PPL Pollution Prevention and Control - contamination control for commercial sites - Case Study 4 - Oil Storage - Regulation Compliance Consultancy and Remedial Action

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Case Study 4

Case Study 4 - Oil Storage - Regulation Compliance Consultancy and Remedial Action

Client:
Small Engineering Company - West Yorkshire. (Name withheld for confidentiality)

Background:
The company makes components, steel enclosures and specialised process equipment. It uses a substantial quantity of cutting oils, general lubricants and fuel oil for heating purposes. The factory, sited on a typical industrial estate adjacent to a small river, is around twenty years old, is well maintained, clean and the working environment is generally good.
Brief:
While the management have a positive attitude towards environmental issues they were concerned about their oil storage and handling and were unsure how they stood in respect of long-standing and recent regulations and Environment Agency Pollution Prevention Guidelines.
While the management have a positive attitude towards environmental issues they were concerned about their oil storage and handling and were unsure how they stood in respect of long-standing and recent regulations and Environment Agency Pollution Prevention Guidelines.

In common with most organisations the company has only a very limited budget for environmental issues so it was essential that it received accurate, relevant advice and, if required, carefully targeted expenditure plans.

Being a Small to Medium sized Enterprise (SME) and based in West Yorkshire it was possible that the company was eligible for a grant of up to 50% towards the cost of the consultancy and associated minor remedial "house-keeping" expenditure. For obvious reasons any major capital expenditure involved in remedying problems would be at the full cost to the company.

Outcome:
The company opted for a typical P.P.L "due diligence" package which included:-

- Comprehensive site pollution prevention survey covering all aspects of oil delivery, storage, handling and use, including a full report explaining every aspect of the regulations and guidelines as they affect the company's site
- Site sensitivity report to ascertain proximity to water courses and boreholes and to identify any other potential environmental problems on or near the site
- OFTEC tank & pipe inspection and report (above ground)
- Drain tracing to identify function and routing of the site's drains + drain cover marking
- Interceptor Inspection for oil & silt + general condition + cover marking
- Incident response training to deal with spills and incidents and use of clean up materials
- Emergency 40 litre spill/clean-up kit (oil/chemical or general purpose)

This package included full written reports and documentation. The normal cost is £3000 but being eligible for a grant from Business Link of up to 50% the nett cost was £1500. The company took immediate steps to sort out the most pressing problems and was able to use the report to plan a sensible and affordable longer term correction, implementation and maintenance regime.

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