GHS: Beyond Classification and Labelling.

Transcription

1 GHS: Beyond Classification and Labelling. Mahinda Seneviratne State Inspector Hygiene & Toxicology, SafeWork NSW RACI - NSW AEC Group Seminar, NMI, Lindfield (5 May 2016)

2 Who is SafeWork NSW? Workplace Health & Safety (WHS) regulator for State of NSW Formerly known as WorkCover NSW; now Workers Compensation Claims and Insurance are under two separate entities Administer the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and its WHS Regulation 2011 Inspectorate of 300+ including hazardous chemicals specialists TestSafe facilities with expertise in workplace chemicals analysis 2

3 What is GHS? The Globally Harmonised System of Classifying and Labelling of Chemicals A comprehensive tool that aims to harmonise chemical classification and hazard communication across the world The Globally Harmonised System (GHS) Applies criteria to classify chemicals based on INTRINSIC hazards Covers single substances, solutions and mixtures. Classifies a chemical against the criteria of each hazard group (GHS Hazard Grouping) Physical hazards Health hazards Environmental hazards (not mandatory under WHS) Communicates hazard information of chemicals through two major tools o labelling and o safety data sheets (SDS) SafeWork NSW 3

4 GHS HCLF Project Mahinda Seneviratne Mahinda Seneviratne Phillip Cantrell Bhoopathy Sankaran Aklesh Nand Vivian Fung Vivian Fung Mohan Menon Mahinda Seneviratne Aklesh Nand SafeWork NSW 4

5 Benefits of GHS 1. Improve comprehension and understanding of health and environmental hazards 2. Allow participating countries to facilitate trade by removing regulatory barriers. 3. Reduce the time and costs involved in meeting multiple requirements for labels. 4. Reduce the need for duplicate testing (in different countries) 5. Australia s largest trading partners China and US as well as many chemical suppliers in the Asian region have adopted GHS. SafeWork NSW 5

6 GHS and imported chemicals SafeWork NSW 6

7 GHS: Transition Period Currently we have two systems for the workplace : NOHSC Criteria and the ADG Code Australian Systems (ADG, NOHSC) GHS 5 year transition period (Ends 31 st Dec 2016) NOTE: THE ADG CODE WILL STILL BE USED FOR NOTIFICATION, TRANSPORT & PLACARDS SafeWork NSW 7

8 Will GHS change current WHS Obligations? Overall, the current roles and responsibilities under the WHS Regulation will not change. Who has responsibilities? o Manufacturers and Importers o Suppliers o PCBU (end users) o Contractors and subcontractors (end users) o Workers (end users) SafeWork NSW 8

9 Manufacturer and Importer Obligations Determine if hazardous Correctly classify (c.329) Provide safety data sheets (c.330) Correctly packed (c.334) Correctly labelled (c.335) Refer to Schedule 9 of WHS Regulation SafeWork NSW 9

10 Supplier Obligations A supplier of a hazardous chemical must not supply it for use at another workplace if they know or ought to reasonably know that the hazardous chemical is not correctly packed (cl.337) or labelled (cl.338). A supplier must provide SDS (cl.339) Refer to Schedule 7 of WHS Regulation SafeWork NSW 10

11 End User Obligations: Safe Use, Handling, Storage and Disposal 11

12 The GHS: How does it work? - Hazard communication is prescribed to end users through Signal words Indicates the relative severity of the intrinsic hazards. Two signal words - DANGER, WARNING. Pictograms There are nine symbols signifying hazards of chemical, e.g. Hazard statements Phrase describing the nature of the hazards of a chemical including the degree of hazard Precautionary statements A phrase describing measures to be taken to minimise adverse effects of exposure to, or improper handling of, a hazardous chemical (General, Prevention, Response, Storage, Disposal). These elements are then put onto: Labels Safety data sheets SafeWork NSW 12

13 The GHS Pictograms The GHS prescribes 9 pictograms to convey the hazards of chemicals: Exploding bomb Explosives Flame Flammables Flame over circle Oxidisers Gas cylinder Gases under pressure Corrosion Corrosives Skull and crossbones Acute toxicity Environment Environmental hazard Exclamation mark Harmful/irritant Harmful E.g. irritant to or ozone layer sensitiser Health hazard Severe health hazards E.g. May cause cancer Two new symbols are introduced All relevant pictograms will appear on label (according to the prioritisation rules). In practice, more than 4 pictograms is very rare Note: DG Class 6.2 (infectious substances) and Class 7 (radioactive) are not covered by GHS. SafeWork NSW 13

14 Example of GHS label Signal word Hazard statements Precautionary statements SafeWork NSW 14

15 Example of GHS in Safety Data Sheet SafeWork NSW 15

16 Helpful Resources Publications developed by SafeWork NSW for GHS: 1. Fact Sheet: GHS - What you need to know 2. Flyer: Are you GHS ready? 3. Poster: The GHS in brief Publications developed by Safe Work Australia: Codes of Practice Labelling of Workplace Hazardous Chemicals - (Manufacture / Supplier) Preparation of Safety Data Sheets for Hazardous Chemicals - (Manufacture / Supplier) Managing the Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace - (End User) Guidance Material Classification of Hazardous Chemicals under the WHS Regulations - (Manufacturer / Supplier) Fact Sheets Classifications and Labelling for Workplace Hazardous Chemicals (poster) - (End User) Understanding Safety Data Sheets for Hazardous Chemicals - (End User) Understanding Hazardous Chemical Labels - (End User) SafeWork NSW 16

17 Hazardous Chemicals: what do we know? Only a small % of the chemical substances in the market place have been tested for health and environmental effects Many IARC classified human carcinogens are chemicals, mixtures and occupations associated with handling chemicals Workplace Exposure Standards (WES) with threshold limits set for less than 200 chemicals used in workplaces 17

18 Workplace chemicals: exposure and health effects Reported workplace incidents related to chemical exposures are mostly acute events with low lost time due to injury or illness Workers compensation claims are few and limited due to many reasons: including lack of awareness of health risk factors and inherent difficulties in establishing a case for association with workplace exposures However. Mortality from work-related chemical exposures in Australia were estimated to be over 2000/year (Kerr, 1996) Occupational exposure to carcinogens estimated to account for around 5000 cancers/year (Fritschi & Driscoll, 2006) and highly undercompensated (Cancer Council WA, 2015) 18

19 Global Strategies: Local Action Strategic Approach to International Chemical Management (SAICM) Rio+20 (UNEP) Global Plan of Action to achieve 2020 goals through Bridging the Knowledge and Information Gap Tools for Risk Reduction Measures Strengthen Governance on Chemical Management Australian WHS Strategy (SafeWork Australia) A national framework for improving WHS through Reducing exposure to hazards and risks with improved hazard controls Priority industries (7) and Priority disorders (6) 19

20 Thank You GHS: Are You Ready? Project Team Aklesh Nand Phillip Cantrell Vivian Fung Bhoopathy Sankaran Mohan Menon Alexis Wray Kate Allen Phone: SafeWork NSW 20