News – Focus On
A New 'ERA' In Fuel Oil Storage
14th June 2010
OFTEC has formally launched a new ERA in environmentally responsible fuel oil storage, with the introduction of the new, voluntary, Environmental Risk Assessment Oil Tank Eco-labeling Scheme.
The ERA Scheme builds upon successful eco-labeling initiatives in other industries, and rates oil tanks according to their environmental features on a scale from 1 to 10. ERA Ratings work on the premise of’ the lower the number, the lower the risk’ of an environmental pollution incident arising from an oil storage tank.
For example, a tank with an ERA Rating of 1 will be fully bunded, and will incorporate the latest anti-pollution safeguards. By contrast, there will be a much higher risk of a pollution incident arising from a tank with an ERA Rating of 10 – a risk compounded if it has not been installed by a suitably competent person in accordance with prevailing statutory requirements.
Commenting on the initiative, Jeremy Hawksley, OFTEC’s Director General said, "There has been a welcome and significant reduction in oil related pollution incidents over recent years throughout the United Kingdom. This has been due to regulations and is a result of our manufacturer members and our registered technicians explaining to consumers the importance of environmentally responsible fuel oil storage. The ERA initiative builds upon this successful foundation."
Oil tank manufacturers who choose to participate in the ERA initiative will be voluntarily placing a label on each tank they produce. The highly visible label will advise customers of the relative risk of an environmental incident arising from that tank.
Not surprisingly, the ERA Scheme has received a positive response from the Environment Agency in England and Wales. The Agency’s Richard Martin said, "As demonstrated by the number of recorded pollution incidents, single skinned oil storage tanks, when installed without any secondary containment represent a significantly greater threat to the environment than those that are bunded. An initiative aimed at ensuring that the environment is more protected and the customer put at less risk of a spill must be welcomed."
Elsewhere in the UK and Richard’s comments has been echoed by Edwin Poots MLA, Minister for the Environment in Northern Ireland.
“The new ERA initiative now empowers the consumer to make informed choices about how they plan to store their fuel and heating oil in the future. When stored responsibly, oil is an environmentally safe source of heating, particularly in rural areas. The ERA scheme's voluntary nature is a strength that should be considered by Northern Ireland's oil heating industry.", said Mr. Poots, during a recent visit to Clarehill Plastics Limited.
As an environmentally responsible fuel oil storage tank manufacturer and a bunded tank specialist, Harlequin was one of the first UK manufacturers to sign up for the ERA Scheme. One of the key appeals of the scheme for Harlequin, was the opportunity to present important environmental information to consumers in a simple and straightforward manner.
“Industry feedback suggests that whilst there is an appreciation of the importance of environmentally responsible fuel storage amongst the trade, the message is not always properly understood by the general public. This is hardly surprising. Oil tanks are something of an obscure product to the average homeowner and they are unlikely to purchase anymore than 2 tanks in a lifetime. Therefore product terminology such as 'bunding' and 'secondary containment' that industry professionals will readily understand, can easily mystify and confuse householders.”, says John.
"ERA addresses this issue by visibly and transparently stating the relative environmental merits of different tanks in a way that is easy to see and easy to understand.
“So for instance, take old-fashioned Single Skin Tanks which incorporate no form of secondary containment whatsoever. When a Single Skin Tanks reaches the end of its useful life, a pollution incident will often result. This inherent risk is reflected in a high ERA Risk Rating. By contrast, a modern Bunded Oil Tank with inbuilt protection against environmental pollution, will receive a much a lower ERA Risk Rating. We would always encourage consumers and technicians to opt for a product with as low an ERA Rating as possible.
"ERA seeks to inform and to present important information in a clear and easy to understand format. ERA does not however make any product decisions on behalf of customers or installers. At Harlequin, we recognise the continued importance of competent, professional oil storage technicians when it comes to appropriate product selection.’, concludes John.
Harlequin is affixing ERA ratings to all new fuel oil storage tanks manufactured at the company’s Advance Manufacturing Facility in Moira, Northern Ireland and ERA ratings will be uploaded to the Harlequin website shortly.
For more information on the ERA Scheme, click here to visit OFTEC’s dedicated ERA website.
