Safety, Health, Environment, and Regulatory Compliance
This domain tests hazard identification, risk control, regulatory applicability, and incident response. Expect hierarchy-of-controls, isolation, management-of-change, permit, and environmental-release scenarios.
Core rules and concepts
- Apply the hierarchy of controls in order: elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls, then PPE. PPE is the last line, not the first.
- Risk combines likelihood and severity; reduce the highest risk first and verify residual risk is acceptable (ALARP where used).
- LOTO requires identify energy sources, notify, shut down, isolate, release stored energy, lock/tag, and try to verify zero energy.
- Management of change reviews safety, health, environmental, and regulatory impacts before altering process, chemical, equipment, or procedures.
- Maintain permits, monitoring, training, and records required by applicable regulations; report releases/incidents within required timeframes.
Worked example
A task has likelihood 3 and severity 4, giving risk 12 (high). An engineering guard reduces likelihood to 1 while severity remains 4, giving risk 4 (low). Reasoning: the guard is preferred over a warning sign because it removes exposure; if residual risk remains, add procedures and PPE, then re-evaluate.
Traps that cost marks
- Jumping to PPE or training as the primary fix.
- Treating a lockout as complete without trying the isolation.
- Changing a chemical or setpoint without MOC.
- Assuming a permit covers all hazards or never expires.
- Delaying notification of a reportable release.