Fire Water Runoff Containment

How Can Ashfield Support Your Fire Water Runoff Containment?

Ashfield can help you satisfy your regulators that you have sufficient fire water runoff containment initiatives in place should a fire occur on your site. We understand what regulators look for and can help you plan accordingly.

Fire water runoff containment is a legal requirement for operators and should be in line with the CIRIA C736 Code of Practice (Containment systems for the prevention of pollution; secondary, tertiary and other measures for industrial and commercial premises).

Industrial fires involving flammable liquids can require large volumes of firefighting foams, which could potentially be harmful to the environment.

When this is mixed with other chemicals and has a pathway off-site, this can lead to a Major Accident to the Environment (MATTE).

Why Choose Ashfield?

Ashfield’s team of highly experienced flood risk and environmental consultants are well versed in managing the expectations of environmental regulators, such as the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Environment Agency (EA).

We understand the huge variation in site layouts, operations and risks that can exist when trying to manage fire water runoff containment. Our wealth of experience means we can offer a comprehensive service, tailored for each site and client’s requirements.

Ashfield is often asked to help our clients present this information back to regulators to gain their approval. We can also work as a single point of contact for various environmental risk assessments, making us a time-efficient and cost-effective partner.

How Can Ashfield Help?

Risk Assessment

Working closely with industry guidance, Ashfield assesses all potential above- and below-ground pathways that may lead off-site. Then, through close liaison with the client and local fire and rescue service, we shall calculate the estimated volumes of potential fire water that may need to be used should a fire occur onsite.

Drainage Survey

Depending on the size or complexity of the site, a drainage survey may need to be undertaken to establish all potential runoff pathways. Ashfield is closely aligned with a number of drainage surveyors nationwide, who can provide detailed site drainage layout drawings and CCTV condition surveys. This captured information can then be fed into our Fire Water Risk Assessment.

Flood Modelling

Overland and below ground fire water runoff routes cannot always be easily understood, meaning that there may be a requirement to artificially model the direction that fire water may travel. In these circumstances, we can build upon our initial understanding of the site and hydraulically model all potential flow routes and potential firewater containment volumes.

Fire Water Management Plan

Through understanding all fire water runoff routes, it can be established where secondary or tertiary fire water runoff containment can be located, and the potential volumes that can be stored on-site. Based upon our understanding of your site, we can provide realistic solutions to increase potential on-site containment where required.