Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
tABle 7.2
examples of kinetic energy
Operating.tools.or.equipment
Moving.conveyors
Flow.of.materials
Running.machines
Falling.objects
Running.equipment
Lifting.a.heavy.object
Moving.dust
Moving.vehicles.or.heavy.equipment
Tree.falling
Release.of.energy.from.radiation,.chemical,.or.biological.sources
Pinch.area.from.moving.objects
Running.power.tools
Energy.transfer.devices.such.as.pulleys,.belts,.gears,.shears,.edgers
and. workers. can. be. trained. to. be. aware. of. hazardous. situations. so. that. they. can.
protect.themselves.against.them.
i
nDirECt
C
AusEs
Now.that.direct.causes.have.been.discussed,.let.us.move.one.step.down.from.there.
and. discuss. indirect. causes,. or. “symptoms,”. that. may. be. considered. contributing.
factors.. In. most. cases,. the. release. of. excessive. amounts. of. energy. or. hazardous.
materials.is.caused.by.unsafe.acts.or.unsafe.conditions..Put.another.way:.Unsafe.acts.
and.unsafe.conditions.trigger.the.release.of.large.amounts.of.energy.or.hazardous.
materials,.which.directly.cause.the.accident..As.you.may.have.noticed,.this.chapter.
refers.to.indirect.causes.as.symptoms.or.contributing.factors..That.is.because.unsafe.
acts.and.unsafe.conditions.do.not.themselves.cause.accidents..These.are.just.symp-
toms.or.indicators.of.such.things.as.poor.management.policy,.inadequate.controls,.
lack. of. knowledge,. insuficient. knowledge. of. existing. hazards,. or. other. personal.
factors..Table 7.3.provides.some.examples.of.unsafe.acts.and.conditions.
b
AsiC
C
AusEs
While.we.often.think.of.hazardous.acts.and.conditions.as.the.basic.causes.of.acci-
dents,.actually.they.are.symptoms.of.failure.on.another.level..Unsafe.acts.and.unsafe.
conditions.can.usually.be.traced.to.three.basic.causes:.poor.management.policies.and.
decisions,.personal.factors,.and.the.physical.facility.design.
The.irst.category,.
management safety policies and decisions,
.includes.such.things.
as.management's.intent.(relative.to.safety);.production.and.safety.goals;.stafing.pro-
cedures;.use.of.records;.assignment.of.responsibility,.authority,.and.accountability;.
employee.selection;.training,.placement,.direction,.and.supervision;.communication.
