and environmental safety in all their processing activities.

Membership to this initiative is voluntary but once signed in, it is binding that the management on behalf of the company has the role of implementing the guiding principles state in the initiative and the code of practice as well as cooperating with other companies (Woodside, 24). In the United States, two regulations that govern environmental protection are OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) and EPA (Environmental Protection Agency). OSHA’s main mission is to protect employees form injuries that are related to work, illnesses and fatalities in the workplace by issuing and enforcing standards for the workplace that ensures safety of every person in that place.

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