New Oil Spill Waste Processing Guide Released

SLR Consulting (UK) has developed a guide to the processing of waste arising from a clean-up of sections of UK shoreline which could be affected by marine oil spills.

The project, for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, covers all aspects of the planning and development of appropriate strategies to process the oily waste generated in such incidents. It is intended to assist Local Authority Contingency Planners and clean up teams in pre and post incident planning ahead of any such disaster occurring.

The guide has been separated into four sections, Local Authority Guidance, Pre-incident Planning, Post-incident Planning and Data and Information. The data and information section contains references to all of the UK facilities which are permitted to process oil spill waste, various other possible outlets for the waste to be re used, such as cement manufacturers and power stations and information on a selection of suitable treatment equipment.

The current documents are seen as the first stage in the development of a comprehensive guide and decision-making tool.

SLR’s Head of Process Engineering, Stuart Metcalf, who had overall responsibility for the project said: “The events in the Gulf of Mexico earlier this year demonstrate how important it is to have contingency plans in place that not only cover disaster management but address how to deal with processing the spilled material.

“We are pleased to have been given the opportunity to produce such a nationally important guide and hope to be able to continue our involvement in its future development.”