SAFETY WITH CHEMICALS

Sun, 11 Feb 2018 11:52:34 +0000

By Mark Kunda

 PESTICIDES are chemicals which can kill pests. But if not handled safely, these chemicals can also kill human beings.

Using chemicals to commit suicide is the abuse of chemicals we are witnessing in our country.

Use chemicals for their intended purpose, not for committing suicide. Chemicals are useful but they should be handled safely.

Slightly over a decade ago, I was offered an opportunity to study Chemical Engineering at Copperbelt University. Every time I told people that I was studying Chemical Engineering, most of them responded by questioning me, “so do you want to start making bombs?”

Then they would conclude with a warning that, “we don’t need suicide bombers in Zambia!” To such people, they associated chemicals with bombs.

I never took offence of their remarks. If anything, I simply laughed over their remarks and helped them understand who a Chemical Engineer is and what he or she does.

I was aware that people’s remarks were based on distorted view of chemicals.

Even now, when I introduce myself as a Chemical Engineer, I receive mixed reactions from people.

Some people look at me as someone who knows all the chemicals in the world. They would even present me with some containers of chemicals and start asking me tough questions.

Probably the experience I will never forget was when many years ago a childhood friend called me after a very long time.

I didn’t even have his number. So he began by introducing himself. After introducing himself, he went on to say: “I heard that you studied Chemical Engineering.

We have a box of ‘Dollar Paper.’ We want the chemical we can use to wash the Dollar Paper so that it turns into Dollar Money. What chemical can we use?”

I couldn’t believe my ears. This was strange to me. I was hearing of this Dollar-making process for the first time. So I told him, “My syllabus didn’t cover any Dollar-making process.

Maybe my lecturers forgot to teach me. But even if they taught me, I wouldn’t accept to do what you are requesting me to do.

Making fake money is illegal and I don’t participate in illegality.” That was the last time I heard from him and I don’t even know where he is.

My point is that as a Chemical Engineer, people unconsciously expect me to know all the chemicals in the world which is practically impossible.

I don’t know all the chemicals in the world and I don’t know if there is anyone who does.

Most people are very scared of chemicals. Every time such people hear of the word chemical, what comes to their minds is death. They think every chemical kills people.

The truth is that not all chemicals kill people. In fact we encounter chemicals everyday – sometimes we don’t just realise it. Chemicals are useful. They have simplified our lives. We can’t exist without chemicals.

In fact some chemicals exist naturally. Chemicals exist in various forms such as gas, liquid, dust, fumes and mist.

Chemicals, whether natural or artificial, are dangerous or hazardous. But just because they are hazardous does not mean they are irrelevant to our lives. We just need to know how to handle them safely.

Most people have a distorted view of chemicals. They think all chemicals have a strange appearance, bitter taste and/or a bad smell. If the chemical is colourless or odourless, they assume it’s not a chemical and if it is a chemical, then it must be harmless.

To them, dangerous chemicals must have a strong unpleasant smell and strong colours like blue or green.

It is this distorted view of chemicals that make people to think the bitter the medicine is, the more efficacious it is to cure the disease!

Their view of chemicals is often based on conclusions they create from what they see in movies where producers often show a chemist performing an experiment in a laboratory.

The chemist would be combining some coloured chemicals together in the laboratory apparatus like a conical flask.

Then he would shake the apparatus a few times and add some more chemicals until some smoke is produced or an explosion occurs.

The experiment often ends badly. This is what people are familiar with. As a result most view chemicals as substances that react violently and explode. This makes people to conclude that chemicals are bad.

Being afraid of chemicals is not the solution.

Knowledge, not fear, is what will help you to stay safe and work with chemicals safely.

You can’t run away from chemicals.

Chemicals are part of our modern society.

We are surrounded by chemicals. You use chemicals every day. Fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides are all chemicals.

Medicines are also chemicals. Preservatives used to prolong shelf life of processed foods are also chemicals.

Petrol, diesel, paint, oil and lubricants are all chemicals. Even cement is a chemical. The list of chemicals is endless.

Most substances that you use at home or at work are chemicals. Just because they are not labeled with the word “chemical” doesn’t mean they are not chemicals.

Most of these everyday products which we use are known by their brand name instead of their chemical name.

For instance most people know the chemical in batteries as “battery acid” and not “sulphuric acid.”  As a child, battery acid is the only acid I knew.

So every time I heard the word “acid,” I automatically concluded that it was battery acid. And because battery acid once damaged my clothes, I developed a view that all acids were bad. I didn’t know that some acids were actually good like lactic acid in sour milk or citric acid in fruits which I ate without knowing that they were chemicals.

In this article, my focus is on hazardous chemicals. Hazardous chemicals are substances that cause ill-health to people. In other words, substances which can harm your health.

Don’t think that hazardous chemicals are only found big companies like mines or manufacturing companies. Hazardous chemicals are found in your home as well.

You will find cleaning and bleaching chemicals. These chemicals are known by their functional names accompanied with their brand names such as Jik, toilet cleaner, washing powder, dish washer or detergent paste.

Very few people, if any, bother to read the chemical component in these products on their labels.

For instance, very few people realise that JIK used as a bleach and Chlorine used for treating drinking water contain the same chemical component but different concentrations.

They both contain sodium hypochlorite. Chemicals come in different forms and are classified differently.

Chemicals are classified according to the severity and type of harm they can cause.

The following are some of the types of classes of chemicals. The order of classes which I have used is just mine.

The first type is Irritant. Irritants are chemical substances that can cause skin or lung inflammation after contacted repeatedly.

(The word “contacted” is used in this article to mean the various ways in which chemicals may enter your body which include inhalation, ingestion or skin absorption).

Chemicals which are irritants should not be swallowed, sniffed or allowed to come in direct contact with you skin.

You can identify irritants by a special symbol on the product label. Irritants have a black cross symbol in a yellow or amber triangle with a black border line.

Sometimes the symbol is accompanied with a word irritant on it.

The second type is harmful. Harmful chemicals are substances which may cause limited health risks when contacted. Sometimes harmful chemicals are labeled as irritant.

Irritants and harmful substances often carry the same symbol. Symbol for harmful chemicals may carry a word harmful on it.

The third type is toxic. Toxic chemicals are poisonous substances which may cause death if contacted.

They are so dangerous that they are able to prevent a particular body organ from functioning normally such as the heart or kidney.

Examples of toxic chemicals include carbon monoxide gas, chlorine gas and heavy metals like lead and mercury. These substances are fatal.

The effect of toxic chemicals on health depends on their toxicity, concentration, route of entry into your body, safety control measures in place, duration of exposure or frequency of exposure to the chemicals.

You can identify toxic chemicals by a special label on the product label. The symbol is a human skull with bones crossing each other in a yellow or amber triangle.

Sometimes the symbol carry the word Toxic on it. Avoid any contact with toxic chemicals.

The fourth type is corrosive.

Corrosive chemicals are substances that attack, often by burning, the living tissues or metals.

These chemicals are highly reactive. Corrosive chemicals can burn your skin, eyes and throat.

For example ammonia gas is a highly corrosive gas which can severely damage your eyes, burn your skin and cause ulceration of your throat.

Other corrosive substances include strong acids and strong alkali like sulphuric acid and caustic soda respectively. You can identify corrosive chemicals by their symbol which is chemical being poured from a test tube burning a piece of metal and a hand in a yellow or amber triangle.

The symbol may include the word corrosive. Avoid any direct contact with corrosive chemicals. There are other types of chemicals such as explosive, flammable and oxidants. We will discuss these other chemicals some other time.

Let’s conclude by looking at some of the ways in which you can remain safe with chemicals. The starting point is to ensure that you read and follow the manufacturer’s instructions. No one knows the chemical better than the manufacturer himself. Therefore, follow their safety guidelines.

Chemicals come with Materials Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) to give you the safety precautions including what to do in case of emergency.

You must store chemicals safely in their original containers. If it’s at home, ensure that chemicals are out of reach of children or pets. In the case of workplace, you need to have a designated place for using chemicals.

You must develop a standard operating procedure for using chemicals. Ensure chemicals are well-labeled. You should ensure that there are no chemical leaks.

Avoid keeping together chemicals which can react with each other. For example acids and alkali must not be kept next to each other in close proximity.

Areas where you store or use chemicals must be well-ventilated. Where possible eliminate or substitute a more hazardous chemical with a less hazardous chemical.

Create a separation between workers and chemical processes. For the workers involved in handling chemicals, ensure that you provide proper Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) which must be used correctly.

Limit the exposure time for workers to chemicals and limit the number of workers exposed to chemicals to only essential workers.

Read the product labels carefully to see the classification of the chemical. Remember chemicals can cause many health effects including chemical burns. Don’t just live, live safely. Stay safe. Zambia needs you.

The author is the CEO of SafetyFocus, a safety company committed to providing safety training and consultancy.

For your comments, contact the author on cell +260 975 255770 or email: marksucceed@gmail.com

Mark Kunda – Safety Consultant