The Ministry of Emergency Management announced that new regulations will be implemented next year, and safety accidents in limited space operations are frequent.
Reporters learned from a press conference held by the Ministry of Emergency Management today that in order to further strengthen and standardize the safety of limited space operations in industrial and trade enterprises and effectively curb the occurrence of limited space operation accidents, the newly revised "Safety Regulations for Limited Space Operations in Industrial and Trade Enterprises" has been reviewed. Passed, it will be officially implemented on January 1, 2024.
According to reports, sewage wells, septic tanks, biogas tanks, as well as fermentation tanks, pickling tanks, pulp tanks, sewage treatment tanks and other places. In these places, personnel generally do not work for long periods of time and only enter when necessary to carry out temporary operations such as maintenance, cleaning and desilting. Since the design of a limited space does not consider lighting, lighting, ventilation and other requirements according to the fixed workplace, it can easily lead to poisoning, suffocation, or explosion.
In recent years, major accidents involving limited space operations in the industrial and trade industry have occurred in papermaking, pickles, leather, down processing, printing and dyeing and other industries. For example: On August 31 this year, Derun Trading Company in Panjin, Liaoning Province, suffered a poisoning and suffocation accident in a limited space while carrying out inspection and maintenance of the pickling pool pump, resulting in 4 deaths; on September 11, 2021, a feather eider in Baoding City, Hebei Province A poisoning and suffocation accident occurred in a limited space during inspection of a sludge submersible pump in a processing plant, resulting in 6 deaths and 1 injury.
The Department of Emergency Management held a press conference today.
Wang Lizhong, a second-level inspector of the Ministry of Emergency Management, said at the press conference that compared with the previous ones, the newly announced "Safety Regulations for Limited Space Operations of Industrial and Trade Enterprises" have changed in three aspects -
It is required that supervision personnel be provided when working in a limited space. Guardians must have appropriate safety knowledge and emergency response capabilities, and be specifically responsible for supervising the implementation of safety measures for operations in limited spaces.
Emphasize operation approval and on-site safety management and disposal. For operations in limited spaces that pose risks of poisoning, suffocation, etc., the main person in charge of the enterprise or the person entrusted by him in writing is required to conduct approval; for contracting operations, the enterprise must conduct unified coordination and management; for emergency drills, the importance of on-site disposal should be more highlighted and clearly Enterprises should formulate on-site disposal plans and organize regular drills. At the same time, on-site safety management requirements such as warning signs, isolation measures, protective equipment, and operating procedures are highlighted, and warning signs should be set up at entrances and exits of limited spaces, and physical isolation measures such as locks, isolation fences, and protective nets should be adopted.
Highlight the supervision and management of key objects. Make a list of limited spaces that involve risks of poisoning and suffocation such as hydrogen sulfide, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide and require focused supervision and management, and implement directory management to facilitate enterprises to identify and control these limited spaces with high risks, and also make inspections by regulatory authorities more focused.
