What Causes Exposure To Chemical Fumes In The Workplace?

What Causes Exposure to Chemical Fumes in The Workplace?

Chemical fumes can be present in a wide range of different industries and occupations; in some cases they are a critical part of the process carried out by the organisation, in other scenarios they can arrive due to some sort of leak or accident. In both of these situations employees must be protected from the dangers presented by the inhalation of fumes and systems must be put in place to manage and control the risks.

The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations require all organisations and businesses to identify and monitor hazardous substances that might be present in the workplace. These days almost every business uses chemicals of some sort – from the most apparent such as chemical companies and pharmaceutical firms, to the less obvious clean, modern office environment, where toners and adhesives might be used, alongside a range of cleaning products.

As well as solid and liquid chemicals that can be hazardous, fumes given off during certain processes can be even more dangerous; if they are inhaled they can cause a range of illnesses and conditions, and in some cases death.

Exposure to some fumes can cause an acute reaction – where the sufferer immediately notices the effects, whereas others can cause long-term problems that are not noticed until much later on, sometimes years after the exposure has taken place.

In some cases fumes are given off by certain chemicals at rooms temperature – such as petrol and diesel, but also emitted when the fuel is burnt. In some cases the fumes are produced as a bi-product of a chemical reaction; such as carbon monoxide, and in other cases the fumes can arise as a result of heating, cutting or grinding of a product. In any of these situations the risks of inhaling these airborne particles and vapours must be managed and reduced as far as is practicable in order for an organisation to be seen to be doing its best for the health and welfare of its employees.

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