FUEL STORAGE TANKS……
YOUR LAST CHANCE TO MEET COMPLIANCE

As an employer our Company is legally obliged to manage all risks to our employees in the workplace. We also have a moral obligation to assist our clients to save them from litigation and prosecution. To help us achieve this, we are now launching the final stage of our farm tank compliance program that began in March of 2003.

Commencing immediately, our Regional Managers and drivers have been charged with the responsibility of assessing each and every fuel storage tank they deliver into in order to determine compliance and implement measures where necessary to ensure compliance is achieved. The following points should clearly outline the due process:

• Regional Managers and drivers are responsible to assess customer fuel storages and liaise with customers on issues of compliance
• Regional Managers are responsible to impose suitable time frames for any improvements to be undertaken and completed
• Where agreed time frames are exceeded, Regional Managers may refuse to supply fuel products into non-compliant tanks in accordance with the provisions allowed in the Company's "Customer Service Policy"
• Where fuel storage facilities are deemed to pose an "extreme and/or imminent risk", Regional Managers and drivers at any time may refuse fuel supply on the basis of OHS&W concerns.

In order to meet some of the MINIMUM compliance requirements, tanks must have:

• A compliant, secure ladder and work platform (where applicable) AND a calibrated dip stick; OR
• A compliant bottom fill kit with sight glass
• Tanks with a capacity exceeding 5,000L for petrol and 10,000L for diesel must be bunded (recommended for smaller storages based on environmental risk assessment).
• The area around and under tanks must be free of combustible and waste material to a radius of 3m
• Tanks contents must be marked.

This strategy has been necessitated by the increased presence of Workplace Services (Safe Work SA) in conducting random inspections of primary producer and commercial premises. The high cost of injury and incident management, dictates an urgent need to minimise risks in the workplace.

Our position is not to impose undue hardship on any of our clients, however, we need to be aware of the hardship that can be caused to all concerned if a worker were to be injured and an investigation found that the injury could have been avoided if all parties had met their obligations at Law.

For more information please contact your local Regional Manager.

Alex Pipinias HSSEQ Manager
Dermody Petroleum Pty Ltd
Phone: (08) 8347 6610
E-mail: PipiniasAG@dermody.com.au

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