LEATHER TANNING INDUSTRY

INTRODUCTION:

When an animal is alive, its skin is soft, flexible, very tough and hard wearing: it has the ability
to allow water vapour to pass out, but it will not allow water in. When the skin dies it loses these
characteristics: if it is kept wet it rots, and if it is dried it goes hard and brittle. The process of
tanning is to retain the skin's natural properties, to stabilize its structure and at the same time to
chemically process it so it will no longer be subject to putrefecation. Thus, leather is animal skin
that has been treated such that its natural properties are retained. Skin is made up of many bundles
of interwoven protein fibres which are able to move in relation to one another when the skin is
alive. When the skin dies, these fibres tend to shrivel and stick together. Essentially, the purpose
of tanning is to permanently fix the fibres apart by chemical treatment, and to lubricate them so
they can move in relation to one another. Well tanned leather, therefore, retains the properties of
flexibility, toughness and wear. It also continues to 'breathe', allowing water vapour to pass
through but remaining reasonably water-proof. It is this characteristic which accounts for the
comfort of genuine leather shoes and clothing. In addition, the process of tanning imparts the
advantage of resistance to heat. This is an important factor in many of the uses of leather. In
conjunction with chemical processing, the tanner imparts colour, texture and finish to the leather,
to enhance its appearance and suit it to today's fashion requirements. The basic component of the
skin is collagen, a fibrous protein. The latest research indicates that the basic collagen structure
consists of twined triple units of peptide chains of differing lengths. The amino acid residues are
joined together by peptide links. The peptide chains within the triple helices are held together by
hydrogen bonding (Figure 1).
There has been no conclusive evidence showing that the amino acid residues are arranged in any
particular order within the peptide chain. Skin collagen is usually associated with keratin (the
protein in hair, wool and nails). Most mammals have an outer coat of hair, wool or fur, which acts
as an insulating layer and keeps the animal warm. Keratin is a fibrous protein and different from
collagen in one very important aspect: the polypeptide chains are linked together by cystine
linkages. The Sulphur Sulphur linkage in cysteine is susceptible to the action of alkali, and breaks
down quite readily in the presence of alkali and a reducing agent. The early part of leather
production is the removal of hair from the skin, and the presence of the cystine linkage makes it
possible for this to be acheived.

Physically, the skin consists of tiny interwoven collagen fibres, each of which in its turn is

made up of tiny fibrils. The tanner aims to separate these fibres, remove any unwanted

matter from the structure and stabilise and preserve it, whilst retaining the useful properties.

Process:

Animal skin that has been processed to retain its flexibility, toughness, and waterproof nature is
known as leather. leather is made by processing the skins of animals slaughtered in the meat
processing industry, and hence the majority of skins tanned are those of sheep and cattle. Animal
skins are converted to leather in an eight-step process as follows:

Step 1 – Un haring:
The animal skins are steeped in an alkali solution that breaks down the structure of the hair at its
weakest point (the root) and so removes the hair.

Step 2 – Liming:

The hairless skin is immersed in a solution of alkali and sulphide to complete the removal of the
hair and to alter the properties of the skin protein (collagen). The collagen becomes chemically
modified and swells, leaving a more open structure.

Step 3 - DE liming and Beating:

The skin structure is then opened further by treatment with enzymes, and further unwanted
material is removed.

Step 4 – Pickling:

The skins are then treated with acid to preserve them for up to two years Step

5 – Tanning:

This is the most chemically complex step. During tanning, the skin structure is stabilised in its
open form by replacing some of the collagen with complex ions of chromium. Depending on the
compounds used, the colour and texture of the leather changes. When leather has been tanned it is
able to 'breathe' and to withstand 100o C boiling water, as well as being much more flexible than
an untreated dead skin.

Step 6 – Neutralizing:

Dyeing and Fat Liquoring The leather is then treated with alkali to neutralise it and so prevent
deteroration, and then dyed. This involves fixing a variety of compounds onto the chromium, as
that is the most reactive site present. Once the leather is dyed, it is treated with reactive oils that
attach themselves to the fibrous structure, improving suppleness and flexibility.

Step 7:

Drying Water is removed from the leather, and its chemical properties stabilised.
Step 8 – Finishing:

A surface coating is applied to ensure an even colour and texture, and to improve its ability to
wear. Suede leather is also buffed at this point to give it its distinctive finish. Animal skins that
are processed in New Zealand go on to be made into a variety of leather goods, or are exported in
an unfinished condition to be further treated overseas.

Raw materials:

The basic raw material for the New Zealand tanning industry is a by-product of the meat

processing industry. Approximately 25 million lambskins, 8 million sheepskins, 2.2 million

cattle hides, 1.2 million calfskins, 200 000 goat skins and 400 000 deerskins are available

each year for processing into finished leather products. Cattle hides give leather for shoes

(soles and uppers), clothing, belts and upholstery. Calfskins are used for fashionable shoe

uppers, gloves and for clothing leathers. Sheepskins and lambskins with wool on are used for

car seats, floor rugs, clothing, bedding and footwear, while, with the wool removed, they are

used to produce suede and grain clothing leathers as well as chamois leathers.

The tanning materials used in the conversion of skin to leather are mostly imported. There are

four main types:

• Vegetable - extracts from the bark and wood of trees (oak, wattle etc.).

• Mineral - in the main, trivalent chromium sulphate. This is produced by the reduction of

hexavalent chromium in the form of sodium chromate or dichromate by organic or inorganic

reducing agents.

• Aldehydes - formaldehyde, glutaraldehyde or oxazolidineë

THE TREATMENT PROCESS - PREPARATION FOR TANNING (Steps 1 - 4)

The main processing sequences of leather manufacture are shown in Figure 2. Where skins

are processed with the hair or wool on, the unhairing and liming processes are omitted and

replaced by a scouring (washing) of the wool or hair. The main chemical processes carried

out by the tanner are the unhairing, liming, tanning, neutralizing and dyeing.

Step 1 – Unhairing:

The keratin of hair and wool is subject to attack by alkali, which will break (by hydrolysis)

the sulphur-sulphur bond in the cystine linkage of the keratin. The hair is attacked first at the

root, where it is in its immature form. After a certain time of being steeped in a solution of

alkali (sodium or calcium hydroxide) and a reducing agent, normally sodium sulphide, the

hair roots are dissolved, and the hair may be removed and saved.

In the processing of sheep and lambskins, the solution of alkali and sulphide is applied on the

inside of the skin, allowing the solution to penetrate through the skins, attacking the wool

roots, which can then be removed by 'pulling' them from the skin. This is the origin of 'slipe

wool', which forms a sizeable portion of New Zealand's wool production.

Step 2 – Liming:

The process of liming is a combination of chemical and physical action on the skin structure.

The chemicals involved are similar to those in the unhairing operation. A solution of lime and

sodium sulphide is used and the skins are immersed in this solution for whatever time is

necessary to produce the desired effects. The process of unhairing is taken to completion

during the liming process, and there is appreciable modification of the collagen due to the

action of alkali.
2) Modification of guanide groups (arginine residue)

3) hydrolysis of amide linkages in the backbone of the collagen chains

4) Swelling:

In addition to the chemical action, in the presence of an alkali, swelling of the fibrous structure
takes place. this is due to an osmotic pressure effect. The result is the separation of the fibres and
the fibrils from one another and an opening up of the whole structure. 5) Removal of unwanted
material Present in the collagen structure are globular proteins and other interfibrillary
substances. These are hydrolysed and removed in the subsequent washing and bateing processes.
Unwanted fats are saponified.

THE TREATMENT PROCESS - TANNING (Step 5);

The tanning or stabilising process can be carried out as noted before, by means of vegetable,
mineral or synthetic tanning materials. The vegetable and synthetic tanning materials are largely
anionic in nature and are essentially similar in their action on skin protein. Chemically they are
complex mixtures and their chemistry is not well understood. The vegetable tans fall into two
main classes.
• Hydrolysable tans - complex esters of phenol and carboxylic acis and polyhydroxyphenols V-
Animal products-C-Leather-8
• Condensed tannins - mixtures of products of varying degrees of polymerisation, containing
several molecules of catechin or catechin-like compounds Syntans are largely condensation
products of sulphonic acids (phenolic and naphtholic) and formaldehyde and similar general
types. Vegetable and synthetic tanning materials are widely used to modify the properties of
chrome tanned leather, and as self tannages to produce sole leather, belting, football covers and
other types of leather where stretch and suppleness in the leather is not required. The main
mineral tanning material is trivalent chromium sulphate. This is now widely used in the
preparation of shoe upper leathers and clothing leathers, in fact, in all leathers where softness,
stretch and suppleness are required. It is synthesised as follows:

Na2Cr2O7 + 3SO2 + H2SO4 → Na2SO4 + H2O + Cr2(SO4)3

The use of chromium in tanning Chromium:

a transition element which forms co-ordination complexes by using 3d orbitals to accomodate

extra electrons, has an unrivalled position as a tanning agent. The complex is basic by nature and
will contain hydroxyl groups associated with the chromium nuclei. There are two main features
of chromium chemistry which enable it to act as a tanning agent. Firstly, the complexes formed
are of intermediate stability, and thus exchange of coordinating ligands can take place
comparatively easily. Secondly, chromium has the ability to form polynuclear complexes in
which Cr-O-Cr bridges are involved. These come about as follows:
The final process, that of oxolation, is a slow one and is not readily reversed. In a similar manner,
long chains may be built up. By means of these polynuclear units the gaps between collagen
chains in the skin structure can be bridged, giving the tanning action. Individually these two
properties are found in the chemistries of many other elements, and do not give any great tanning
ability. But the two properties together give great tanning potency

THE TREATMENT PROCESS - AFTER TANNING (Steps 6 - 8) Step 6 –

Neutralising, Dyeing and Fat Liquoring After tannage, leather must be neutralised to remove
unwanted acids to prevent deterioration during the drying process, and to prepare the leather for
the next stages in processing: dyeing and fat liquoring. Neutralising is often carried out using
mild alkalis which have some effect on the chromium complex (sodium formate is a good
example). Next is dyeing, using a variety of dyestuff types. Commercial dyes are essentially
mixtures of chemical compounds which can be fixed (combined) to the material to be dyed and
which have appreciable resonance within the molecule giving colour. A simple example is
Orange II:

Its colour comes from the presence of the hydroxide group in conjunction with the azo group,
allowing a high degree of resonance. It can be fixed to the material to be dyed by means of the
sulphonic acid group. In chrome tanned leathers the most reactive sites are the chromium nuclei,
and these form the main points of fixation for dyestuffs. As with other processes, the main
factors controlling dyeing are the physical one of locating the dye in the required position within
the leather structure and the chemical one of controlling the conditions so that reasonable
penetration and fixation are achieved.

Step 7 – Drying Finally:

as water is removed from the system, the chemical condition is stabilised and the final properties
of the leather are determined.

Step 8– Finishing:

Finishing consists of applying a surface coating - pigments or dyes bound in an organic (acrylic,
butadiene or polyurethane) or protein (casein) medium. This enhances the natural qualities of the
skin and covers such defects as scars, horn damage, seed scars etc., as may be present. In the case
of suede leather, the suede is buffed to prepare a 'nap' and to produce a generally even texture.
The main requirements for finishing are eveness and the reproducibility of colour and adequate
wear and feel properties.

Types of waste and their characterization

Leather industry has been categorized as one of the highly polluting industries and there are
concerns that leather-making activity can have adverse impact on the environment. The global
production of about 24 billion m2 of leather by 2005 presents a considerable challenge to the
industry considering the harmful nature of some of the chemicals used in leather processing. The
tannery effluents are characterized by high contents of dissolved, suspended organic and
inorganic solids giving rise to high oxygen demand and potentially toxic metal salts and
chromium metal ion. The disagreeable odor emanating from the decomposition of proteinous
waste material and the presence of sulphide, ammonia and other volatile organic compounds are
also associated with tanning activities. Solid wastes generated in leather industries contribute
mainly skin trimmings, eratin wastes, fleshing wastes, chrome shaving wastes and buffing
wastes. It constitutes protein as the main component. If these protein and other chemicals, which
are present in the chemical treated protein, are not utilized properly it will pose hazardous
pollution problem to the environment.
Raw Materials, Chemicals Used and Emission Factors in Leather Industry

Raw material for leather industry is raw hide or skin. The salt used for preserving the skin/hide
discharges huge amount of pollution load in terms of total dissolved solids (TDS) and chlorides.
Other major polluting chemicals1,2 used in tanning industry are lime, sodium sulphide,
ammonium salts, sulphuric acid, chromium salts and vegetable tanning materials (Table 1, Fig.).
Currently, about 6.5 million tons of wet salted hides and skins are processed worldwide annually.
About 3.5 million tons of various chemicals are used for leather processing. A considerable part
of this amount is discharged into the effluent. At an average consumption of 45-50 m3 of the
waste liquor and 800 kg of solid wastes per ton of raw hide are discharged by the leather
industry3,4. The composition5 of liquid and solid wastes generated in tanneries worldwide are:
COD, 1470; BOD, 619; suspended solids, 920; chromium, 30; sulphur, 60; and solid wastes
(trimmings, fleshing, shaving & buffing dust), 3000 thousand tons. Types of Pollution in Leather
Industry Soil Pollution Untreated wastewaters from tanneries have been applied on land merely
to contain them at one place. The soils holding it directly and irrigated with contaminated
groundwater lose productivity

Table 1Typical waste emission factors associated with leather processing

Atmospheric Pollution:
Tanneries are proverbially known for generating malodor. Rehydration of salted hides and skins
generally, emit odor of volatile fatty and amino acids evolved in the course of biological
decomposition in presence of water. In addition, toxicity of hydrogen sulphide along with acids,
fats, carbohydrates etc. in liming, deliming and tanning processes is predominant within
tanneries. The venting out of malodorous substances to ambient air and subsequent transports to
further distance are responsible for atmospheric pollution. Hydrogen sulphide at 20 ppm (30
mg/m3) in ambient air is lethal to human kind. Ammonia escaping from deliming operation to
atmosphere is odorous and pungent. Maximum admissible level of ammonia in air is 50 mg/m3.
Phenolics (monohydric, dihydric and trihydric) are emitted into air during processing of hides in
the post- tanning and finishing operations. The permissible level of phenolics as phenol
(C6H5OH) in water is 10.2 mg/l. The concentration shall not exceed 0.3 mg/l in drinking water.
The toxicity of sulphide, ammonia, phenol and chromium that are found in tannery wastewater to
freshwater fish has been reported.

Waste Types in Leather Industry

Skin Collagen:
Animal skin is composed of proteins (90-95 % of solids, 35% by wt), lipids, carbohydrates,
mineral salts and water. Among several classes of proteins (collagen, elastin, keratin,
glycoproteins, albumins and globulins), collagen is present in the largest amount and is
responsible for the formation of leather by combination with tanning agents. Collagen fibres,
enclosed in a connective tissue known as sarcolemma, are insoluble in water and in dilute
solution of acids and alkalies and in organic solvents at ordinary temperatures8. Collagen
possesses greater amount of swelling property in aqueous, acid and alkaline systems in absence
of salt concentration. The important features of the collagen is three α chains with a repeating
Gly-X-Y sequence staggered by one residue relative to one another9. Collagen is characterized
by its high glycine content (33%), one glycine at every third residue. The ring structure of
proline and hydroxyproline amino acids (22% of total amino acids) prevents rotation about the
N-Cα bond in a polypeptide chain. In addition, model studies and energy calculation show that
rotation about Cα-C=O bond is restricted. Proline and hydroxyproline is therefore a major
element in stabilizing the confirmation. In collagen, any amino acid can precede or follow
glycine in the X and Y positions. In practice, some preferences have been observed. Glutamic
acid, histidine, leucine, and phenyl alanine are usually in the X position, while threonine, lysine
and arginine are usually in the Y position. Proline would be equally distributed but when it
precedes glycine and it is usually hydroxylated to -hydroxyproline after translation. Water
molecules can be fitted into the structure in various ways. Two hydrogenbonded water bridge per
triplet from the hydroxy group of hydroxyproline to a backbone carbonyl oxygen has been
suggested.

Solid Wastes:
Out of 1000 kg of raw hide, nearly 850 kg is generated as solid wastes in leather processing.
Only 150 kg of the raw material is converted into leather. Tannery generates huge amount of
solid waste as follows: fleshing, 50-60; chrome shaving, chrome splits and buffing dust, 35-40;
skin trimmings, 5-7; and hair, 2-5%. Solid wastes in the leather processing constitute: beam
house, 80; tanning, 19; finishing, 1%. The solid wastes can be hydrolyzed and used as a useful
byproduct11 in many ways (Fig. 2).
 Solid Wastes Generation and Utilization
Keratin Wastes:
Keratin is difficult to hydrolyze and highly resistant towards enzymes and most of the chemicals.
It is rich in cystine. Keratin has been hydrolyzed using conc. NaOH or HCl. The hydrolysate
prepared from keratinous material has been employed in chrome tanning and rechroming at
various levels and the exhaustion is studied. The study showed that the hydrolysate helps to
improve the chrome exhaustion of tanning bath and rechroming bath. The physical strength
properties are also not altered12.

Fleshing Wastes:
Fleshing (50-60% of the total wastes generated in leather industry) has been explored for the
possible utilization into useful end products13. Modified fleshing hydrolysate, prepared from
fleshing and acrylic acid14, at the level of 2% showed improved uptake of chromium in chrome
tanning and rechroming. The physical strength properties and organo-leptic properties of leather
are better than conventionally produced leather15,16. Limed fleshings have been utilized for
stabilizing he delimed pelt, which has been named as Reactive Protein (RP). It has been
developed from specific chemical treatment by oxidation and reduction method to convert some
of the amino acids to aldehyde, which can be used as a tanning agent for tabilizing the pelt. RP
has been treated to the delimed pelt and tanned. Tanning studies with chromium and vegetable
tannin showed that RP could give improved leather properties. The system was optimized and
mechanism was studied17. Fleshings, the major solid waste generated at the pretanning
operations of leather processing, were hydrolyzed using pancreatic enzymes. Proteolytic activity
of pancreatic homogenate showed a 6-fold increase in proteolysis against the control at the end
of 7 days. Total protein content, collagen and free fatty acids in the hydrolysate supernatant were
80.0, 10.64 and 72.86 mg/ml respectively. The optimum pH for the enzyme preparation was 8.5.
The hydrolysis was observed by almost total liquefaction and the fleshing was dried. The
hydrolysate, as a protein source, could be used as a feed formulation by mixing with other feed
ingredients18. Chrome Shaving Wastes Chrome tanned leather, splits and trimmings have been
useful in obtaining glue, gelatin, protein flavor and reconstituted collagen. The above products
can be made by treating with hydrogen peroxide to bring about important degree of maceration
and then grinding and extraction to yield the by-product (95%)19,20. Chrome shaving
hydrolysed using magnesium oxide alone or in combination with calcium hydroxide, sodium
hydroxide or sodium carbonate increase efficiency of the solubilization and at the same time
reduce the amount of enzyme neededand thus making the treatment more cost effective. It has
been found that there is no migration of Cr(III) at actual land disposal sites. Similarly, chrome
tanned hide collagen in the form of trim, splits and shavings have been converted into glue.
Economics including the cost of raw materials and the yield of protein have been achieved in a
better way Wet blue trimmings, shavings, buffing dust and trimming from crust and finished
leather have been converted into glue, feed and fertilizers. Some of the wastes have also been
converted into landfill sites Gels, adhesives and films of high molecular weight gelable protein
fraction have been obtained from chrome shavings under mild alkaline conditions. However,
characteristics of the products depend on composition of the original chromium waste product
and on the specific treatment conditions. Wet air oxidation peroxide treatments and incinerators
at a variety of temperatures have been used for the recovery of chromium Several researchers
have detanned the chrome product for gelatin preparation and isolation of collagen fibres
Chromium containing leather waste can be treated with enzymes, but only after pretreatment to
denature the collagen Methods developed at this laboratory demonstrated that collagen may be
denatured in the presence of alkali at moderate temperature, such that enzyme may be added
directly to the alkali treated shavings.

Environmental Legislation:

Environmental legislation is the collection of laws and regulations pertaining to air quality, water
quality, the wilderness, endangered wildlife and other environmental factors. The umbrella of
environmental legislation covers many laws and regulations, yet they all work together toward a
common goal, which is regulating the interaction between man and the natural world to reduce
threats to the environment and increase public health.
As you might imagine, environmental legislation is a broad topic, mainly because the natural
environment encompasses so many different aspects. So, environmental laws need to consider
everything, from the air we breathe to the natural resources we rely on to the plants and animals
that share this world with us.
To better understand environmental law, let's look at an
example. Let's say that an energy company wants to build a
coal-burning power plant to create electricity for the
community. Where should this power plant be built? What
type of pollutants might result from the coal burning, and
what measures will need to be taken to control harmful
emissions? If the power plant is built at the edge of town to
lessen air pollution for the human population, how will this
impact lesser species that inhabit the land downwind of the
plant? These are all considerations to be evaluated within the
scope of environmental law.

Environmental Legislation Timeline:

Debates over how to preserve air and water quality are not new. These topics, along with many
other environmental issues, have been subjected to laws for thousands of years. There's evidence
of early Roman law regarding the handling of water and sewage. In fact, it is speculated that the
Roman Empire lasted as long as it did because they paid so much attention to sewage networks
and extensive freshwater distribution channels.
However, the official timeline of environmental law in the United States did not start until the
20th century. The United States is regarded as a world leader when it comes to development and
application of environmental law, and the 1960s are when the process got started.
This time period in U.S. history was marked by a surge in economic and industrial growth.
Along with an increase in factories and industrial activities, came a mounting concern about the
impact these practices were having on the earth's natural environment. This was also a time when
environmentalism, which is a movement toward protecting the natural environment against
hazards and pollutants, matured into a public and political force. The new-found awareness and
events of the 1960s coalesced to establish the start of environmental legislation.

Environmental legislation & other requirements:

All trade and industrial activities in
Hong Kong must operate in accordance
with the relevant statutory
environmental requirements. Going
beyond compliance, relevant non-
statutory requirements are also
applicable to business activities. Within
a business life cycle, namely Plan,
Start, Manage and Withdraw Your
Business, you should identify
the environmental legislation
and requirements relevant to your
business operations and subsequently
implement appropriate measures to
ensure or even exceed compliance.

This section presents environmental requirements that are generic for all trade/industry
categories. In addition to these generic requirements, some requirements are specific to
individual trade/industry categories.

Neighborhood Environment:

Considerations should also be given to the characteristics of neighborhood environment and the
sensitivity of other nearby premises to environmental nuisance, e.g. dust, odour, noise. This may
affect the likelihood of triggering environmental complaints in the future. Such considerations
include:

•  Are there any environment-sensitive premises, e.g. residential buildings, schools,

hospitals, etc., close to the planned site of your company?
•  Are there any environment-sensitive tenants (e.g. elderly tenants undertaking
activities requiring quiet environment, etc.) within the building that your company
plans to move in?

If your answer to any of the above questions is yes, you will need to exercise extra care in
planning and designing your operation processes and facilities or even consider the use of
suitable environmental control systems. Otherwise, it is likely that your future operation would
attract environmental complaints.

Health & Safety Requirements:

• Employers manage and conduct their work activities in such a manner as to ensure the
safety, health and welfare of employees.
• That a risk assessment is carried out by the employer or person in control of the place of
work.
• Transport hazards that exist in the workplace must be assessed as part of this risk
assessment and appropriate steps taken to eliminate or reduce any risks found.
• Vehicles are designed, provided and maintained in a condition that is safe and without
risk to health
• Safe means of access and egress to and from the vehicle is designed, provided and
maintained
• Systems of work are planned, organized, performed, maintained and revised as
appropriate, for example safe systems of work must be available for vehicle loading and
unloading activities
• Information, instruction, training and supervision is provided for all employees who
operate work related vehicles

Health and Safety Risk Assessments:

One of the largest areas of health and safety that underpins the overall topic is risk assessments.
As the title suggests, risk assessments are designed to assess and address risks wherever possible.
This is required in all workplaces, and is also implemented in areas of life like medical care,
school trips, and university society activities. Risk assessments are carried out for the benefit of
those working within organizations, as well as those who come into contact with them.
Ideally, a risk assessment will be performed before the risk arises. For example, a nurse who is
caring for an elderly patient will assess the risks that they face while in their care. The nurse may
decide that the patient is at risk of experiencing falls. When this risk is identified, she will then
put a solution in place. This approach extends to multiple workplaces, and is designed to prevent
people from becoming injured. The aim of any risk assessment procedure is to minimize the risks
present, not to attempt to eliminate them altogether.
Sometimes it is the case that an incident has occurred, and the risk needs to be assessed and
addressed afterwards. Using the patient analogy again, this could arise if the elderly patient has
fallen over and injured their hip. If that has happened, the nurse and their medical colleagues
must assess why it happened, and implement a measure that prevents it from happening again.
Finally, data must be collected on risk assessments. This is used to form guidelines and
procedures that minimize problems in the future. Those who wish to carry out a risk assessment
can obtain relevant forms and guidelines from the Health and Safety Executive, which should be
specific to the area they are assessing.
Other Health and Safety Legal Requirements:
Any individual or corporation in charge of a workplace or an area where the public will be
present has a responsibility to follow health and safety legal requirements. Some of these
requirements may be quite obvious. For example, it is necessary to have a planned fire safety
procedure, as well as adequate first aid supplies. Employers also have a responsibility to ensure
that their employees well-being is catered for. For example, they need to make sure that they are
free from physical injuries, and that their emotional well-being is also taken care of. In certain
industries, this can mean making sure that the employee is well-rested. To compliment this,
employees are responsible for forewarning their employers of any health conditions that could
affect their well-being.
There are certain workplaces that must meet unique health and safety legal requirements. For
example, those working in the construction industry are protected by laws preventing contact
with asbestos. Risk assessments must be carried out to determine is asbestos is present in the
working environment, and employers must provided protective clothing if it is detected.
Similarly, those working in the healthcare industry who come into contact with patients must be
trained in manual handling. This ensures that they will not injure themselves when assisting a
patient; at the same time, the patient is also protected.
Those working in the entertainment or food industry will legally have to follow guidelines
regarding the number of people who are allowed on their property, as well as food hygiene rules.
By ignoring these legal requirements, those working in such an industry could face civil or
criminal prosecution in the event of an accident.

Office Requirements: Health and Safety:

Office safety, along with the health and safety of employees who work in industrialized plants
like factories, became much more stringent following the Health and Safety at Work Act of
1974. This law means that employers must take "reasonably practicable" precautions in some
laid out areas of work and their premises to safeguard all of the staff.
There are many ways in which the Act has been added to over the years, for example the
Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations which were published in 1999. However,
the means by which employers ensure that they are fulfilling their legal requirements remains
pretty much unchanged except for certain and exceptional areas of work. As by far the majority
of offices do not fall into this category, we can ignore these specialist regulations for now.
In most cases it is the humble risk assessment that is used to meet the requirements of the law. If
you have never conducted one, a risk assessment is not necessarily a difficult thing to do. All that
is needed is a fair and true assessment of the risks that something poses and the steps that are
needed to remove or, at least, reduce them. Taking Steps:
Once a risk assessment is made it usually requires some action to be taken. This might be
relatively simple. In our example, using a highlight to visually indicate a trip hazard more clearly
might be enough. In other cases, no action may be required at all. However, in some
circumstances, more will be needed - perhaps clearing an area of trip hazards completely and
providing staff with pegs so they can hang their personal belongings away rather than have them
in bags on the floor next to their desks.
Taking preventative measures like these is only part of the process. All staff need to be informed
of a risk assessment that affects their workspace and practices. It is no good, after all, to make a
risk assessment that says walkways must be kept clear of bags and boxes, if staff don't know
about such a policy and fail to act on it.
In order to establish that there has been an improvement and that risk has been reduced,
according to the assessment that has been made, a further inspection should be carried out. There
is no hard and fast rule about when this should be. Low risks might be inspected only annually,
but areas that pose higher risks should be more frequently looked at until the risk is successfully
reduced. Setting the timescale for the next assessment is a crucial part of the way the process
works and without it the whole system can fail - with the result that offices continue to be unsafe
and also potentially meaning that employers are in breach of the law.

Environmental management plan for industry

INTRODUCTION:
Environmental management plans describe how an action might impact on the natural
environment in which it occurs and set out clear commitments from the person taking the action
on how those impacts will be avoided, minimised and managed so that they are environmentally
acceptable.

This document provides general guidance to stakeholders preparing environmental management

plans for environmental impact assessments and approvals under Chapter 4 of Australia’s
national environment law, the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
(the EPBC Act). A brief description of the EPBC Act and assessment and approval process is at
Appendix A. Environmental management plans are often submitted during the environmental
impact assessment process and may be part of the documentation considered by the Minister, or
their delegate, when deciding whether to approve a proposed action. If the proposed action is
approved, environmental management plans are often referenced in the conditions of approval.
In addition, approval conditions sometimes require revised or additional environmental
management plans to be approved before the approved action can begin. These guidelines will
assist with the preparation of environmental management plans in all of these circumstances.
The Department understands that at times, in addition to meeting obligations under national
environment law, an environmental management plan may also be required to satisfy the
requirements of other regulatory bodies or regulations and that formats may vary. These
guidelines only identify the information needed to prepare an environmental management plan in
accordance with the requirements of the EPBC Act.
These guidelines were developed in consultation with a selection of state agencies, industry
representatives and environmental consultants. This process highlighted the need for the
guidelines to be flexible to account for a diverse range of industries, scales of development and
regulatory contexts. General guidance on establishing environmental management systems is
also available in AS/NZS ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Management Systems – Requirements
with Guidance for use (Standards Australia) and is reflected in these guidelines.
GENERAL PRINCIPLES FOR THE PREPARATION OF AN ENVIRONMENTAL
MANAGEMENT PLAN
Key principles:
An environmental management plan should:
1. be balanced, objective and concise
2. state any limitations that apply, or should apply, to the use of the information in the
environmental management plan
3. identify any matter in relation to which there is a significant lack of relevant information
or a significant degree of uncertainty
4. include adaptive management strategies for managing uncertainty
5. be written in a way that is easily understood by other parties
6. clearly present how conclusions about risks have been reached
7. ensure that the person taking the action takes full responsibility for the content and
commitments contained in the plan.

Including commitments in management plans:

All commitments must be specific and auditable with measurable outcomes and clear
timeframes.
To ensure readability, write clearly and avoid long sentences with complex clauses.
Always use the terms ‘will’ and ‘must’, rather than ‘should’ or ‘may’ when committing to carry
out management actions.
Avoid use of ambiguous terminology such as ‘where possible’, ‘as required’, ‘to the greatest
extent possible’. If it is necessary to include ambiguous terminology, it should be explained and
examples given.
Clearly explain any technical terms or acronyms used, and/or define them in a glossary. It is also
important that commitments or statements within the management plan are consistent with other
relevant management plans or conditions of approval.
Cross-referencing:
Where the plan refers to material in other documents, it should include cross-references that are
clear, complete and that specify the document version and date. Use tables, diagrams and maps
where their inclusion would provide a better understanding and implementation of the
management plan. Link all tables, diagrams and maps into the text through cross-referencing.

Timing the submission of an environmental management plan:

Under the EPBC Act an approval is required for any proposed action which is likely to have a
significant impact on a matter protected under national environment law (see Appendix A).
Proposed actions which require an approval are subject to an environmental impact assessment
process. It is best to submit environmental management plans early in the assessment process.
This enables the plan to be fully considered and, if the action is approved, can result in simpler
conditions of approval.
Once a proposed action is approved, conditions may be attached to that approval requiring that
an environmental management plan be submitted to the Minister for approval before the action
begins. Reviewing and approving the plans takes time and sometimes modifications are required
before the Minister or their delegate will approve them. Accordingly, environmental
management plans should be submitted for approval at least three months before approval is
needed. Alternative timeframes should be discussed with Departmental officers to ensure that
expectations are met. This approach will reduce the likelihood that activities are delayed while
waiting for the plan to be approved.

Environmental management roles and responsibilities:

Once an action is approved, the approval holder is responsible for complying with the conditions
of approval, including the commitments made in environmental management plans. The plan
should define the roles and responsibilities of personnel in charge of the environmental
management of the project. The roles and responsibilities of each relevant position should be
documented, including the responsibilities of subcontractors. The names of the responsible
personnel do not need to be included. Identification of the position titles, roles and
responsibilities is sufficient. If the roles and responsibilities are expected to change over time the
long term variations should also be documented.