Repsol YPF

LPG: safety and the environment

A global vision of safety and the environment

LPG activities are carried out under the understanding that  safety, health and the environment are essential values. As stated in its Safety, Health and the Environment Policy, Repsol operates under the following principles: leadership and comprehensive management; the application of safety, health and the environment criteria throughout its entire cycle of activities; compliance with regulations; continuous improvement; and communication and relations with the community.

The basic pillars of the management systems for ongoing improvement are prevention, training, awareness, professional competence, and review of procedure. The future lines of action for environmental protection and safety are set forth in the Strategic Plans for Safety and the Environment  implemented by the company. 

The Auditing Plans for Safety and the Environment  verify the implementation of the system, its effectiveness and general compliance, and include the detection of non-compliance and the establishment of corrective actions or guidelines for improvement. The plans contemplate internal audits carried out by qualified personnel as well as external audits, as required by legal or certification procedures.
 

The company establishes documents and maintains up to date a Safety Management System composed of the Management Systems of all the countries where it operates. The system encompasses all aspects of the organization relevant to the protection of people, goods and the environment from the safety risks that may originate in the business activities or directly related to the business units. The objectives are as follows:

• To promote the prevention of work-related injuries or illnesses.
• To promote the elimination or control of the risks of the work environment.
• To improve the prevention or minimization of the possibility of material damages or damages to production.
• To comply with the legislation or specific industrial or internal regulations relevant to safety.
  
  

The safety of clients and external facilities is of special relevance and key to the system. LPG Global offers- amongst its many services- the design, construction, and maintenance of installations, as well as recommendations on how to use them safely. It applies Safety criteria when selecting and assessing contractors and suppliers, demanding of them behavior in keeping with internally established rules.               

The Safety Management System follows and complies with the requirements of the international regulation OHSAS 18.001.

LPG Global establishes criterion as reference points from which to analyze its evolution and identify areas of viability or progress. These yardsticks assess the evolution of the diverse components of accident rates and accident prevention in the Business Areas.  Once the evaluation of the chosen gauges is completed, a report is written that will serve to promote improvements. 

As part of the ongoing improvement process, suitable measures have been established for communication, registration and investigation of accidents and incidents, which then generate corrective actions.

In order to prevent serious accidents and limit the consequences of accidents, LPG Global performs risk analysis at their installations. This type of analysis is established on the basis of a classification of the risk level:

• An Analysis of Functional Operability (AFO-HAZOP) consists of a systematic study of potential dangers and inefficiencies that might arise in any process as a result of an abnormal operation. Risk identification determines which measures of action are necessary to eliminate or reduce the effect. LPG Global, in order to perform this type of analysis, uses methodology of recognised prestige, as well as very efficient tools, including Primatech PHAworks software. A Semiquantitative Risk Analysis (ASCR in its Spanish abbreviation) uses the Risk Index to establish action priorities for improving industrial safety. 
• When the Consequence Reach study states that the intervention zone extends beyond the limits of the affected establishment's property and that the risk level is high, a Quantitative Risk Analysis (ACR) is performed.             

LPG Global is progressively introducing an Environmental Management System in its production centres, which is certified and audited under frame of reference ISO 14001:2004.

The liquid gases propane and butane are not toxic and do not produce any liquid or solid residue. They are clean, sulphur-free gases aimed at ecological energy consumption. The emission of these gases into the atmosphere does not contribute to the greenhouse effect. 

Activities carried out by LPG Global do not include any chemical process, reagent, furnaces, or catalysts. Activities are limited to storage, decanting and bottling. Within this framework, under normal conditions, there is no possibility of aquatic or land pollution. Possible risks are classified as those associated with activities that are auxiliary to the production process such as: ships' or buildings' floor furnace combustion, industrial or sanitary water dumping, management of residues generated from maintenance operations.

At each Centre, environmental aspects are identified under normal working conditions, under abnormal working conditions and under emergency conditions. Possible affected resources are also identified, taking into account factors such as: vehicle and diffuse atmospheric emissions, water residue, residue generation, use of the floor, noise, resources and material consumption, and visual impact. Once identified, these are evaluated to detect those which prove to be significant for their control.

LPG's Business Area publishes quarterly reports on the environmental parameters  of its activities, with information on resource consumption (water, electricity, fuels), atmospheric emissions, residual water dumping, residues both dangerous and not dangerous, and (in the case that there is any) spillage.