Process Safety & Risk Management
Semester 1, 2018
Cornell Notes
Questions:
What is the difference between
“safety assurance” and “safety
assessment”?
How are they related to each
other?
Assess the implications of safety
assurance/assessment related to
the given topic
Topic: Name: Sahil Hariramani
Food For Thought Week 4 Group:
Workshop: Friday
Date: 23/03/2018
MAIN IDEAS/FINDINGS:
“Safety assurance includes the systematic and ongoing monitoring
and recording of your safety performance, as well as evaluating your
safety management processes and practices” [1]
Risk is a function of 2 factors; frequency/probability of an untoward
event, and the consequences of that event. The complete elimination
of risk of human activity in process industries will never be possible.
All that can be done for safety assurance is to reduce the risk from
both aspects to a reasonably low practicable event [2].
“A safety assessment is a comprehensive and systematic
investigation and analysis of all aspects of risks to health and safety
associated with major incidents that may potentially occur in the
course of operation of the major hazard facility, including: the nature
of each major incident and major incident hazard.” [3]
Myriad techniques are available to safety engineers to ensure that all
aspects have been investigated so as to clearly assess the level of
risks associated with a particular operation [2]. These measures
include:
 What can happen?
This can be answered by a hazard and operability study
(Hazop) and a Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA).
 How often does it occur? And what are the consequences?
Quantity and Risk Assessment (QRA) method such as Fault
Tree Analysis, Event Tree Analysis, dispersion modelling, etc.
 Is the risk acceptable/tolerable?
This involves a complex feasibility analysis of the operation in
the following fields: social, political, financial and ecological.
Safety assessment is the act of pointing out all possible risks and
assessing the extent of its consequences whereas safety assurance is
achieved by performing all the tasks that will ensure the safety of the
personnel, such as assessing all hazards and risks, and reducing it to a
reasonable level.
If a company performs an extensive safety assessment is provides
more safety assurance when performing an operation. A regular
safety assessment would maintain the safety assurance.
The article provided highlights the preservation of indigenous rock
art that is situated in the Burrup Peninsula. The rock art is subject to
adverse impacts from the industrial plants that are located nearby.
If a safety assessment was done prior to constructing the plant, in
particular, the effect of building a plant in the area, it would have
 revealed that the area is home to indigenous rock art which has a
historical value and has to be preserved. Had measures been taken to
preserve the art to a certain extent, the populace would have been
assured that safety measures were and are being taken to preserve
the art value present in the area.

Steps being taken for Safety Assessment / Safety Assurance and their
implications:
 A knowledge centre is being funded by the government and
supported by Woodside to study the effects of the emissions
produced by the industries on the rocks and the art present.
Instead of building a small centre near the area, the centre is
still yet to be built because of a pending decision on siting of
the centre. A suggested area is the Conzinc Bay, on the
northern Burrup Peninsula, but building the centre here
would invite more human activity which would further
destroy the heritage.
 The state has funded heritage inventory surveys in all the
industrial zoned land, but only one study in the national park
has been funded.
 Over 15000 petroglyphs have been discovered between 2014
and 2017, and the area is yet to be protected by the local
government.
 It is required by the federal government that the plants
monitor the heritage values and surveying rock art sites
within 2 kilometres of the project site.

Summary:

References

[1] C. A. S. Authority, "SMS for Aviation–A Practical Guide Safety Assurance," Australian Government, 2012.
[2] B. Skelton, Process Safety Analysis An Introduction, Newnes, 1997.
[3] Safe Work Australia, SAFETY ASSESSMENT: Guide for Major Hazard Facilities, Australian Government ,
2012.