How to: Clean up a chemical spill

Illustration by Vic KulihinLawn care companies truck a lot of material around their territories, and not just equipment. Each truck, van and backpack sprayer is loaded with herbicides, fertilizer or other materials that you don’t want anywhere but in that tank or on that turf. But, techs can get rear-ended, or drop a sprayer and end up applying the materials where you don’t want them. Here are five tips on how to handle a chemical spill. – Chuck Bowen

1. Each vehicle should have an MSDS for all materials on board, and a spill response kit that contains gloves, goggles, absorption materials and other clean up equipment like a broom and dust pan. Train techs monthly on how to use these.
2. In the event of a spill, use the absorption sock, pillow or dam to contain the material. These devices use things like crushed corn or clay to soak up as much as 200 gallons of liquid.
3. Contact the office to let them know what’s happened. Depending on local regulations and the size of the spill, you may also have to contact state or local environmental agencies.
4. Once you stop the leak and have everything contained, it’s time to clean. Absorption socks can be incinerated or shoveled into bags to be discarded safely. Sweep up any dry material into approved containers.
5. Fill out an incident report. Record the who, what, where, when and why so any questions later on can be easily answered.