Aspect vs. Impact and Hazard vs. Risk - Short/clear explanation & example

[saint77]

Trying to conduct this assessment for IMS but first need to do the training on those.
So, wanted to write some short and clear explanations but could not.
So i THOUGHT that I undertood those concepts well enough (but that for myself) but explaining it to others is much more difficult.
Therefore, thinking about this question some time I've completely lost the vision ^-( I always try to think of questions of the most negative attitude people and think I will not be able to show them the difference. Please help!!!

 

[harry]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short and clear explanation&exa

Check this thread: Do Environmental 'Aspects' and 'Hazards' express the same idea?

 

[saint77]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short and clear explanation&exa

Check this thread:link

Thank you for the reference but unfortunatly it's not quite what I needed. I understand everything at this level of discussion and see the difference between the 14001 and 18001 concepts.

The question really is about difference within a standard between
1. Aspect vs Impact
and only the second question about
2. Hazard vs Risk.

For example.

Transportation
14001
Aspect: Transportation
Impact Transportation air emission/oil spills and spots / depletion of natural resources / used tires and oil
compare
Aspect: Air polution
Impact transortation/production/kitchen/boiler/ etc
--- so Transportation is an aspect or impact? how to find out which is the primarily
= the same question then applies to 18001

Hazard: Transportation
Risk: collapse, driving abuse, speeding, drunk driving, etc.
compare
Hazard: Loss of man hours (loss of health, injury)
Risk: transportation at garage, transportation at production, transportation by subcontractors, etc.

 

[harry]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short/clear explanation & examp

Refer to table A.1 of ISO 14004 - Examples of activities, products and services and their associated environmental aspects and impact for a good appreciation.

An example similar to what you quoted (delivery & transfer of heating oil) is given there. On the next page of the same table - Transportation and distribution of goods and products.

Transportation in your case is not an aspect but an activity or service.

 

[saint77]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short/clear explanation & examp

Refer to table A.1 of ISO 14004 - Examples of activities, products and services and their associated environmental aspects and impact for a good appreciation.

An example similar to what you quoted (delivery & transfer of heating oil) is given there. On the next page of the same table - Transportation and distribution of goods and products.

Transportation in your case is not an aspect but an activity or service.

thank you very much for the document

but please, what is the conceptual (in simple words) difference between the two concepts: aspect vs impact.
e.g.
as in that table
they use the word USE
use of resource/water/land but under different titles. In one case as an impact in another as an aspect (that's basically was my example with transportation. let's disregard the example with transportation and look into the example of the word USE i.e. why USE of something can be aspect and why impact)?

 

[Randy]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short/clear explanation & examp

Aspects - Impacts, Hazards - Risks both have a cause and effect relationship but there is a slight difference.

There can be positive aspects, such as a well run recycling program, but there will never be a positive hazard.

Many times an aspect can be an impact and an impact can be an aspect. Think cause/effect - input/outut/input...All one needs to do is study bioaccumulation of mercury from a wastewater discharge or air emission along and the interaction in the food chain...Mercury is emitted into the air as a component of air pollution (Apsect is the mercury in the emission the impact is the pollution being caused)...Mercury falls into water sources either from rain or gravity and now becomes a water pollutant that can be absorbed by lower plant or animal life. The lower plant or animal life is eaten by higher life forms and the mercury is absorbed and retained in their body. As they eat more of the lower forms more mercury is ingested and retained by their bodies. Higher forms eat lower forms and the accumulated mercury is passed on until it reaches people in the form of fish or other aquatic foods.

Hazards and risks are slightly different but we still see a cause and effect relationship and we can have a compounding or hazards that can cause increase or greater potential lethality of risk.

But remember, while you can have a positive aspect with a positive environmental impact, you'll never have a positive hazard or positive risk

Now I'm going to really confuse you....Both ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 have, towards the front of both standards a Glossary of Definitions in Section 3, just apply the definitions as they are given, it makes things go a little smoother...ISO 14001 also has Annex "A"...it helps to refer to A.3.1. With OHSAS 18001 you need to get a copy of OHSAS 18002:2009 to provide further guidance

 

[saint77]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short/clear explanation & examp

Aspects - Impacts, Hazards - Risks both have a cause and effect relationship but there is a slight difference.

There can be positive aspects, such as a well run recycling program, but there will never be a positive hazard.

Many times an aspect can be an impact and an impact can be an aspect. Think cause/effect - input/outut/input...All one needs to do is study bioaccumulation of mercury from a wastewater discharge or air emission along and the interaction in the food chain...Mercury is emitted into the air as a component of air pollution (Apsect is the mercury in the emission the impact is the pollution being caused)...Mercury falls into water sources either from rain or gravity and now becomes a water pollutant that can be absorbed by lower plant or animal life. The lower plant or animal life is eaten by higher life forms and the mercury is absorbed and retained in their body. As they eat more of the lower forms more mercury is ingested and retained by their bodies. Higher forms eat lower forms and the accumulated mercury is passed on until it reaches people in the form of fish or other aquatic foods.

Hazards and risks are slightly different but we still see a cause and effect relationship and we can have a compounding or hazards that can cause increase or greater potential lethality of risk.

But remember, while you can have a positive aspect with a positive environmental impact, you'll never have a positive hazard or positive risk

Now I'm going to really confuse you....Both ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 have, towards the front of both standards a Glossary of Definitions in Section 3, just apply the definitions as they are given, it makes things go a little smoother...ISO 14001 also has Annex "A"...it helps to refer to A.3.1. With OHSAS 18001 you need to get a copy of OHSAS 18002:2009 to provide further guidance

Randy,
thank you very much for such a simple explanation, it's what I needed!

One more question, if there is a long line of cause-effect relationship how do we built it into the 2 step formula aspect-impact
1. taking the first cause and giving the immediate effect
2. taking the furst cause and the last effect?

 

[Randy]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short/clear explanation & examp

Randy,
thank you very much for such a simple explanation, it's what I needed!

One more question, if there is a long line of cause-effect relationship how do we built it into the 2 step formula aspect-impact
1. taking the first cause and giving the immediate effect
2. taking the furst cause and the last effect?

Depending upon the aspect you can have a simple 1 - 2 method, but remember, your apect/impact process isn't meant to be a one-time shot, it's meant to be reviewed occasionally. When one looks at a mature EMS we should see that as the system matured the aspect/impact process has dug geeper and expanded outward at the same time....like a tree growing roots and branches. This is of course not true for all aspect/impact relation ships but it can happen for many of them

 

[saint77]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short/clear explanation & examp

Depending upon the aspect you can have a simple 1 - 2 method, but remember, your apect/impact process isn't meant to be a one-time shot, it's meant to be reviewed occasionally. When one looks at a mature EMS we should see that as the system matured the aspect/impact process has dug geeper and expanded outward at the same time....like a tree growing roots and branches. This is of course not true for all aspect/impact relation ships but it can happen for many of them

^-)
it seems to me you didn't answer the questions ^-) (at least I didn't get the answer)

- if there is more than 2 steps in teh process (several effects in the chain) which do we choose to control and document:
1. taking the first cause and giving the immediate effect
2. taking the furst cause and the last effect?

thank's a lot!!!

 

[Randy]

Re: Aspect vs Impact and Hazard vs Risk. Who can give short/clear explanation & examp

^-)
it seems to me you didn't answer the questions ^-) (at least I didn't get the answer)

- if there is more than 2 steps in teh process (several effects in the chain) which do we choose to control and document:
1. taking the first cause and giving the immediate effect
2. taking the furst cause and the last effect?

thank's a lot!!!

Oh, gotcha

You'd be most correct to try and manage the last one you identify (impact)....But remember, you only have to address the Significant Aspects and their impacts that you identify, not all aspects.

However, if you properly apply "Prevention of Pollution" in the way that it was intended and address Aspects at the "front-of-the-pipe" you would essentially be addressing all the potential subsequent impacts.