Diesel used to refuel plant from a bunded bowser
Diesel is less of a fire risk than petrol but it is a suspected carcinogen and it damages the skin with repeated contact. On site the main exposures are splashes during refuelling and contaminated overalls. This example covers a plant operator refuelling from a bunded bowser. Draft, not yet reviewed.
Opens in the generator with every field filled. Change the site details and the task, and download.
Why these controls
Skin is the route that matters. Nitrile gloves for refuelling, no diesel on overalls for the rest of the day, and washing facilities on site are the controls. Diesel should never be used as a hand cleaner or as a shuttering release agent.
Spills are an environmental issue and a slip hazard. A spill kit at the bowser and drip trays under refuelling points are cheap and expected.
Diesel engine exhaust is a separate hazard with its own assessment. It is not covered by this one.
This document is a starting point. The employer must check it against the actual workplace, the product safety data sheet and current HSE guidance before relying on it. It is not an HSE approved document.
COSHH assessment
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, regulation 6
| Company or site | Hartwell Groundworks Ltd |
|---|---|
| Location | Refuelling point next to the site compound |
| Assessor | Mark Ellison, Site Manager |
| Reviewed by | Mark Ellison, Site Manager |
| Approved by | — |
1. Substance
| Name | Diesel (diesel fuel, gas oil, red diesel) |
|---|---|
| CAS number | 68334-30-5 |
| Supplier | — |
| Quantity held on site | — |
| Physical form | liquid |
| Safety data sheet | Not attached. Obtain the current sheet from the supplier and keep it with this assessment. |
| Signal word | DANGER |
| Pictograms |     Flammable, Harmful or irritant, Serious health hazard, Hazardous to the environment |
2. Hazards
- Flammable liquid, category 3
- Carcinogenicity, category 2
- Acute toxicity, category 4
- Aspiration hazard, category 1
- Skin irritation, category 2
- Specific target organ toxicity, repeated exposure, category 2
- Hazardous to the aquatic environment, chronic category 2
- H226 Flammable liquid and vapour.
- H351 Suspected of causing cancer.
- H332 Harmful if inhaled.
- H304 May be fatal if swallowed and enters airways.
- H315 Causes skin irritation.
- H373 May cause damage to organs through prolonged or repeated exposure.
- H411 Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects.
Health effects on the day
- Can catch fire near heat or flame
- Harmful: nausea, headache or feeling unwell after exposure
- If swallowed and it enters the lungs, chemical pneumonia that can be fatal; do not make the person vomit
- Red, sore or itchy skin
Health effects over time
- Suspected of causing cancer with repeated exposure
- Repeated contact dries and cracks the skin and can lead to dermatitis
- May damage organs from prolonged or repeated exposure
- Harm to water life if it reaches a drain or watercourse
| Routes of exposure | skin, inhalation, ingestion |
|---|---|
| Workplace exposure limit | No WEL recorded in this library entry. Check SDS section 8 and EH40; exposure must still be controlled. |
3. How the substance is used
| Task | Refuelling excavators, dumpers and a generator from a 2,000 litre bunded bowser using its pump and nozzle |
|---|---|
| Who is exposed | Plant operators and the site fitter, four people |
| At particular risk | None identified |
| Frequency | Daily |
| Quantity used | 50 to 300 litres per refuel |
| Duration | 5 to 15 minutes per refuel |
| Ventilation | Outdoors |
| Spray, heat or mist | No |
| Storage | Bunded bowser, locked, sited away from drains and the watercourse, with a spill kit |
| Store away from | — |
4. Risk rating
| Before controls | Medium, 9 out of 25 (likelihood 3 × severity 3) |
|---|---|
| With controls in place | Low, 3 out of 25 (likelihood 1 × severity 3) |
5. Control measures in place
Engineering controls
- Ignition sources are kept away. No naked flames, hot surfaces, sparks or smoking where it is used or stored. Electrical equipment is suitable where flammable vapour may be present.
Working practices
- Staff are trained on this assessment and the safe method. Everyone who uses it has been told the hazards, the safe way to use it, the controls and what to do if something goes wrong. Training is recorded. Required by COSHH regulation 12.
- The safety data sheet is available to staff. The current data sheet is kept where staff and first aiders can find it, and is checked when the product or supplier changes.
- It is stored safely. Original labelled containers, closed, upright, in a cool ventilated place away from incompatible substances, food and public access.
- Staff wash their hands after use and do not eat or drink where it is used. Hands are washed after handling and before eating, drinking or smoking. Contaminated clothing is removed.
- There is a spill kit and a written spill procedure. Staff know how to deal with a spill, a kit is available, and waste goes out as hazardous waste through a licensed carrier.
Personal protective equipment
- Staff wear chemical resistant gloves. Of the material and breakthrough time given in section 8 of the data sheet, replaced when damaged or contaminated.
- Staff wear eye protection. Goggles to EN 166 where there is a risk of splashing. Safety glasses are not relied on for corrosive liquids.
6. Decisions
| Substitution considered | — |
|---|---|
| Exposure adequately controlled | — |
| Health surveillance | — |
| Exposure monitoring | — |
7. Further action required
None identified at this revision.
8. First aid, spillage and disposal
Swallowed: do not induce vomiting, call 999. Skin: wash with soap and water. Inhaled: fresh air. In an emergency call 999. For advice call NHS 111.
| Spillage | Follow section 6 of the safety data sheet. |
|---|---|
| Disposal | Follow section 13 of the safety data sheet. Waste leaves site as hazardous waste through a licensed carrier. |
9. Notes
Drip trays at the nozzle. Contaminated overalls changed the same day. Diesel not to be used for cleaning or as a release agent.
Hazard data from the ECHA classification and labelling inventory and HSE EH40/2005. Check the supplier safety data sheet for the exact product and concentration you use. Review by the next review date, and sooner if the product or supplier changes, the task or the people doing it change, there is a spill or incident, anyone reports symptoms, or new information arrives from the supplier or HSE. This assessment is a starting point; the employer must review it against the actual workplace before relying on it.