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Dr. David Michaels (front row, fourth from the left), Assistant Secretary, USDOL-OSHA, with the Alliance Program Construction Roundtable meeting attendees including Dan Dvorak, President-Elect, IWCA, at the Department of Labor on July 29, 2010.

Signatories are:

• API
• National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
• Steel Tank Institute/Steel Plate Fabricators Association (STI/SPFA)

Through the Alliance, OSHA and the organizations will encourage the petroleum and petrochemical liquid storage industries to increase employee access to safety and health information and training resources on workplace issues. In particular, the Alliance will address training on workplace issues including tank entry, cleaning, maintenance and rescue operations and work within and around petroleum and petrochemical liquid storage tanks. The Alliance's goals include:

Outreach and communication:

• Work with OSHA to provide expertise in developing information on the recognition and prevention of workplace hazards, and to provide expertise in developing ways of communicating such information to employees and employers in the industry.
• Speak, exhibit, or appear at OSHA or industry conferences such as the API/NFPA Safety Tank Entry Workshop.
• Share information among OSHA personnel and industry and safety and health professionals regarding API’s, NFPA's, and STI's best practices or effective approaches and publicize results through outreach by API, NFPA, and STI and through OSHA- or API, NFPA and STI – developed materials, training programs, workshops, seminars and lectures.
• Promote and encourage the petroleum and petrochemical industry’s participation in OSHA cooperative programs such as compliance assistance, the Voluntary Protection Programs, and Consultation and its Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program.
• Work with other Alliance participants on specific issues and projects that are addressed and developed through the Alliance Program.

Alliance Agreements

• Agreement signed March 29, 2004.
• Renewal Agreement signed October 2, 2006.
• Renewal Agreement signed May 29, 2008.

Alliance Annual Reports

• Alliance Annual Report 2004-2005, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2005-2006, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2006-2007, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2007-2008, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2008-2009, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2009-2010, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Close-out Report, as of December 31, 2010.

Alliance News Releases

• API/National Fire Protection Association Sign Joint Alliance with OSHA. OSHA News Release (2004, March 29).
• NFPA Joins OSHA and API in Alliance to Promote Safety for Workers in Petroleum and Petrochemical Industries. NFPA News Release (2004, March 29).
• OSHA Renews Safe Tank Alliance to Advance Safety and Health at Petroleum and Petrochemical Liquid Storage Sites. OSHA News Release (2006, November 8).
• OSHA, ASSE, CSSE and Industry Groups Team Up to Increase Job Safety for North American Occupational Safety and Health Week. OSHA News Release (2007, May 4).
• OSHA Introduces New Safety and Health Topics Page Module. OSHA News Release (2007, June 14).
• The OSHA and Safe Tank Alliance Agreement is Renewed to Increase Safety and Health in the Petroleum Industry. OSHA News Release (2008, June 13).

• May 2-8, 2010, 2010 North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week. The Safe Tank and a number of other Alliance Program participants supported 2010 NAOSH Week. Sponsored annually by the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) and the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (CSSE), the Week focused on the importance of preventing injuries and illnesses in the workplace. The theme for 2010 NAOSH Week was "Mission NAOSH 2010: Safe Workplaces."
  • May 3, 2010: Marnie Suss, Government Affairs Representative, National Fire Protection Association, and Karen Haase, Policy Advisor, American Petroleum Institute, attended the NAOSH Week Kick-off event at the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington, DC. Deputy Assistant Secretary Jordan Barab, USDOL-OSHA; Christopher Patton, President, ASSE; and Andrew Cooper, Secretary, CSSE; provided brief remarks. The Kick-off also featured recognition of and a conversation with ASSE Kids' "Safety on the Job" poster winners and runner-ups.
• March 3, 2010: 12th Annual International Conference on Aboveground Storage Tanks, Orlando, Florida.
  • Matt Humphreville, Safety Specialist, Region IV, Tampa Florida Area Office, USDOL-OSHA, gave a presentation on "Selected OSHA Standards Applied to ASTs - A Review" to 80 attendees at the 2010 Annual International Conference on Aboveground Storage Tanks. The audience was comprised of industry professionals associated with the storage of petroleum in large and small aboveground storage tanks, including owners, operators, regulators, consultants, and equipment manufacturers.
• May 3-9, 2009: 2009 North American Occupational Safety and Health Week. API, National Fire Protection Association, Steel Tank Institute/Steel Plate Fabricators Association and more than 55 other Alliance Program participants supported 2009 NAOSH Week. Sponsored annually by the American Society of Safety Engineers, an Alliance Program participant, and the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering, the Week focuses on the importance of preventing injuries and illnesses in the workplace. The theme for 2009 NAOSH Week was "Safety Means Always Coming Home."
• November 20, 2008: Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association "Combustible Dust 2" Webinar.
  • Guy R. Colonna, P.E., Assistant Vice President, Fire Protection Applications and Chemical Engineering, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), gave a presentation on NFPA standards that deal with dust collection methods, explosion issues and controlling dust build-up; and Dr. Vahid Ebadat, Chilworth Laboratories, gave a presentation on combustible dust assessment, conditions in which dust explosions can occur and ventilation methods to prevent dust build-up during the Webinar.
• October 6-9, 2008: API/NFPA Safe Tank Entry Workshop and Storage Tank Conference, Fort Worth, Texas.
  • October 8, 2008: Guy Colonna, Assistant Vice President, Fire Protection Applications and Chemical Engineering, NFPA; Bill Erny, Senior Policy Adviser, Safety and Security Issues, API; and Wayne Geyer, Executive Vice President, STI/SPFA; presented an Alliance update to 180 conference attendees.
  • October 8-9, 2008: Representatives from OSHA staffed an Alliance exhibition booth during the conference.
  • October 6-7, 2008: Two representatives from OSHA attended the Safe Tank Entry Workshop.
• September 22-26, 2008: STI/SPFA Aboveground Tank Inspector Training Course, Owings Mill, Maryland. A representative from Maryland OSHA attended the Aboveground Tank Inspector Training Course.
• May 4-10, 2008: 2008 North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week. The Safe Tank Alliance and a number of other Alliance Program participants supported 2008 NAOSH Week, "Safety is Good Business." Sponsored annually by the American Society of Safety Engineers and the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering, the Week focuses on the importance of preventing injuries and illnesses in the workplace.

Alliance Program Participant Developed Products

• Safe Tank Entry: When Entering Aboveground Storage Tanks. Through the OSHA and Safe Tank and Independent Lubricant Manufacturers Association (ILMA) Alliances, the participants developed a brochure providing information on how to prevent confined space entry-related injuries when working in aboveground storage tanks. (2008, July)
• Fall Prevention for Aboveground Storage Tanks Fact Sheet. Through the OSHA and Safe Tank Alliance, the Safe Tank participants developed a fact sheet that describes general safety tips to help prevent fall-related injuries to those working in and around aboveground storage tanks. (2006, November)

OSHA Safety and Health Topics Pages

• Confined Spaces^**
• Emergency Preparedness and Response^**
• Fall Protection^**
• Fire Safety^**
• Oil and Gas Well Drilling, Servicing and Storage^**
• Oil and Gas Well Drilling, Servicing and Storage – Storage Tanks+^**
• Scaffolding^**

OSHA eTools

• Oil and Gas Well Drilling and Servicing+^**

OSHA Safety and Health Information Bulletins

• Potential Flammability Hazard Associated with Bulk Transportation of Oilfield Exploration and Production (E & P) Waste Liquids.

Publications and Newsletters

• Tank Talk newsletter, September 2008. This edition of STI/SPFA's monthly newsletter includes an article, "Safe Tank Alliance Renews Agreement with OSHA," that discusses the renewal of the Safe Tank and OSHA Alliance agreement.
• Aboveground Storage Tank Guide, July 2007. This edition of Thompson's AST Guide includes an article "Safety Best Practices Presented at Safe Tank Alliance Conference" written by Wayne Geyer, Executive Vice President, STI/SPFA. The article describes topics addressed during the April 17-18, 2007, Safe Tank Alliance-sponsored Safe Tank Entry Best Practices Seminar that was held in Houston, Texas.
• Petroleum Marketers Association of America (PMAA) Regulatory Update, July 9, 2007. PMAA's Email edition of the regulatory update includes an article, "Aboveground Storage Tanks" that describes OSHA's Storage Tank Module for the Oil and Gas Well Drilling, Servicing and Storage Safety and Health Topics Page.
• NFPA Journal, July/August 2004. This edition of NFPA's bi-monthly publication includes an article, "NFPA Strengthens its Maritime Partnerships," that discusses the activities of the OSHA and API/NFPA Alliance.

Additional Resources

• API/OSHA Alliance page
• Alliance Program Construction Roundtable. Through the Alliance Program's Construction Roundtable, a number of products and resources have been developed for the construction industry.

^** Alliance Implementation Team members serve on the editorial board.
+ Alliance Implementation Team members participated in the development of this resource.