DT 118
Mars 2017
Avertissement
L'Union des Industries Chimiques décline toute responsabilité quant à l'usage qui sera fait de ce document.
La protection des hommes et de l’environnement constitue l’objectif le plus important pour les entreprises de
la chimie à l’échelle mondiale.
La mise en place d’un système efficace de management de la sécurité des procédés qui identifie, réduit, ou
élimine les risques associés aux opérations industrielles est un prérequis pour atteindre cet objectif.
Les performances en sécurité des procédés d’un site industriel s’évaluent, entre autres au travers
d’indicateurs de performance qui mesurent et analysent les incidents de sécurité des procédés.
L’ICCA (Organisation professionnelle internationale de l’industrie chimique) a établi un guide décrivant les
critères harmonisés pour qualifier les incidents de sécurité des procédés (PSE= Process Safety Event) afin
de de disposer d’un référentiel commun.
• Partie 1 : RESUME DU GUIDE ICCA SUR LES INDICATEURS DE SECURITE DES PROCEDES-
Version Française
• Partie 2 : GUIDE ICCA SUR LES INDICATEURS DE SECURITE DES PROCEDES- Version
Anglaise
Notes
Le guide ICCA annule et remplace le guide CEFIC de 2011 que l’UIC avait traduit.
Les évolutions proposées par l’ICCA par rapport au guide CEFIC de 2011, concernent les seuils de
soumission qui sont abaissés via le guide ICCA.
Guide ICCA sur les indicateurs de sécurité des procédés – Mars 2017
Guide ICCA sur les indicateurs de sécurité des procédés – Mars 2017
PARTIE 1
RESUME DU GUIDE ICCA SUR LES INDICATEURS DE SECURITE
DES PROCEDES
Version Française
Guide ICCA sur les indicateurs de sécurité des procédés – Mars 2017
RESUME DU GUIDE ICCA SUR LES
INDICATEURS DE SECURITE DES
PROCEDES
1
Résumé
Les critères qui permettent de savoir si un événement se produisant sur une unité de procédés est à
qualifier d’événement de sécurité des procédés sont résumés sur le logigramme en page 3.
Le groupe de travail ICCA estime que cette proposition de reporting permettra de constituer une base
de reporting des PSE commune aux industries chimiques et pétrochimiques dans le but de l’amélioration
continue de performances de sécurité des procédés.
Note UIC : les évolutions proposées par l’ICCA comparativement au guide CEFIC de 2011 traduit par
l’UIC concernent les seuils de soumission qui sont abaissés via le guide ICCA.
Remarque :
Le groupe de travail ICCA ayant rédigé le présent guide estime que les deux systèmes de reporting ICCA
et API 754 sont proches, mais recommande de ne pas comparer les données issues de deux sociétés
différentes, l’une utilisant l’ICCA et l’autre l’API 754.
En effet les critères retenus par l’ICCA pour qualifier un événement procédé d’événement sécurité des
procédés (PSE : Process Safety Event) sont identiques à ceux issus du guide API 754 niveau II.
La seule différence réside dans la quantité rejetée.
Note UIC : l’UIC préconise d’utiliser de préférence le système ICCA plus simple et basé sur le règlement
CLP plutôt que l’API 754 utilisé par les groupes pétroliers. C’est pourquoi l’UIC n’a traduit que la partie
du guide explicitant le système ICCA. Les entreprises qui souhaitent se référer à l’API 754 peuvent se
reporter en partie II page 12 du présent guide UIC.
2
Données à collecter
PSER normalisé = (nombre total de PSE / nombre total d’heures travaillées (employés et EE)) x 200 000
OUI
OUI OUI
OUI
OUI : Process Safety Event rapportable
1
Note UIC : cette valeur peut paraître élevée. C’est la valeur retenue par le guide ICCA dans le cadre de la
normalisation
3
Critères clefs pour définir un PSE (Process Safety Event)
L’UIC devra rapporter le nombre total d’heures travaillées (heures des salariés organiques et heures
travaillées par les entreprises extérieures).
Les heures travaillées dans le cadre de nouvelles constructions ou d’extension majeure du site ne sont
pas à prendre en compte.
PSE
Un événement procédé est un PSE au sens du guide ICCA si les critères suivants sont réunis :
1- Sécurité / Blessure
Blessure résultant d’un évènement rapportable (arrêt de travail, décès,
admission à l’hôpital d’une personne travaillant sur site ou à l’extérieur),ou
2. Coût direct des dommages
feu, explosion ou nettoyage nécessaire pour éviter ou remédier à un dommage
environnemental avec un coût direct supérieur ou égal à 2,500 euros; ou
3. Mise à l’abri / Evacuation
Mise à l’abri officielle (POI, PPI); ou
Déclaration d’évacuation (sur site en zone sécurisée ou hors site); ou
Mise à l’abri ou évacuation hors site par précaution ou
4. Seuil de matière relâchée
La quantité rejetée est supérieure ou égale aux quantités définies au tableau 1
page 7 (masse rejetée sur une heure)
A. Substance chimique
Une substance chimique ou un procédé chimique est impliqué
Une substance chimique ou un procédé chimique est directement en cause dans l’incident. Le terme
« procédé » inclut l’équipement et la technologie pour la production pétrochimique, incluant réacteurs,
réservoirs, tuyauteries, échangeurs, tours de refroidissement, système de réfrigération, etc. Un incident
qui n’est pas lié directement à une substance chimique ou un procédé chimique, par exemple un feu
dans un bureau même si celui-ci est sur le site de production n’est pas rapportable en tant que PSE.
B. Localisation
L’incident se déroule en production, distribution, stockage, utilités, laboratoire pilote au sein du site
industriel
4
L’incident se déroule en production, distribution, stockage (réservoirs et entrepôt), utilités, laboratoire
pilote au sein du site industriel.
Cela inclut les parcs de stockage, les locaux annexes (type chaufferie, traitement des eaux usées) et les
canalisations de transport sous contrôle du site industriel.
Tous les incidents qui se déroulent dans un endroit exploité sous la responsabilité de l’entreprise sont à
rapporter.
Il faut donc prendre en compte les incidents se déroulant sur des zones où les travaux sont réalisés par
une entreprise extérieure. Dans le cadre d’un complexe multi-exploitant, l’entreprise qui opère l’unité
où se produit l’incident reporte l’évènement.
C. Rejet de substance
Il y a un rejet de matière ou d’énergie (ex : feu, explosion, implosion) sur une unité
Rejet de substance– rejet non planifié et non contrôlé de matière, incluant les substances non toxiques
et non inflammables (ex : vapeur, eau chaude, azote, dioxyde de carbone comprimé, air comprimé), issu
d’un procédé avec une conséquence telle que précisé ci-après au chapitre D.
Un rejet vers la torche ou un vers un système d’épuration n’est pas considéré comme relevant d’une
perte de confinement primaire dès lors que le système a fonctionné dans des conditions normales sans
rejets au-delà des seuils définis pour des opérations normales (standards de dimensionnement).
Un rejet vers un système de confinement secondaire (traitement des eaux ou rétention) est qualifié de
PSE car la substance a été rejetée au travers du système primaire avant d’atteindre le système
secondaire.
D. Seuils
1. Sécurité / Blessure
Blessure résultant d’un évènement rapportable (arrêt de travail, décès, admission à l’hôpital d’une
personne travaillant sur site ou à l’extérieur)
Blessure rapportable : blessures liées au travail avec les conséquences suivantes : décès, arrêt de travail,
poste aménagé, traitement médical en plus des premiers soins, perte de conscience ou blessure
significative diagnostiquée par un médecin.
Décès ou blessure avec arrêt résultant d’une perte de confinement procédé, d’un feu, d’une explosion
et concernant :
Admission à l’hôpital– admission formelle à l’hôpital en dehors d’un passage aux urgences non suivi
d’une hospitalisation
Exemples d’évènement PSE : brûlure résultant d’un jet de vapeur lors du nettoyage d’un équipement,
blessure physique suite à un test de pression, brûlure chimique lors d’une prise d’échantillon.
5
Exemples d’évènement ne relevant pas de la définition de PSE: chute de hauteur lors de travaux de
maintenance, brûlure suite à un feu de laboratoire ou à un feu de bureau.
2. Coût direct
Feu, explosion ou nettoyage nécessaire pour éviter ou réparer des dommages environnementaux avec
des coûts directs supérieurs ou égaux à 2 500 euros
Les coûts sont ceux attribués directement aux impacts tels que le remplacement d’un équipement, les
travaux de réparation, les nettoyages, les mesures d’urgence. Les coûts ne prennent pas en compte les
pertes d’exploitation.
Déclenchement officiel – Déclaration officielle (sécurité civile, pompiers) avec mise à l’abri, évacuation
Mesures de précaution – Evacuation ou mise à l’abri nécessaire par précaution pour protéger la sécurité
/ santé du public
Evacuation – Déplacement des personnes d’un endroit pour protéger leur sécurité
Système de décharge de pression (soupape, disque de rupture) : Les rejets prennent en compte ceux
vers un système dédié dès lors que la quantité est supérieure à celle définie au tableau 1 et que le rejet
conduit à une ou plusieurs des quatre conséquences ci-après :
1. Un entraînement de liquide ;
2. Un rejet en un lieu potentiellement non-sûr ;
3. Mise à l’abri officielle (POI, PPI); ou déclaration d’évacuation (sur site en zone sécurisée ou hors
site); ou mise à l’abri ou évacuation hors site par précaution
Les rejets vers un système conçu pour cela, tels que torche, laveurs, etc. n’ont pas à être rapportés s’ils
ne respectent pas les critères mentionnés ci-dessus.
Si le taux de rejet d’une substance atteint ou dépasse le taux défini pour une période d’une heure, il est
rapportable.
Dans le cas où la durée de fuite n’est pas connue, on suppose que la durée est d’une heure.
6
Confinement primaire : un réservoir, une colonne, une tuyauterie sont considérés comme des
confinements primaires. Ils peuvent être reliés à un confinement secondaire, tels que une cuvette de
rétention, un système de collecte des eaux avec séparation des eaux huileuses, une double paroi pour
les réservoirs, etc…
Sévérité : Un tableau proposé par l’ICCA (non traduit sur ce résumé) peut permettre de hiérarchiser les
événements et de guider l’amélioration des performances.
Le niveau de sévérité est calculé pour chaque événement en additionnant pour chaque conséquence les
points proposés.
L’ICCA recommande d’utiliser aussi cet indice. Ce niveau permet de comprendre les événements de
façon plus pertinente.
7
Foire aux Questions
Applicabilité
Les entreprises doivent rapporter les incidents se déroulant sur des sites détenus ou exploités par l’entreprise, à
l’exception de :
1. Événement s’étant déroulé en dehors de la propriété de l’entreprise ;
2. Incident sur un bateau, un camion ou un wagon, sauf si le bateau, le camion ou le wagon est raccordé au site
industriel pour des opérations de chargement/déchargement ;
3. Émissions habituelles dans les limites des autorisations d’exploiter ;
4. Contaminations des sols qui ne sont pas induits par un événement procédé ;
5. Incidents se déroulant dans les locaux administratifs ;
6. Incidents touchant le personnel (chute, glissade, etc.) non directement associés à une perte de confinement ;
7. Perte de confinement d’équipements accessoires non liés au procédé ;
8. Rejet programmé et contrôlé ;
9. Interventions mécaniques conduites en dehors du procédé ou en atelier de maintenance.
Interprétations et exemples
PSE
Evénement rapportable Commentaires - Explications
ou non
LIEUX CONCERNÉS
Une citerne affrétée par une tierce
partie charge un liquide
inflammable sur le site de La citerne est opérée par un tiers,
l’entreprise, doit faire face à une mais elle est connectée au
1 Oui procédé.
fuite suivie d’un incendie et des
dommages consécutifs évalués à Les dommages dépassent 2 500 €.
7 000 € (coût direct).
La même citerne, après avoir quitté
le site, se retourne sur la route, à
L’accident s’est produit en dehors du
2 l’extérieur du site, avec pour Non site.
conséquence un incendie et la
perte du camion.
PERTE DE CONFINEMENT
La défaillance d’une jauge de
réservoir a pour conséquence le sur
L’incident concerne une fuite
remplissage d’un réservoir
soudaine de plus de 100 kg, sans
3 contenant des liquides Oui tenir compte du confinement
inflammables. Environ 700 kg de
secondaire.
liquide débordent dans la cuvette
de rétention.
8
Un salarié d’une entreprise
Evénement non intentionnel mettant
extérieure de maintenance ouvre
en jeu un équipement et une perte
une vanne procédé et reçoit une
de confinement. Dans le cas
4 projection d’acide sulfurique avec Oui d’accident mortel ou de blessures ou
pour conséquence de sévères
maladies, il n’y a pas de seuil-
brûlures et une incapacité
plancher.
temporaire.
Un opérateur ouvre un point
d’échantillonnage de contrôle
qualité pour un échantillon de
routine et, du fait du flacon de L’incident n’est pas lié à une perte de
5 verre qui se brise, se blesse à la Non confinement.
main, ce qui occasionne des points
de suture et un jour d’arrêt de
travail.
FUITES SOUDAINES
Alors qu’il repère un débit de gaz
naturel supérieur à la normale, un
opérateur détecte une vanne de
sécurité sur la ligne de gaz naturel qui Cela ne constitue pas un PSE
ne s’est pas refermée correctement et rapportable du fait que le taux de
6 qui laisse échapper du gaz à l’évent à Non fuite (≈ 10 kg/h) s’étale sur une
travers un séparateur. Après plus longue durée (inférieur à 100 kg/h
ample recherche, il est avéré que pour une vapeur inflammable).
100 000 kg de gaz naturel ont été
dégazés sur une période régulière de 6
mois.
Un produit chimique est dirigé vers Dès lors que le système a fonctionné
une torche ou un système dans des conditions normales sans
7 d’épuration (ex : laveur). Non rejets au-delà des seuils définis pour
des opérations normales (standards
de dimensionnement).
9
Une émission incontrôlée issue d’une
source autorisée ou réglementée – y
compris une soupape – d’une
quantité supérieure ou égale aux
seuils mentionnés au tableau sur une
période d’une heure, et ayant l’une
ou plusieurs des conséquences
Un laveur est saturé par un flux suivantes :
dépassant les conditions normales de
Un entraînement de liquide ;
8 fonctionnement et laisse s’échapper Oui
une substance chimique au-delà des Un rejet en un lieu
seuils rapportables. potentiellement non-sûr ;
Mise à l’abri officielle (POI, PPI);
ou déclaration d’évacuation (sur
site en zone sécurisée ou hors
site); ou mise à l’abri ou
évacuation hors site par
précaution
doit être rapportée en tant que PSE.
10
ACCIDENTS AVEC ARRÊT
Un opérateur marche, glisse et tombe,
ce qui entraîne un arrêt de travail. Cette Les accidents de déplacement qui ne
chute est due aux mauvaises conditions sont pas directement associés à une
11 météorologiques, au sol Non perte de confinement sont
perpétuellement gras et à des spécifiquement exclus du reporting PSE.
chaussures glissantes.
Même incident que le précédent, sauf
que l’opérateur se déplace pour faire L’opérateur est occupé à traiter une
12 face à une petite fuite de liquide Oui perte de confinement, indépendamment
inflammable (moins de 10 kg en 1 des quantités rejetées.
heure).
Même incident que le précédent, sauf
Les accidents de déplacement qui
que l’opérateur glisse et tombe
13 Non suivent un incident terminé ne sont pas
plusieurs heures après la fin de
rapportables.
l’incident.
Un échafaudeur est mis en arrêt de L’échafaudeur est tombé lors d’une
travail après une chute d’échafaudage évacuation consécutive à une perte de
14 lors d’une évacuation consécutive à une Oui confinement, indépendamment des
perte de confinement. quantités rejetées.
Un opérateur marche et passe devant
une purge de vapeur défectueuse. La Même si la perte de confinement
15 purge projette de la vapeur et Oui concerne de la vapeur, l’état physique du
l’opérateur est brûlé, occasionnant un matériel est en cause.
arrêt de travail.
Une enceinte a été intentionnellement
purgée avec de l’azote. Un employé
Il n’y a pas de perte de confinement non-
16 d’une entreprise extérieure ne respecte Non programmée et non-contrôlée.
pas les mesures de consignation, entre
dans l’enceinte et meurt.
Même accident que le précédent, sauf
Il s’agit d’un décès consécutif à une perte
17 que l’azote a été introduit de façon non Oui de confinement accidentelle.
intentionnelle dans l’enceinte.
Si l’alarme est déclenchée par une perte
Un opérateur se déplaçant pour une de confinement non-programmée et
alarme de fuite d’H2S tombe et est non-contrôlée d’H2S, l’incident est un
18 blessé. Oui/Non PSE rapportable. S’il s’agit d’une fausse
alarme, il ne l’est pas car il n’y a pas
réellement de fuite.
PIPELINES
Une fuite sur une tuyauterie occasionne
la perte de 1000 kg de vapeur
Le fait que la fuite se déroule en un lieu
19 inflammable sur le sol durant une Oui fermé ne permet pas l’exclusion.
heure. Cependant, la fuite se déroule
dans un lieu fermé à l’intérieur du site.
11
FEUX ET LIBÉRATIONS D’ÉNERGIE NON ASSOCIÉS AVEC UNE FUITE DE PRODUIT CHIMIQUE
En règle générale, un feu ou une libération d’énergie constitue un PSE rapportable seulement s’il est causé par
une fuite de produit chimique ou s’il engendre une fuite de produit chimique dépassant les seuils rapportables.
Exemples :
Un feu électrique impacte l’exploitation
La quantité répandue dépasse le seuil de
20 d’un procédé, avec pour conséquence la Oui 100 kg applicable au toluène.
fuite de 400 kg de toluène.
Un feu électrique, une perte
d’alimentation ou toute autre perte
Les dommages aux équipements n’ont
d’utilité entraîne un arrêt d’atelier suivi
pas été causés par un feu ou une
de dommages dépassant 2 500 € (ex. :
21 Non explosion lié au procédé et il n’y a pas eu
dommage aux équipements consécutifs
de rejet de substance chimique
à un arrêt d’urgence), mais ne cause pas
supérieur aux seuils mentionnés.
de fuite dépassant les seuils ou de
blessure grave ou de décès.
TRANSPORTS MARITIMES
Les incidents à bord de bateaux de
Une entreprise de transport maritime
transport maritime sont spécifiquement
22 déplore à bord une fuite soudaine de Non exclus, sauf si le bateau est relié à une
matière combustible supérieure à 100 kg.
unité pour chargement/déchargement.
Une barge est poussée par un
remorqueur et heurte le ponton d’une La barge n’est pas amarrée au ponton ni
23 entreprise chimique. Le réservoir de la Non engagée dans un processus de
barge est perforé et 1 000 kg de gazole chargement/déchargement.
se répandent dans la rivière.
CAMIONS ET WAGONS
12
BUREAUX
Il se produit un feu de bouilloire dans les
Les événements se déroulant dans les
27 bureaux de l’usine et le coût des Non bureaux sont spécifiquement exclus.
dommages atteint 75 000 €.
MÉLANGES
Si un mélange est classé au titre de CLP, on utilisera cette classification pour déterminer le seuil. Si le mélange
n’est pas classé au titre de CLP, on doit revenir aux composants du mélange et prendre en compte la
contribution massique de chaque composant en la confrontant aux seuils correspondants et calculer un « rejet
équivalent ». Exemple :
Une fuite de 100 kg d’un mélange non
classé au titre de CLP sur une période
d’une heure contient 0,5 kg d’une
substance classée « toxique aigu »,
catégorie 1, portant la mention H300 ;
Ce résultat est supérieur à 1 et conduit à
4,5 kg d’une substance classée « toxique
qualifier l’incident de PSE rapportable,
aigu » catégorie 3, portant la mention
29 Oui même si aucun des composants, pris
H301 ; 40 kg d’une substance portant un
individuellement, ne dépasse le seuil
mention H indéterminée et 55 kg d’eau.
correspondant à sa catégorie.
La quantité équivalent est calculée
comme suit : 0,5/1 + 4,5/10 + 40/100 =
1,35 (les valeurs 1, 10 et 100 placées
aux dénominateurs sont les seuils
relatifs à chaque catégorie).
13
Après un événement PSE, une
entreprise rejette 50 kg d’une substance La quantité rejetée est inférieure au seuil
inflammable qui cause 2 000 € de associé aux substances inflammables
31 dégâts aux équipements. La substance Non (100 kg) et le coût des dommages directs
rejetée est clef pour les activités de est inférieur à 2 500 €.
l’entreprise, laquelle doit faire face à
une perte d’exploitation de 50 000 €.
CATASTROPHES NATURELLES
Les catastrophes naturelles peuvent constituer un risque substantiel vis-à-vis des procédés chimiques et
occasionner des dommages aux équipements pouvant causer des pertes de confinement de substances
dangereuses. Lorsque le potentiel pour un ou plusieurs types de catastrophes naturelles est jugé significatif vis-
à-vis des opérations du site, des mesures de maîtrise des risques appropriées doivent être mises en œuvre.
Si votre site est confronté à une catastrophe naturelle qui peut déclencher une perte de confinement au-
32
delà des seuils, elle doit être rapportée comme un PSE.
Une mesure vis-à-vis du public peut résulter de la mise en place de mesures de précaution. Par exemple,
une entreprise peut exiger de ses salariés qu’ils se mettent à l’abri en cas de perte de confinement dont
les conséquences n’ont pas été évaluées. Par exemple, les autorités peuvent ordonner une mise à l’abri,
33
une évacuation ou des mesures de protection publique (ex. : barrage routier), en l’absence d’information
de l’entreprise qui doit faire face à un PSE, par crainte de changement de direction du vent ou dans le cas
où des populations sensibles pourraient être affectées (école, maison de retraite, etc.).
ENTREPÔT « ACTIF »
Un entrepôt « actif » est un hangar sur site dans lequel sont stockés des matières premières, des
intermédiaires ou des produits finis utilisés ou produits sur site. De ce point de vue, un entrepôt actif est
l’équivalent d’un réservoir de liquide ou de gaz liquéfié. En l’occurrence, les matières premières, les
34
intermédiaires ou les produits finis sont stockés dans de petits contenants (fûts, bidons, conteneurs,
etc.). Tout incident mettant en jeu des quantités supérieures aux seuils mentionnés est donc susceptible
d’être un PSE rapportable.
14
Guide ICCA sur les indicateurs de sécurité des procédés – Mars 2017
PARTIE 2
GUIDE ICCA SUR LES INDICATEURS DE SECURITE DES PROCEDES
Version Anglaise
GUIDANCE FOR
REPORTING ON THE ICCA
GLOBALLY HARMONIZED
PROCESS SAFETY METRIC
June
The Responsible Care® Leadership Group
2016
Contents
Background ............................................................................................................................................... 2
Executive Summary................................................................................................................................... 2
Data to be reported by RCLG Associations to RCLG ................................................................................. 4
Overview of ICCA Process Safety Event Criteria as a Flow Chart .............................................................. 5
Key Criteria for Reporting Process Safety Events to RCLG ........................................................................ 6
Detailed Guidelines on Identifying a Process Safety Event ...................................................................... 7
Table 1 – GHS Classification Table ....................................................................................................... 11
Table 2 – API RP 754 Tier II Classification Table ................................................................................. 12
Appendix A – Severity Table: Using A Severity Weighting System is Encouraged for All Associations . 14
Appendix B – Frequently Asked Questions ............................................................................................. 16
Appendix C – List of RCLG Taskforce Members ...................................................................................... 22
Appendix D – Detailed Schedule of Events ............................................................................................. 23
Appendix E – Optional Excel Reporting Form ......................................................................................... 24
FINAL DRAFT
June 15, 2016
1
Background
The Responsible Care® initiative began in 1985 and as the chemical industry’s commitment to
continuous performance improvements. Process Safety has been a pillar of Responsible Care
since its inception, and many regional approaches to tracking and reporting process safety
performance have developed over the 30 years of Responsible Care implementation, yet no
globally harmonized system had been put into place. In 2012, in the wake of several high profile
process safety events, the International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA) Board of
Directors directed the Responsible Care Leadership Group (RCLG) to develop a
recommendation for a globally harmonized process safety performance reporting by no later than
2015.
Throughout 2013 and 2014, a Taskforce comprised of multinational companies and RCLG
associations, chaired by Dr. Peter Schmelzer, Head of Health, Safety and Environmental
Protection Bayer HealthCare AG, worked to develop a globally harmonized ICCA approach to
process safety performance reporting. A list of Taskforce members can be found in Appendix C.
During the same timeframe, the American Petroleum Institute (API) also initiated a process to
update its Recommend Practice 754 (RP-754) – Leading and Lagging Process Safety Metric
Standard. RP-754 is broadly used in the refining and petrochemical sector and in the Americas
region to track process safety performance. To optimize global adoption of a unified standard,
the RCLG Taskforce strived to achieve full harmonization of its recommendation with the
revised API RP 754 metric, expected to be finalized in the first quarter, 2016.
Executive Summary
After more than 2 years of discussion, research, debate and feasibility assessment, the Process
Safety Harmonization Taskforce recommends that ICCA adopt a process safety event rate
metric. The adoption of this metric would require each RCLG association to collect the number
of process safety events experienced by their members on an annual basis, as well as total
number of worker hours (employees and contractors) experienced by their members each year.
The process safety event rate is the ratio of events to hours. The Taskforce also recommends that
reporting of these data points to the RCLG be phased in over the next 3 years, allowing regions
with the desire and ability to report immediately to do so, while also allowing additional time to
companies and organizations that are developing the ability to track these data for the first time.
The criteria that determine whether a process-related event qualifies as a process safety event are
based on a loss of primary containment of a chemical or a release of energy triggering thresholds
any one of four impact areas: 1) safety/human health consequences; 2) direct cost due to damage
from incident; 3) community impact; and 4) chemical release quantity (see the flow chart
showing reporting triggers). These four impact areas in the recommended ICCA process safety
event definition are identical to the impact areas in the RP-754 Tier II incident standard. The
thresholds for reporting are also identical in all areas with the exception of the chemical release
quantity thresholds. To address this difference, the ICCA process safety event definition will allow
companies the use of either the GHS-based reporting thresholds developed by ICCA for the
chemical release criteria, or the UN Dangerous Goods (UNDG)-based reporting thresholds used
in the RP-754 standard for Tier II incidents. The Taskforce believes that the two systems,
though different, are comparably robust in the universe of chemicals covered and the severity of
incidents captured by reporting. While there will be relatively little difference in the numbers of
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events captured and reported using the two different threshold approaches, there may be
differences that would be most clearly seen at the company level based on raw material and
product use; hence the Taskforce cautions companies not to compare their results with
companies that use a different chemical release threshold approach. Regardless, under the RCLG
proposal, companies can choose the chemical release thresholds by which they report in to their national
and regional associations. If associations are interested in translating results based on one
reporting approach to another, the RCLG will provide a translation table. However, given the
complexity of this exercise and the need to access raw incident data, the Taskforce does not
believe that this adds value and recommends against it.
The Taskforce believes that this proposal for process safety event reporting will enable broad-
based global reporting of process safety performance across the chemical and petrochemical
industries. It will provide a roadmap for regions, associations and companies that are currently
not tracking process safety performance to recognize the benefits that tracking and reporting will
bring. For regions, associations and companies that are already experienced in gathering process
safety data, this recommendation allows for broader global alignment and focus on continuous
improvement in process safety performance. The systems that are built to improve process
safety performance are informed by robust process safety event data, and this is the major
objective of this initiative.
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Data to be reported by RCLG Associations to RCLG
On an annual basis, RCLG Associations will be asked to report two data points into ICCA using
the RCLG KPI Reporting Website on the schedule provided below.
1. Total Member Company Worker Hours for Association (employee and contractor)
2. Total Number of Process Safety Events
ICCA will use the above two data points to report process safety performance in the form of
Process Safety Event Rate (PSER), normalized per 100 employees where an employee works
2,000 hours a year.
The proposed schedule for process safety event rate reporting by RCLG associations is as
follows:
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Overview of ICCA Process Safety Event Criteria as a Flow Chart
5
Key Criteria for Reporting Process Safety Events to RCLG
A. Chemical Involvement
When a chemical substance or chemical process is directly involved
A chemical or chemical process must have been directly involved in the event or incident. For
this purpose, the term "process" is used broadly to include the equipment and technology needed
for petrochemical production, including reactors, tanks, piping, boilers, cooling towers,
refrigeration systems, etc. An incident with no direct chemical or process involvement, e.g., an
office building fire, even if the office building is on a plant site, is not reportable.
B. Location
The incident occurred in production, distribution, storage, utility, pilot plant within the site
boundaries of company’s facility
The incident occurs in production, distribution, storage (including active storage areas such as
warehouses – see FAQ section), utilities or pilot plants of a facility reporting metrics under these
definitions. This includes tank farms, ancillary support areas (e.g., boiler houses and waste water
treatment plants) and distribution piping under control of the site. All reportable incidents
occurring at a location will be reported by the company that is responsible for operating that
location. This applies to incidents that may occur in contractor work areas as well as other
incidents. At tolling operations and multi-party sites, the company that operates the unit where
the incident initiated should record the incident and count it in their reporting.
C. Release of Material
There was a release of material or energy (e.g. fire, explosion, implosion) from a process unit
A release to a flare or scrubber is still considered to be within the primary containment as long as
the mitigation system (e.g. scrubber, flare) is operated under normal conditions without any
release above the thresholds defined for normal operation. A release to a secondary containment
(e.g. waste water treatment or dike) will qualify as a process safety event because the substance
is leaving the primary process system.
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D. Thresholds
One or more of the following Reporting Thresholds must be met for reportable process safety
events.
1. Safety / Injury
Injury resulting in a Recordable, Lost Time Accident or Fatality; or Hospital admission of
anyone on or off site;
Recordable injuries are work-related injuries that results in any of the following: death, days
away from work, restricted work or transfer to another job, medical treatment beyond first aid,
loss of consciousness, or a significant injury diagnosed by a physician or other licensed health
professional.
Lost time injuries and fatalities that occur as a result of process related loss of primary
containment, fire, or explosion are those that fit into one of the following categories:
Hospital Admission – formal acceptance by a hospital or other inpatient health care facility of a
patient who is to be provided with room, board, and medical service in an area of the hospital or
facility where patients generally reside at least overnight. Treatment in the hospital emergency
room or an overnight stay in the emergency room would not by itself qualify as a “hospital
admission.”
Examples of injury or fatality cases that would be reportable include a burn injury resulting from
steam released during cleaning; a physical injury from a cap blown off by pressure during a
pressure test; or a chemical burn from a spill while taking a sample. Examples of injuries or
fatality cases that would not be reportable include a fall from an elevated work station while
performing maintenance; a burn from a fire in a laboratory or office building; or injuries from an
excavation cave-in. None of these cases are directly due to the release of energy or material from
the process.
Costs to be considered for this threshold should be those costs directly attributed to the fire
and/or explosion, such as the replacement value of equipment lost, structures lost, cost of repairs,
environmental cleanup (on and off site), emergency response and/or fines. Direct cost does not
include indirect costs, such as business opportunity losses, loss of profits due to equipment
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outages, cost of obtaining or operating temporary facilities or cost of obtaining replacement
products to meet customer demand (product losses).
For the purposes of this reporting, an officially declared shelter in place or evacuation, on or off
site, OR a precautionary shelter in place or evacuation is declared off site would trigger this
threshold
Officially Declared – A declaration by a recognized community official (e.g. fire, police, civil
defense, emergency management) or delegate (e.g. Company official) authorized to order the
community action (e.g. shelter-in-place, evacuation).
Shelter in Place – is the use of a structure and its indoor atmosphere to temporarily separate
individuals from a hazardous outdoor atmosphere
Evacuation – the act or process of removing persons from a place for reasons of safety or
protection
4. Threshold Release
An acute release that exceeds one of the GHS thresholds in Table 1 or in the API 754 standard
for Tier II process safety release thresholds in Table 2 (measured in amount released during one
hour)
As mentioned in the Executive Summary, the ICCA process safety event definition allows use of
either GHS-based reporting thresholds developed by ICCA for the chemical release criteria, or
the UN Dangerous Goods (UNDG)-based reporting thresholds used in the RP-754 standard for
Tier II incidents. The GHS thresholds are listed in Table 1. It is intended for companies to
decide which table to use and to allow companies the option to use one system globally.
Acute Release – A release of flammable, combustible, or toxic chemicals from the primary
containment (i.e., vessel or pipe) greater than the chemical release threshold quantities is
described for GHS Classification Table 1 and in the API 754 standard for Tier II process safety
release thresholds in Table 2.
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Pressure Relief Device: Acute Releases, defined above, include releases to a properly designed
and operating pressure relief device if a quantity is released greater than or equal to the threshold
quantities in Table 1 OR in the API 754 standard for Tier II process safety release thresholds
Table 2, that results in one or more of the following four consequences:
1. Rainout;
2. Discharge to a potentially unsafe location;
3. A n on-site shelter-in-place or on-site evacuation, excluding precautionary on-site shelter-
Ain-place or on-site evacuation;
4. Public protective measures (e.g., road closure) including precautionary public protective
measures.
Releases to a properly designed and operating pressure relief device (such as a flare, scrubber,
etc.) do not have to be reported if they do not meet one of the four criteria above.
Individuals who would like to view the API RP-754 Standard may download that standard at -
http://www.api.org/environment-health-and-safety/process-safety/process-safety-
standards/standard-rp-754.
1 Hour Rule
For the purpose of the reporting under this metric, release thresholds are established for materials
over a one-hour time frame. If the release amount of a material reaches or exceeds the reporting
threshold in a 1-hour time period or less, it is reportable. Typically, acute releases occur in 1-
hour or less. If the duration of the release cannot be determined, the duration should be assumed
to be 1 hour.
Primary Containment – A tank, vessel, pipe, rail car or equipment intended to serve as the
primary container or used for the transfer of the material. Primary containers may be designed
with secondary containment systems to contain and control the release. Secondary containment
systems include, but are not limited to, tank dikes, curbing around process equipment, drainage
collection systems into segregated oily drain systems, the outer wall of double walled tanks, etc.
Severity Table Severity weighting can provide additional useful information about process safety
events that may help drive performance improvement. Appendix A is the RCLG methodology for
calculating a severity weight for process safety events. Using Appendix A, a severity weight for each
process safety event may be calculated by summing the points associated with each consequence
category. The ICCA strongly encourages the use of a severity weighting system as the use of such a
system increases the ability to communicate performance and is an easier way for our stakeholders
to understand process safety events. Also, the severity weight will not be comparable among other
process safety metric reporting formats.
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Table 1 – GHS Classification Table
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Table 2 – API RP 754 Tier II Classification Table
T2-1 TIH Zone A Materials ≥ 0.5 kg (1.1 lb) ≥ 0.25 kg (0.55 lb)
T2-2 TIH Zone B Materials ≥ 2.5 kg (5.5 lb) ≥ 1.25 kg (2.75 lb)
Flammable Gases
OR
Liquids with Normal Boiling Point 35 °C (95 °F) and Flash Point
T2-5 ≥ 50 kg (110 lb) ≥ 25 kg (55 lb)
23 °C (73 °F)
OR
Other Packing Group I Materials (excluding acids/bases)
Liquids with Normal Boiling Point 35 °C (95 °F) and Flash Point 23 ≥ 100 kg (220 lb) ≥ 50 kg (110 lb)
°C (73°F)
T2-6 OR or or
Other Packing Group II Materials (excluding acids/bases)
≥ 0.7 bbl ≥ 0.35 bbl
≥ 1000 kg ≥ 500 kg
Liquids with Flash Point 60 °C (140 °F) and 93 °C (200 °F) released
at a temperature below Flash Point (2200 lb) (1100 lb)
T2-8 OR
Moderate acids/bases or or
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It is recognized that threshold quantities given in kg and lb or in lb and bbl are not exactly equivalent. Companies should select one of the
pair and use it consistently for all recordkeeping activities.
In determining the Threshold Release Category for a material, one should first use the toxic (TIH Zone) or flammability (Flash Point and
Boiling Point) or corrosiveness (Strong Acid or Base vs. Moderate Acid or Base) characteristics. Only when the hazard of the material is not
expressed by those simple characteristics (e.g., reacts violently with water) is the UNDGL Packing Group used.
a Many materials exhibit more than one hazard. Correct placement in Hazard Zone or Packing Group shall follow the rules of DOT 49 CFR
173.2a [14] or UN Recommendations on the Transportation of Dangerous Goods, Section 2 [12]. See Annex F.
b A structure composed of four complete (floor to ceiling) walls, floor and roof.
c For solutions not listed on the UNDG, the anhydrous component shall determine the TIH zone or Packing Group classification. The
threshold quantity of the solution shall be back calculated based on the threshold quantity of the dry component weight.
d For mixtures where the UNDG classification is unknown, the fraction of threshold quantity release for each component may be calculated.
If the sum of the fractions is equal to or greater than 100 %, the mixture exceeds the threshold quantity. Where there are clear and
independent toxic and flammable consequences associated with the mixture, the toxic and flammable hazards are calculated
independently. See Annex E, PSE Examples & Questions 49 - 53.
e A LOPC of Liquids with Flash Point > 60 °C (140 °F) and 93 °C (200 °F) released at a temperature below Flash Point cannot be Tier 1
PSE based upon quantity released no matter the volume.
f A LOPC of a moderate acid/base cannot be Tier 1 PSE based upon quantity released no matter the volume.
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Appendix A – Severity Table: Using A Severity Weighting System is Encouraged for All Associations
Level 4 Injury requiring treatment Resulting in Direct Release volume Officially declared shelter-in-place Acute Environmental
beyond first aid to an Damage Cost of between or officially declared evacuation Remediation Cost
employee, contractor, or (on or off site)
subcontractor. Precautionary off site shelter in
1 point
$2.5 K ≤ up to $25 K 1x ≤ TQ < 40x place or evacuation $2.5 K ≤ up to $25 K
(Meets local regulations)
≤ 3 hours
Level 3 Days Away From Work injury to Resulting in Direct Release volume Officially declared shelter-in-place Acute Environmental
an employee, contractor, or Damage Cost of between or officially declared evacuation Remediation Cost
subcontractor, or (on or off site)
Injury requiring treatment Precautionary off site shelter in
3 points
beyond first aid to a third party $25 K ≤ up to $250 K 40x ≤ TQ < 160x place or evacuation $25 K ≤ up to $250 K
(Meets local regulations)
3 hours ≥ up to 12 hours
Level 2 A fatality of an employee, Resulting in Direct Release volume Officially declared shelter-in-place Acute Environmental
contractor, or subcontractor, or Damage Cost of between or officially declared evacuation Remediation Cost
A hospital admission of a third (on or off site)
party Precautionary off site shelter in
9 points
$250 K ≤ up to $25 MM 160x ≤ TQ < 640x place or evacuation $250 K ≤ up to $25 MM
(Meets local regulations)
12 hours ≥ up to 24 hours
Level 1 Multiple fatalities of Resulting in Direct Release volume Officially declared shelter-in-place Acute Environmental
employees, contractors, or Damage Costs of or officially declared evacuation Remediation Cost
subcontractors, or (on or off site)
multiple hospital admission of Precautionary off site shelter in
27 points
third parties, or ≥ $25 MM ≥ 640x TQ place or evacuation ≥ $25 MM
A fatality of a third party
(Meets local regulations) ≥ 24 hours
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(K = 1,000 MM = 1,000,000) (For Environmental Impact, companies and associations should agree on input criteria where definitions aren’t readily available)
Severity Table (Appendix A) Details
Appendix A above is designed to be used with the GHS Classification System ONLY (Table 1). If your company is using the API RP 754 Tier II Process Safety
Metric Threshold Table, Table 2 in this document, please use the API RP 754 Process Safety Severity Table. It is important to state that the severity table in the
API RP 754 Standard is for Tier 1 incidents only. Comparing the relative severity of events using different tables will not be statistically valid.
Acute Environmental Cost - Cost of short-term cleanup and material disposal, associated with a PSE with off-site environmental impact. Companies may choose
to assign severity to costs associated with off-site environmental impacts in a separate category.
Utilizing the severity table described above, there are a variety of rate-based metrics which can be generated. These include:
Process Safety Total Incident Rate (PSTIR): Total event incidents x 200,000 ___
Total Worker Hours
Process Safety Incident Severity Rate (PSESR) (i.e., severity-weighted Process Safety incident rate formula):
In determining this rate, 1 point is assigned for each Level 4 incident attribute, 3 points for each Level 3 attribute, 9 points for each Level 2 attributes, and 27
points for each Level 1 attributes. Theoretically, a process safety event could be assigned a minimum of 1 point (i.e., the incident meets the attributes of a Level 4
incident in only one category) or a maximum of 135 points (i.e., the incident meets the attributes of a Level 1 incident in each of the five categories.)
PS Level “X*” incident rate: Total Severity Level “X*” PS incidents x 200,000
Total employee, contractor & subcontractor work hours
Where X* can be the total count of Severity Level 4, 3, 2, or 1 incidents. The severity level of an incident is the maximum severity rating of the five consequence
categories.
Normalization – In some associations and member companies, process safety events are normalized on a ‘per 100’ employee basis given that a one worker
averages 2,000 per year. So, to normalize on a ‘per 100’ employee basis, events are multiplied by 200,000 worker hours. In other associations and member
companies, events are normalized on a ‘per 500’ employee basis and events are multiplied by 1,000,000 worker hours. Associations and members should discuss
this option and come to a conclusion together. The above formulas are set at a ‘per 100’ employee rate.
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(K = 1,000 MM = 1,000,000) (For Environmental Impact, companies and associations should agree on input criteria where definitions aren’t readily available)
Appendix B – Frequently Asked Questions
Applicability
It is recommended that companies record and report Process Safety Events occurring at Company-owned or
operated facilities, except as noted below:
COMPANY PREMISES
1. A third-party truck loading a flammable product on Company Premises, experiences a leak and
subsequent fire and property loss damages of $7,000 (direct costs). Although the truck is "Operated-by-
Others", it is connected to the process. The incident would be a reportable PSE if property losses in direct
costs were equal to or greater than $2,500 or some other PSE threshold was met or exceeded (e.g., a
fatality).
2. Similar example as #1. The truck loaded with flammable product overturns in route out of the plant,
resulting in a fire and loss of the truck. This would not be reported as a PSE since the truck is no longer
connected to the plant.
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LOSS OF CONTAINMENT
3. A faulty tank gauge results in the overfilling of a product tank containing “flammable liquids”.
Approximately 700 kg of liquid overflows into the tank's diked area. This incident is a reportable PSE
since it is an "acute" spill greater than 100 kgs, regardless of secondary containment.
4. A maintenance contractor opens a process valve and gets sprayed with sulfuric acid resulting in a severe
burn and lost time injury. This would be a reportable PSE. It is an unintended event involving a material
and a loss of containment. For fatalities and days away from work injuries and illnesses, there is no
release threshold amount.
5. An operator opens a quality control sample point to collect a routine sample of product and receives a
bad hand laceration requiring stitches due to a broken glass bottle and misses the next day of work. This
is not a reportable PSE because it is not related to a loss of containment.
ACUTE RELEASES
6. While troubleshooting a higher-than-expected natural gas flow rate, operating personnel find a safety
valve on the natural gas line that did not reseat properly and was relieving to the atmospheric vent stack
through a knock-out drum. Upon further investigation, it is determined that a total of 100,000 kg of
natural gas was relieved at a steady rate over a 6 month period. This is not a reportable PSE as the release
rate (~10 kg per hour) is not “acute”, (i.e. does not exceed the 100 kg TQ for flammable vapors per 1
hour time period).
7. If a chemical is routed to a flare or emission control device (e.g., scrubber), it would not be classified as a
PSE as long as that flare or control device operates as designed.
8. If a scrubber is overwhelmed by a flowrate greater than the design of the scrubber system and discharges
a chemical in excess of the reporting threshold, it would be reported as a PSE as noted about in this
document.
As a note, an upset emission from a permitted or regulated source – including pressure relieve devices -
of a quantity greater than or equal to the threshold quantities in Table 1 or 2 in any one-hour period, that
results in one or more of the following four consequences:
o rainout;
o discharge to a potentially unsafe location;
o an on-site shelter-in-place or on-site evacuation, excluding precautionary on-site shelter-in-place
or on-site evacuation;
o public protective measures (e.g., road closure) including precautionary public protective
measures;
Should be reported as a PSE.
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SAFETY RELIEF DEVICE / SYSTEM
9. There is a unit upset and the relief valve opens to an atmospheric vent which has been designed, resulting
in a gas release to the atmosphere with no adverse consequences. This would not be a reportable PSE
since vapors and gases released to atmosphere from safety valves, high-pressure rupture disks, and
similar safety devices that are properly designed for that event per API Standard 521 or equivalent are
excluded, as long as the release did not result in (1) a liquid carryover that created a reportable PSE
related to the liquid (e.g., lost time incident, fatality, a fire or explosion that caused $2,500 or more of
direct cost, liquid release or toxic aerosol release at or above threshold amounts, etc.), or (2) activation of
a shelter-in-place response on or off-site, or (3) public protective measures be taken.
10. There is a unit upset and the relief valve fails to open, resulting in overpressure of the equipment and an
"acute" release of flammable gas from a leaking flange. The amount released is above the 100 kg (within
1 hour) threshold. This is a reportable PSE. Releases from flanges are not excluded from PSE reporting.
11. An operator is walking, then slips and falls to the floor and suffers a lost time injury. The slip/fall is due
to weather conditions, "chronic" oily floors and slippery shoes. This is not a reportable PSE. Personnel
safety "slip/trip/fall" incidents that are not directly associated with evacuating from or responding to a
loss of containment incident are specifically excluded from PSE reporting.
12. Same as above, except that the operator slipped and fell while responding to a small flammable liquid
spill (e.g., less than 10 kg in 1 hour). This would be PSE reportable since the operator was responding to
a loss of containment incident. A PSE is reportable if the loss of primary containment occurs on
Company Premises and results in a lost time incident or fatality. For fatalities and lost time incidents,
there is no release threshold amount.
13. Same as above, except that the operator slipped and fell several hours after the incident had concluded.
This would not be PSE reportable. The terms "evacuating from" and "responding to" in the reporting
exclusion mean that the loss of containment and associated emergency response activities are on-going.
Slips/trip/falls after the event have concluded (such as "after-the-fact" clean-up and remediation) are
excluded from PSE reporting.
14. A scaffold builder suffers a lost time injury after falling from a scaffold ladder while evacuating from a
loss of containment incident on nearby equipment. This is a reportable PSE.
15. An operator walks past an improperly designed steam trap. The steam trap releases and the operator's
ankle is burned by the steam, resulting in a lost time injury. This is a reportable PSE because even though
the loss of containment was steam (vs. hydrocarbon or chemical), the physical state of the material was
such that it caused a lost time injury.
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16. An enclosure has been intentionally purged with nitrogen. A contractor bypasses safety controls, enters
the enclosure and dies. This is a reportable fatality, but not a reportable PSE since there was no
unplanned or uncontrolled loss of primary containment.
17. Same as above, except that nitrogen inadvertently leaked into the enclosure. This would be a reportable
PSE (and fatality) since there was a fatality associated with an unplanned loss of primary containment.
18. An operator responding to an H2S alarm collapses and has a injury. If the alarm was triggered by an
actual unplanned or uncontrolled H2S LOPC, the event would be a reportable PSE. If the alarm was a
false alarm, the event would not be a reportable PSE because there was no actual release.
PIPELINES
19. A pipeline leaks and releases 2000 lbs (900 kgs). of flammable vapor above ground within 1 hour.
However, the release occurred in a remote location within the site. The release is PSE reportable, since
"remoteness" is not a consideration.
As a general rule, a fire or energy release is reported as a PSE only if caused by chemical release or results in
a chemical release in excess of the reporting quantities. Examples include:
20. An electrical fire impacts the operation of the process resulting in the release of 400 kg of toluene. This
event would be reported as a PSE since if the chemical release exceeds the 100 kg reporting threshold for
toluene.
21. An electrical fire, loss of electricity, or any other loss of utility occurs which may cause a plant shutdown
and possibly incidental equipment damage greater than $2,500 (e.g., damage to reactors or equipment
due to inadequate shutdown) but does not create a chemical release greater than the threshold quantity, or
cause a fatality or serious injury. This event would not be reported as a PSE since the equipment damage
was not caused by a chemical process fire/explosion and there was not a chemical release greater than the
threshold quantity.
22. A company operated Marine Transport Vessel has an onboard "acute" spill of combustible material
greater than 100 kg. The event is not PSE reportable since Marine Transport Vessel incidents are
specifically excluded, except when the vessel is connected to the refinery, petrochemical, or chemical
manufacturing facility for the purposes of crude or product transfer.
23. A third-party barge is being pushed by a tug and hits the company dock. A barge compartment is
breached and releases 1,000 kg of diesel to the water. The event is not a reportable PSE since the marine
vessel was not berthed at the dock and actively involved in crude or product transfer operations.
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TRUCK AND RAIL
24. A company railcar derails and spills more than 1,000 kg of gasoline while in transit. The incident is not
PSE reportable since rail incidents off company property are specifically excluded.
25. A third-party truck/trailer overturns while in the Company Premises, resulting in an "acute" spill of
gasoline greater than 1,000 kg. The incident is not reported as a PSE reportable if the truck is no longer
connected to the loading/unloading facilities. However, it is recommended that companies also have
transportation incident metrics, which would capture this event.
26. A contract truck hauler is unloading caustic and the hose separates and generates an airborne aerosol
and/or liquid caustic spill of 2500 kg. The event is a reportable PSE since the caustic TQ of 100 kg was
exceeded and the truck was still connected to the loading/unloading facility immediately prior to the
incident.
OFFICE BUILDING
27. There is a boiler fire at the Main Office complex, and direct cost damages totaled $75,000. The incident
is not PSE reportable since Office Building incidents are specifically excluded.
28. An operations technician is injured while working around the finishing equipment in a polymers plant.
The injury is caused by the mechanical, man-machine interface with the equipment. This would not be a
reportable Process Safety Event because there was no loss of containment of hazardous material.
MIXTURES
29. If a mixture by itself has a GHS classification you use that classification to determine the threshold. If the
mixture itself does not have a GHS-classification, we go back to the individual components of the
mixture and based on kg released per threshold group calculate a ‘weighted’ contribution to the
thresholds. Example: a release of 100 kg of a mixture in a one hour period that consists of 0.5 kg of a
substance classified as acute toxic H300, 4.5 kg of substance classified with H301 and 40 kg of a
substance with another H-number and the remaining 55 kg of water with no GHS classification would be
calculated as 0.5/1 + 4.5/10 + 40/100 = 0.5 + 0.45 + 0.4 = 1.35 is exceeding 1 and would be counted as a
reportable process safety incident even though none of the individual hazardous components exceeded
the threshold for the individual substance.
30. Direct damage costs are considered for this threshold should be those costs directly attributed to the fire
and/or explosion, such as the replacement value of equipment lost, structures lost, cost of repairs,
environmental cleanup, emergency response and/or fines. Direct cost does not include indirect costs,
such as business opportunity losses, loss of profits due to equipment outages, cost of obtaining or
operating temporary facilities or cost of obtaining replacement products to meet customer demand
(product losses).
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31. As an example, a leak of flammable gas occurred in a vent line connected to a gas treatment system. At
the same time, a failure in the process allowed air to enter in the same vent line. An explosion occurred
and the over pressure damaged the vent line and associated upstream equipment including a seal pot.
Nobody was hurt. The cost for repair was about $12,000. This is a PSE considering the cost to repair the
equipment due to the explosion and fire.
32. As an example, after a PSE event, a company releases 50 kg of a very special, GHS Category 5 product
which causes $2,000 of damage to equipment. The product released was a very special blend of
materials and the company incurs over $50,000 in materials associated with the product loss. This event
is not reportable as PSE since the reportable threshold for GHS Category 5 releases is 100 kgs and
product losses do not count as Direct Damage Costs.
NATURAL DISASTERS
33. Natural disasters can present substantial risks to chemical process operations and damage to plant
equipment which may result in a loss of containment of hazardous substances. Where the potential for
one or more types of natural disasters is deemed relevant to plant operations, process safety and
operational systems shall address the applicable risk in terms of hazards and consequence analysis, plant
design, operating procedures for loss of utilities and process shutdown, and emergency planning and
response.
Types of natural disasters includes hurricanes and typhoons (including associated storm surge) , floods,
tornadoes, earthquakes, derechos (straight line wind storms) , wildfires, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis,
and avalanches.
If your facility experiences a natural disaster that triggers one or more of the thresholds, it should
be reported as a process safety event.
34. A precautionary public response is a measure taken from an abundance of caution. For example, a
company may require all workers to shelter-in-place in response to an LOPC independent of or prior to
any assessment (e.g., wind direction, distance from the LOPC, etc.) of the potential hazard to those
worker. For example, a recognized community official (e.g., fire, police, civil defense, emergency
management) may order a community shelter-in-place, evacuation, or public protective measure (e.g.,
road closure) in the absence of information from a company experiencing a process safety event, or ‘just
in case’ the wind direction changes, or due to the sensitive nature of the potentially affected population
(e.g., school children, the elderly).
ACTIVE WAREHOUSE
35. An active warehouse is an on-site warehouse that stores raw materials, intermediates, or finished
products used or produced by a process. From a process perspective, an active warehouse is equivalent
to a bulk storage tank. Rather than being stored in a single large container, the raw materials,
intermediates, or finished products are stored in smaller containers (e.g., totes, barrels, pails, etc.).
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Appendix C – List of RCLG Taskforce Members
Name Affiliation
Peter Schmelzer Bayer, CEFIC - Chairman
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Appendix D – Detailed Schedule of Events
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Feb - April Jan - Dec Jan – Feb Jan – Feb Jan – Feb
RCLG PS Pilot Program RCLG Association Reporting of process safety Reporting of process safety Reporting of process safety
membership begin incidents to RCLG begins incidents to RCLG begins incidents to RCLG begins
collecting PS data from for associations with data for associations with data for all associations
May – their members (2017 data) (2018 data)
Adjustments/clarification Process Safety incident
to guidance document April April reporting becomes part of
RCLG reviews outcomes, RCLG reviews outcomes, the recommend base set
June Jan – Dec challenges and raw data challenges and raw data of RCLG KPI metrics (2019
Report outcomes of pilot Associations hold from the first reporting from the second reporting data)
program to RCLG and ICCA workshops on Process cycle cycle
Board Safety and performance (internally) (internally) April
reporting, utilizing RCLG RCLG reviews outcomes,
July - December funds and experts if challenges and raw data
RCLG associations needed June June from the second reporting
consider guidance RCLG share draft data with RCLG share draft data with cycle
and develop ICCA Board ICCA Board (internally, consider
reporting external reporting)
methodology for July - December July - December
their memberships Update and adjust Update and adjust June
RCLG associations guidance as necessary guidance as necessary RCLG share draft data with
can request ICCA ICCA Board
capacity building Associations hold Associations hold
funds for PS workshops on Process workshops on Process
reporting Safety and performance Safety and performance
workshops for reporting, utilizing RCLG reporting, utilizing RCLG
members, if funds and experts if funds and experts if
needed needed needed
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Appendix E – Optional Excel Reporting Form
When member companies begin tracking process safety events, a single form should be utilized for all member companies to make data analysis
easier and to allow all members to work from the same tracking sheet. The RCLG has developed an optional tracking sheet that members and
associations can start with when developing their own tracking sheet.
This document consists of a contact page, the survey itself, and a ‘do not edit’ page where the drop down menu answer are stored.
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