United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Hazardous Waste Engineering
Research Laboratory
Cincinnati OH 45268
Research and Development
EPA/600/S2-86/016 July 1986
4>EPA Project Summary
Documentation and Analysis for
Prevention and Control of
Hazardous Material Spills
D. B. Heard, L M. Krasner, and B. G. Vincent
The overall objective of this study was
to develop a computerized system for
documenting and analyzing hazardous
material spill data. The present program
improves the data collection and proc-
essing so that information can be gen-
erated in a form that can be used
effectively to prevent and control haz-
ardous material spills.
The program established an open-
ended, dual data base system that can
produce reports on request and gener-
ate statistics on any or all spill incidents
that are encoded in computer storage.
Two logically linked data sets were
established. The first set consisted of
incident-related data, and the second
was made up of material-related data.
The previously developed computer
codes were modified to accommodate
the large number of incidents acquired
and the dual data base system. New
coding techniques also minimized the
potential of multiple entries and greatly
increased the amount of information
that can be stored. These changes have
made the data system more nearly
universal and provided a more acces-
sible means of retrieving information
than was possible using previous re-
trieval methods.
This Project Summary was developed
by EPA's Hazardous Waste Engineering
Research Laboratory, Cincinnati, OH,
to announce key findings of the research
project that is fully documented in a
separate report of the same title (see
Project Report ordering information at
back).
Introduction
Prevention and control of a problem as
complex as that of hazardous material
spills and their ensuing effects on the
population and environment can only be
approached by using a comprehensive,
reliable system for collecting and ana-
lyzing spill data. This study developed a
completely computerized system for docu-
menting and analyzing hazardous mater-
ial spill data. Earlier work was done to
obtain a prioritized list of hazardous
material spill causes reflecting the quanti-
ty andthe hazard potential of the material
spilled, number of casualties sustained,
and identity of the operational and geo-
graphic areas where the spill occurred
(Hazardous Material Spills: A Documen-
tation and Analysis of Historical Data,
EPA-600/2-78-066, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, 1978). The current
project codes provide more detailed data
and develop a more comprehensive com-
puter program for analysis purposes. An
open-ended, dual data base system was
developed that could generate both sta-
tistical reports and histograms. The sys-
tem consisted of a Spill Incident Data
Base, containing relevant statistics on
individual hazardous material spill inci-
dents; a Material File Data Base which
catalogs and retains vital physical and
toxicological data for a variety of haz-
ardous substances; and a data manipula-
tion and analysis program.
Procedures
The work was divided into three phases:
data documentation, spill hazard deter-
mination, and data analysis.
Approximately 22,500 spill reports
were examined during the data documen-
tation phase. Of those, 5,616 incidents
were selected for inclusion in the Spill
Incident Data Base. These incidents oc-
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curred between 1975 and 1979 and were
drawn from 17 different sources. The
bulk of the data came from the U.S.
Department of Transportation (DOT),
which provided 78% of the total number
of incident reports.
Data for the Material File came from
the Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical
Substances (RTECS) published by the
National Institute for Occupational Safety
and Health (NIOSH). Physical and toxi-
cological data for more than 600 different
substances were cataloged in the Mater-
ial File. A spill documentation reportform
and a Material File update form were
developed by Factory Mutual Research
Corporation (FMRC) for documenting and
coding information for entry into the two
data bases.
The primary advantage of the dual data
base system is that it eliminates the need
for including material-related statistics in
spill incident reports. The only require-
ment is that the materials be uniquely
identified in both data bases. This goal
was accomplished through the use of the
RTECS reference number system used by
NIOSH. The system is alsof lexible enough
to allow for the input of new or additional
incident and material data as they become
available.
To provide some quantitative measure
of the hazard associated with the release
of different materials in varying amounts,
a spill hazard potential rating was devel-
oped. This hazard potential was computed
using the mass of material released and
its relative toxicity (called a relative
hazard) rating. Though not perfect, the
hazard potential ratings provided for a
relative measure of toxicological and
ecological dangers presented by the
release of various materials.
Once the data sets were finalized,
efforts were directed toward developing
an analysis program capable of manip-
ulating the data and producing statistics.
The resulting analysis program consisted
of more than 2,000 statements and
included several assembly language sub-
routines. It was capable of partitioning
the data set by any one or a combination
of up to three data fields (called X-, Y-, and
Z-parameters). For example, partitions
could be obtained for all incidents occur-
ring on a certain date in a given state that
involved a specified material. The pro-
gram could also be used to generate
histograms, although these plots accom
modate just two parameters.
Included with the full report are date
partitions considered of general interes
to EPA and to those involved in the stud^
of hazardous material releases. They arf
distributions by primary cause of incident
secondary cause of incident, operations
area (in which incidents occurred) an<
frequency distribution of materials in
volved.
The full report was submitted in ful
fillment of Contract No. 68-03-0317 b'
Factory Mutual Research Corporatioi
under the sponsorship of the U.S. Environ
mental Protection Agency.
D. B. Heard. L M. Krasner, and B. G. Vincent are with Factory Mutual Research
Corporation, Norwood, MA 02062.
John E. Brugger is the EPA Project Officer (see below).
The complete report, entitled "Documentation and Analysis for Prevention and
Control of Hazardous Material Spills," (Order No. PB 86-156 775/AS; Cost:
$40.95, subject to change) will be available only from:
National Technical Information Service
5285 Port Royal Road
Springfield, VA 22161
Telephone: 703-487-4650
The EPA Project Officer can be contacted at:
Releases Control Branch
Hazardous Waste Engineering Research Laboratory—Cincinnati
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Edison, NJ 08837
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Center for Environmental Research
Information
Cincinnati OH 45268
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