Safety - Field Sampling: Principles and Practices in Environmental Analysis - page 85

are also known as outreach training programs and the 40-hr (HAZWOPER) courses
associated with safety and safe sampling issues. Examples of the types of topics covered
in these courses are given in Table 4.2. In addition to these programs most states

TABLE 4.2 Examples of Topics Covered in the 10-, 30-, and 40-Hour Courses

10-hr course 30-hr course 40-hr course

Walking and working
surfaces

Walking and working surfaces Principles of safety

Means of egress Means of egress Planning and organization

Fire protection Material
handling

Preparation for field work Chemical
hazards toxicology
Electrical, lockout/tagout Personal protective equipment Monitoring instrumentation, confined
space

Fire protection Hazardous
materials

Machine guarding Confined spaces Trenching and excavation

Confined space Materials handling Medical surveillance

Bloodborne pathogens Electrical machine guarding

lockout/ tagout

Personal protective equipment, levels
of protection

Hazardous materials Welding, cutting, brazing Fire protection

Personal protective
equipment

Pathogens Decontamination procedures

Record keeping Hazard communication Drums/containers sampling and

packaging

Hazard communication Record keeping Safety and

health

Site emergencies

Note: The 40-hr course will only be found designated as Hazwoper. These are general topics
covered and are not intended to represent any actual course content.
Source: Ref. 2.

have free safety consultation programs, a list of which can be found at www.OSHA.gov.
While these are excellent sources of information, nothing can replace careful thought
and thorough preparation when working in hazardous situations. For example, spilling a
quantity of liquefied gas, even nitrogen, can quickly fill a room or enclosed space with
that gas and thus cause suffocation. If the gas is flammable an explosive situation can
also quickly develop. For this reason knowing only the toxicity or the flammability of a
gas is not enough. The question becomes what will happen if a spill occurs and what
needs to be done to protect people if this happens.
Another example would be spilling liquids. A volatile liquid spill can cause the same
hazards as described above; that is, the fumes may be flammable and can thus cause an
explosion if a source of ignition is present. On the other hand, spilling an acid may cause