Every year following the initial 40-hour training requirement has been met, workers who wish to maintain a current certification will need to take an 8-hour HAZWOPER refresher course. Acute Safety and Safety Services offers a program that meets the requirements outlined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Read on to learn more, and when it comes time to register for the HAZWOPER refresher, trust the experts at ACUTE. With a vast array of clients in manufacturing, construction, health, academia, agriculture and government, ACUTE brings the best safety practices from across the spectrum to your workplace.
Handy Guide to the HAZWOPER Refresher Course
Who needs the HAZWOPER refresher?
HAZWOPER standards apply to any employees who are exposed to hazardous substances and who are engaged in operations including clean-up, treatment, storage, and disposal of hazardous waste.
Workers involved in an emergency response operation dealing with hazardous waste, as well as workers who have to perform duties at a waste site where hazardous materials or contamination are present are therefore expected to be fully trained and protected.
The initial full course (40 hours) is typically taken over four days. An 8-hour refresher must be taken every year in order to maintain certification.
If you work with hazardous materials, this course is a requirement.
What the HAZWOPER refresher covers
The HAZWOPER refresher involves a level of customization with respect to the content covered in the initial course. In other words, you will focus on topics that pertain to specific hazards for your workplace. In general, you will be reminded of the importance of the following:
- Legislation and standards
- Hazard recognition and communication
- WHMIS 1988-2015
- Toxicology
- Confined Spaces
- Personal Protective Equipment
- Hazardous materials spill control and HAZMAT
- Decontamination
- Staging
- Disposal of contaminated materials
- Excavation and trenching
- Lock-out/Tag-out
- Air quality monitoring
- Health and Safety Plans (HASP) and Emergency Response Plans
- Practical culmination exercises
There will also be time allotted for discussion and critique of incidents that have occurred in the past year that can serve as training examples of related work, and other relevant topics.
You will learn by:
- Classroom interaction with experienced instructors
- Scenarios and field exercises
- Demonstration and hands-on training in the care and use of equipment
- Detailed handouts, videos and quizzes.
HAZWOPER Refresher – A Brief History
HAZWOPER stands for Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response. Guidelines have been produced and are maintained by the OSHA; they regulate hazardous waste operations and emergency services in the United States and its territories, and their regulations have been adopted for training in Canada.
HAZWOPER originated from the United States Department of Defense’s Hazardous Waste Operations (HAZWOP) and was implemented on military bases affected by the disposal of hazardous waste left on-site after World War II. In 1990, OSHA published Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response 1910.120, which remains the standard for the health-and-safety requirements companies must meet to perform hazardous waste clean up or respond to emergencies. An updated HAZWOPER website was launched in 2017.
In Canada, HAZWOPER falls under the legislation of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, CEPA 1999.
HAZWOPER stands for Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response.
Need a HAZWOPER refresher? Trust ACUTE
ACUTE offers a range of health and safety training programs, and with over 100 years of combined experience, our staff have much more than just theoretical teaching to offer. We have first-hand experience in a variety of workplace situations, and that allows us to offer the same high-quality training classes across a broad range of subjects, including HAZWOPER.
ACUTE offers the solution to all of your health and safety training needs by emphasizing client participation and establishing rapport in all of our classes. We want to build a relationship with our clients that is foundational to the provision of safety services moving forward.
Benefits of Choosing ACUTE for your safety training needs:
- Our trainers have first-hand experience with what they are training
- Our training programs are tailored to your specific applications and your company’s policies and procedures
- Our training can occur on-site or at our first-class Training Centre
- We work to provide the best customer service in the industry to our clients
What ACUTE customers are saying:
“The best place to get trained, period. The lessons include plenty of hands on components which definitely help retain the knowledge taught within the classrooms. Above all, the instructors know their stuff, they are all extremely knowledgeable and draw upon their own experiences to help engage the class. If I could give them higher than 5 stars, I would, and I would most definitely do my training refresher courses here again.” Ali A.
For all OABA members, please contact the ACUTE office prior to registration.
