There are 5 steps to conduct a risk assessment:

1. Identify the hazard.

Hazard identification is the process of identifying all hazards at risk in your work environment.

Many hazards exist in the workplace. Some of these can be easily identified such as manual handling, but others are less obvious and may not even show up on accident reports or injury logs. Consider how people work with plant equipment to identify hidden hazards that could cause harm without being detected by existing records (such as a new cleaning solution). Identifying what hazardous substances are used is also important when thinking about potential health risks for workers who use them regularly or come into contact during maintenance operations. For example, many workplaces contain asbestos which poses severe dangers if inhaled over time due to its link to respiratory illnesses like lung cancer.

Four risk categories to be use to identify hazards: Extreme, High, Moderate, and Low.

2. Assess the risk

Once you have identified what hazards may be present. decide how likely it is that someone could be harmed by these and to what extent if so. This is assessing the level of risk for your business premises or workplace environment with regard to those potential hazards. Decide: who might be harmed; what action you’re already taking in order to reduce this harm happening again (control measures); any further steps needed-who will carry out this necessary action; when they need to do it by

Risk matrix (Risk assessment matrix)

With all the risks that are out there, a risk matrix can be an easy way to assess the risk. The Risk Matrix is an incredible tool for quickly calculating the risk of a project. It helps identify what could go wrong (likelihood) and how much damage it would cause if these outcomes occurred (severity). This makes prioritizing issues quick and simple so you know which ones need attention.

Guidelines for assessing Severity

• Major:  Environmental Loss (Major pollution affecting life outside site), People (Fatality or Permanent disability.)
• Serious: Environmental Loss (Major pollution confined to the inside site), People (Long term absence / Offsite treatment)
• Moderate:   Environmental Loss (Significant pollution causing a shutdown of units), People (Moderate treatment / Shot term absence)
• Minor: Environmental Loss (Pollution above limits / Small spills, emissions), People (First aid case / No significant injury)

Guidelines for assessing Likelihood

• Very unlikely : Little or no chance of occurrence
• Unlikely     : Could occur, less than 50 / 50 chance
• Possible         : 50 / 50 chance
• Probable        : More likely to occur than not more than 50 / 50 chance