Accidents without frontiers

Nearing the fifth anniversary of the Buncefield accident, I am currently attempting to track industry’s progress in adopting the many recommendations to come out of the UK Health & Safety Executive (HSE) investigation into this major incident.

Feedback, so far, points to significant advances being made in the UK, Continental Europe and worldwide – with one significant exception. In the US, the American Petroleum Institute (API) is, for instance, apparently yet to recommend the use automatic independent safety systems at fuel storage facilities.

This central recommendation from the HSE investigation is intended to eliminate risks from human error – in line with the international functional safety standard IEC 61511: Safety Instrumented Systems for the Process Industry Sector.

API Recommended Practice 2350: Overfill Protection for Storage Tanks in Petroleum Facilities does address many safety issues at fuel storage facilities. However, some experts argue that it lacks the breadth of the IEC standard, which addresses complex issues and supports a consistent approach to safety across both facilities and organisations.

There are, of course, many complex issues at play here, but this continuing divergence suggests an urgent need for a more co-ordinated international response to major industrial accidents – no matter what part of the world they occur in.