FACTSHEET
Disaster recovery - Hazardous Substances
During a disaster, stores of hazardous substances can
spill and mix together. Water may seep into storage areas,
causing damage to packages of pesticides or deadly poisons.
Here’s some advice on how to safely handle these hazards.
■ Hazardous substances spoilt with water
Some hazardous substances, particularly dry or solid
substances in paper packaging, may be spoilt with water.
If your workplace has packages of substances where water
has penetrated:
■ Spills of incompatible chemicals
Some hazardous substances cannot be stored near each
other, because they may cause chain reactions if they mix
together. In some workplaces a disaster may cause breaches
of segregation. It’s important to make sure that hazardous
substances don’t go into stormwater drains and that people
involving in cleaning up are kept safe.
If your workplace has spills of hazardous substances to clear
up:
• Wear all the necessary protective clothing for clearing up
spills.
• Move spoilt substances into a compound or area where
leaks from the packaging can be contained.
• Contain any water that was, or could have been,
contaminated by the substances into a compound or blot
with absorbent material.
• Identify (from the containers) what substances were
spilled.
• Do not dilute with extra water and wash down stormwater
drains unless instructions on the safety data sheet permit
it.
• Consult the safety data sheets to see if mixing with
another hazardous substance is dangerous.
• Contact your supplier to discuss pick-up and stock
replacement.
• If so, implement your emergency response plan, phone 111
and ask for Fire Service assistance for specialist input.
■ When your workplace is clean again…
• If the substances are compatible with each other, ensure
the workers involved in the clean-up are wearing full
protective clothing – impervious shoes, chemical-resistant
overalls and gloves, face shields or goggles, respirators if
necessary.
• Do not let any of the substances drain into stormwater
systems – either divert into a compound or bund (if your
site has one) or blot up with absorbent material from your
spill kit.
Replenish the equipment you used, e.g. spill kits, disposable
protective clothing and equipment, temporary compounding
material
If you want to make sure that your hazardous substance
storage is HSNO-compliant, contact a Hazardous
Substances Enforcement Officer from the Department of
Labour on 0800 20 90 20.
DOL 11527.4A JAN 12
• Contact the Council for advice on disposal. Large spills may
require transport by specialist waste disposal companies.
The Department of Labour takes no responsibility
for the results of any actions taken on the basis of
this information, or for any errors or omissions.
www.dol.govt.nz
0800 20 90 20