Management 2012, 2(5): 221-231 DOI: 10.5923/j.mm.20120205.11 Safety Management of Small-Sized Chemical Waste Treatement Facilities in Victoria, Australia Manikam Pillay VIOSH, School of Health Sciences, University of Ballarat, Ballarat, Australia Abstract With the increased use of chemicals in industry, facilities for treating chemical wastes are becoming an important part of the modern society. In Australia, chemical waste treatment facilities are largely small – sized businesses, employing less than twenty people. Because of their small size these facilities have generally escaped the attention of regulators, researchers and policy advisors. This is a significant concern because many of these facilities may continue to operate with substandard safety practices and, if left unchecked, these facilities are prime candidates for organizational disasters and major accidents.This paper discusses the findings of a pilot study investigation undertaken to assess safety management practices across a sample of small-sized chemical waste treatment facilities in the state of Victoria, Australia. Results of this study provide useful information to waste, environment and health and safety advocacy groups, researchers, employees and employers interested in prevention of chemical related incidents, and to government agencies involved in the regulatory administration of safety. Keywords Chemical Waste Treatment Facilities, Safety MAP, Small Business 1. Introduction Chemical waste treatment facilities (CWTFs) have become an important part of the modern society because of the relatively high reliance of chemicals. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) estimates there are about 2667 such facilities employing over 26000 employees directly, with over 5900 in other associated industries[1]. Most of these are small businesses employing less than ten people involved in a range of activities such as transportation, recovery or recycling, treatment and disposal. Due to the hazardous nature of products they deal with CWTFs not only pose public health risks but are also prime candidates for chemical – related fires and explosions. In order to manage such risks a range of legislative controls have been implemented. In Victoria, Australia, these include the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (OHSA), the Dangerous Goods Act 1985 (DGA), the Dangerous Goods (Storage and Handling) Regulations 2000 (DGSHR) and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2007 (OHSR). OHSA requires chemical waste treatment facilities (CWTFs) to provide and maintain a safe working environment, safe plant and systems of work, make arrangements for safe use, handling, storage and transport of substances, maintain workplaces and welfare facilities, * Corresponding author: pillay.manikam@gmail.com (Manikam Pillay) Published online at http://journal.sapub.org/mm Copyright © 2012 Scientific & Academic Publishing. All Rights Reserved and provide information, instruction, training and supervision for employees[2]. DGA and DGSHR 2000 require CWTFs to notify the safety regulator if they stored or handled dangerous goods above specified threshold quantities, and of any chemical related incidents such as spills, explosions and/or fires[3]. Some CWTFs may also be subjected to major hazard facility (MHF) requirements if quantities of chemicals they dealt with exceeded specified thresholds[4]. Such CWTFs fall under the state’s safety case regime and are required to identify all hazards likely to cause a major incident, conduct safety assessments, adopt control measures, and develop and implement a safety case, a safety management system and emergency plans[5]. The safety legislation is performance based and modelled on the self-regulation in line with that suggested by Roben’s[6]and adopted by most European countries. This approach gives industry the opportunity to establish its own standards, benchmarks and enables organisations to adopt management systems. Hence, irrespective of the size of an organisation, the legal requirements of safety are the same, so developing, implementing and maintaining a safe system of work, managing safety risks, consulting and those dealing with documentation and training are identical and enforceable to the same extent. However the small-sized nature of their businesses means most CWTFs generally escape the attention of safety regulators, policy makers, and researchers, with many continuing to operate with poor and/or substandard safety practices. Limited efforts have been directed at examining the safety performance and the effectiveness of safety management at these facilities. This