2015 ISOSWO APWA Spring Conference

1. 1
Site Safety
Todd Thalhamer, P.E.

2. 2
Health and Safety
 Your safety your life

3. 3
Hazard Awareness

4. 4

5. We Make Mistakes
5

6. Expensive Ones
6

7. What is your PLAN
7

8. 8
What is your ROLE?

9. What is your ROLE?
9

10. 10
Your Actions

11. Your Actions
11

12. 12
Pre Plan and Training
 FF IC Rescue Video

13. 13
Health and Safety
 Everyone's Responsibility
 Can one teach all the H&S protocols for landfill
fires in a two hour presentation? No.
 So your Goal:
 to recognize the hazards
 Take action to protect your team
 Make a plan
 Hire a certified industrial hygienist with LF fire
experience

14. 14
Do you know how to communicate the
risks to the fire service?
 What are the risks and safety concerns
from a fire at a LF/recycling facility

15. 15
Hazards at Waste Fires
 Waste
 Exposures
 Trips and Falls
 Equipment Zones
 Landfill Operations
 LF Gasses
 Confined Spaces
 Collapses
 Rescues

16. 16
How do you Account for
Exposures and Hazards
 Health and Safety Plan
 This plan documents how you intend to
reduce or eliminate exposures and hazards

17. 17
Facility Awareness

18. 18
Injuries - Awareness
 LPFD, California - July 2007
 Fire captain fell 20 ft into a pit during a fire at
a transfer station
 He had to be rescued and airlifted to a trauma
center
 Fire was deep seated and producing smoke
with no visibility
 Sprinklers in the building were not effective in
penetrating the pile

19. 19
Landfill Fire Gas
 CH4
 CO
 H2S
 CN - Cyanide (burning of plastic materials)
 Density issues

20. 20
Contaminates
of Concern
Particulates PM-10/PM-2.5
Landfill Gasses (CH4)
Sulfur Oxides (SOx)
Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S)
Carbon Monoxide (CO)
Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)
VOCs (benzene)
Semi-VOC’s
Metals (Lead, Mercury, Arsenic)
PAH’s
Dioxins and Furans
PCB’s
Volatile Nitrosamines
Pesticides and Herbicides

21. 21
Exposures
 Acute Hazards
 Chronic Hazards
 What is the difference?
 What Chemicals are Acute Hazards?
 Why does this matter?

22. 22
FF Death
 Retired Knoxville firefighter laid to rest
 60 year old Captain John Pickens
 Officials say the lung disease can be
traced back to a huge tire fire Pickens
helped battle back in July of 1996

23. 23
Waste Fires
 #1 Priority
 Develop a Respiratory Plan

24. 24
Respiratory Protection
 Use a certified industrial hygienist with past
experience
 You need to account for hazardous gasses:
 Carbon Monoxide (CO) if greater than 35 ppm
 Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) if greater than 10 ppm
 Lack of Oxygen (O2) if less than 19%
 Methane (CH4) and Hydrogen if higher than LEL (H2)
 Carbon Dioxide (CO2) if oxygen displaced.
 Dioxins at trace concentrations.
 Other organics (benzene) can be carcinogenic.

25. 25
12,800 ppm - Immediate Unconsciousness
(1 %)
Danger of Death in 1 to 3 minutes
6400 ppm - Headache and Dizziness
in 1 to 2 minutes.
Unconsciousness and danger of
5,000 death in 10 to 15 minutes.
3200 ppm - Headache and Dizziness
in 5 to 10 minutes.
Unconsciousness and danger of
2,000 death in 30 minutes.
1600 ppm - Headache, Dizziness and
Nausea in 20 minutes.
1,000
Collapse and possible death in 1 hour.
800 ppm - Headache, Dizziness and
Nausea in 45 minutes.
500 Collapse and possible death in 2 hours.
400 ppm - Frontal Headache and Nausea
in 1 to 2 hours.
200 ppm - Possible mild Frontal Headache
100 in 2 to 3 hours.
0
PPMofCO
Carbon
Monoxide
Levels
50 ppm - Permissible Exposure Level
(Based on exposure period of 8 hours)
(2 %)
Incomplete
Combustion

26. 26
2,000
Death
1,000
Strong Nervous System Stimulation
500
Pulmonary Edema
300 (Imminent Life Threat)
Conjunctivitis
Respiratory Tract Irritation
Olfactory Paralysis
100 (Loss of Sense of Smell)
Serious Eye Injury
50
Headache
Nausea
10 Throat and Eye Irritation
Offensive Odor
(Rotten Egg Smell)
3
Odor Threshold
0.05
0
ppmofH2S
Hydrogen
Sulfide
Levels
Dry wall/Sheet
Rock contains
Gypsum
(sulfide
mineral)

27. 27
PM-2.5
Smoldering
Fires

28. 28
Air
Monitoring
Three Types
 Employee Exposure
 Area
 Perimeter/Community

29. 29
Health and Safety Plans
Fresno Debris
 Site safety plan developed
by CIWMB and USCG
 Audited by California OSHA
 Reviewed and signed off by
all personnel
 SF Landfill Fire –Last Rubble
 Small one day fire
 Extensive Real-time Air
Monitoring
What about a Community Safety
Plan

30. 30
Sink Holes
 16 year old – third degree
burns 30%
 Fell into 15’ deep hole X-
mas eve
 Equipment damage $$$

31. Video Break
31
Tow Truck