Risky business – unlocking your risk management plan for refrigerants

Why do I need a risk management plan? - Businesses need to be aware of their risks. Overall business success depends largely on effective management and minimisation of risk – refrigerant is no different.

Under the Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Regulations 1995, a condition of holding a Refrigerant Trading Authorisation (RTA) is implementing an effective risk management plan (RMP), which outlines the handling and storage of refrigerant in the holder’s business.

What should my RMP include? - A RMP must identify potential risks which could result in the emission of refrigerant to the atmosphere and identify processes and practices that minimise the possibility of those risks occurring. Your RMP must reflect the risks of emissions relevant to all parts of your business practices, including refrigerant handling, storage and transport. This applies whether your business is conducted from a vehicle or building, and whether you are a sole trader or employ 100 or more technicians.

CLICK HERE for a useful template you can use, or compare to your existing RMP.

Feel free to use this template, just make sure you apply it to your specific business practices and do the following:

• Identify if you work in the Automotive or Stationary fields
• Insert relevant person responsible against each risk
• Insert review date
• Read over the whole plan carefully and put lines through the areas that don’t relate to your business. In particular, see the section ‘Decommissioning end of life equipment’.
• Add further risks and control measures if relevant to your business.

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