📚 Guide by Safety Mom · Allstar Enviro Safety — The Spill Prevention Control And Countermeasures is an online workplace safety course delivered by Safety Mom · Allstar Enviro Safety, Calgary’s Energy Safety Canada Authorized Training Provider. Self-paced, mobile-friendly, same-day certificate upon exam completion. Available across Canada.
🔗 Related Safety Mom courses & guides: H2S Alive Calgary · Standard First Aid Calgary · Oil Sands Safety Certs · Instructor: Arliss Levine, CRSP, CHSC
SPILL PREVENTION, CONTROL AND COUNTERMEASURES COURSE OVERVIEW
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), many of the 14,000 oil spills reported each year are caused by industry activities resulting from storage tanks rupturing, pipeline leaks, and oil transport accidents. These spills present a significant threat to the environment and often require specially trained emergency response personnel to contain and clean up the spills. Some spills are so significant that they may require help from local and state agencies and the federal government.
REGULATIONS
This course was designed to help satisfy the requirements of 40 CFR, Part 112, “Oil Pollution Prevention.”
SPILL PREVENTION, CONTROL AND COUNTERMEASURES COURSE TOPICS
- Harmful effects of spilled oil
- Applicable laws and regulations for oil pollution prevention
- The purpose and general requirements of a facility SPCC Plan
- General operating procedures designed to prevent spills
- General control measures to prevent an oil spill from reaching navigable waters and adjoining shorelines
- Basic countermeasures for stopping a spill from reaching the environment
- How to respond to facility shutdown and evacuation
SPILL PREVENTION, CONTROL AND COUNTERMEASURES COURSE DURATION: Approximately 25 minutes
SPILL PREVENTION, CONTROL AND COUNTERMEASURES COURSE ASSESSMENT: Testing conducted throughout this online course is designed to reinforce the information presented. A mark of 80% must be achieved in order to receive a certificate of completion. Users are able to repeat the course twice if the pass mark is not achieved.
SPILL PREVENTION, CONTROL AND COUNTERMEASURES CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION: Upon successful completion of this online course, a certificate of completion will be available for download and printing.
SPILL PREVENTION, CONTROL AND COUNTERMEASURES COURSE PREVIEW
Additional Safety Knowledge
Chemical Hazard Classification in Canada
Under WHMIS 2015 aligned with the Globally Harmonised System (GHS), chemicals are classified into physical hazards (16 classes including flammability, oxidising, explosive, gases under pressure) and health hazards (10 classes including acute toxicity, skin corrosion, carcinogenicity, reproductive toxicity, specific target organ toxicity). Each class has categories (1 = most severe, 4 or 5 = least severe) that determine label pictograms and signal words.
Occupational Exposure Limits in Alberta
Alberta OHS Schedule 1 lists Occupational Exposure Limits (OELs) for over 700 hazardous substances. Each substance has:
- 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA): the average concentration over an 8-hour shift.
- Short-term exposure limit (STEL): the maximum 15-minute average.
- Ceiling limit: concentration that must never be exceeded even briefly.
Some substances also carry a Skin (S) notation indicating dermal absorption risk, or a Sensitiser (Sen) notation. Compliance requires air monitoring, engineering controls, administrative controls, and PPE.
The Hierarchy of Chemical Controls
Alberta OHS Code requires controls in this priority order: (1) elimination or substitution — use a less hazardous product; (2) engineering controls — ventilation, enclosure, process modification; (3) administrative controls — work procedures, training, rotation; (4) personal protective equipment — respirators, gloves, chemical suits. PPE alone is not adequate compliance where higher-order controls are practicable.
Spill Prevention Control And Countermeasures — Emergency Preparedness
Every workplace handling chemicals must have accessible Safety Data Sheets, spill response equipment matched to the products in use, eyewash and safety showers where corrosives are handled (within 10 metres of the hazard, delivering 1.5 gallons per minute for 15 minutes minimum per ANSI Z358.1), and trained personnel available on every shift. Fire departments and mutual aid partners should be informed of chemicals stored on-site above regulated quantities.
Content reviewed by Arliss Levine, CRSP, CHSC — lead safety instructor at Safety Mom · Allstar Enviro Safety Calgary, an Energy Safety Canada Authorized Training Provider.
