Review the pollution and professional liability risks facing your company by downloading the Environmental & Professional Risk Overviews below.
If your industry uses a respirator, TYVEK suit, or other forms of PPE, you know the physical risks your employees face. Do you know the risks your company faces with regards to pollution and professional liability?
Asbestos, lead paint, and mold are three common pollutants. But pollutants can include variety of materials, from paint, adhesives, & solvents, to fuel oil, metals, & minerals, to bodily fluids and any number of other items. If it's somewhere that it does not belong, it could be considered a pollutant. And if you had anything to do with it, you could be held liable for cleaning it up.
An asbestos contractor is hired to remove roofing tiles that contain asbestos. The contractor follows all of the regulations, properly removes the material, delivers it to a licensed disposal facility, all with no issues. Years later, the contractor is sued because the landfill where the asbestos was disposed of caught fire, dispersing asbestos fibers into the air.
Perhaps you're a contractor who cleans up outdoor gun ranges as part of your operations. Lead and other metals from an outdoor gun range can contaminate soil and groundwater. It may get collected in storm water runoff. If these metals are not properly contained, managed and maintained they can migrate and contaminate neighboring properties.
Maybe you clean storage tanks at industrial facilities. Contents of the tank and/or vapors from the cleaning process could be released. A vacuum truck could malfunction or spill or leak during transport. Solvents and cleaning agents stored at your facility could contaminate the premises.
Consultants who deal with asbestos, lead, mold and other obvious pollutants are not the only folks who may have a pollution exposure.