Amendments to Part 5 of the Occupational Health Safety Regulation (OHSR) regarding Emergency Planning for Hazardous Substances came into effect on February 3, 2025, and will have a 60-day preliminary period, in which stakeholders can give feedback and request revisions.
Changes were made to sections 5.97 to 5.104 and their corresponding OHS Guidelines. The amendments expand on prevention and response to situations where hazardous substances are involved, and it clarifies that emergency planning requirements now apply whether they arise from inside or outside the workplace. Furthermore, employers are now required to maintain an inventory of hazardous substances with only those that are present in quantities capable of posing a risk during an emergency.
Amendments to the risk analysis section were made. Employers are now required to conduct risk assessments for substances in the inventory, for those that could potentially enter the workplace during an external emergency, or for those that can be generated (for example by accidental reactions).
The new amendments also expand on emergency plan reviews and new requirements for emergency drills. For example, under the new changes, emergency plans are to be reviewed annually, when there are significant changes in the workplace, or when the existing risk assessment is not longer valid. Furthermore, workers’ drills and training is to be conducted at least annually or after any significant change to the emergency response plan is made.
For more information on the regulation update on Emergency Planning please visit WorkSafeBC.
