Difference And Uses Of Containment Berms And Booms

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By Estelle Larsen


In general, a berm is an elevated space or area that acts as a border between two surfaces. It came from the word berme in German which was then used by the English. With this, the word has been utilized as descriptions for certain equipment that are currently existing.

A few industries utilize a certain kind of berm in terms of safety. Usually, the oil and electrical industries are using containment berms for most of their equipment or containers for hazardous chemicals. For transformer boxes, it becomes a catch basin under it in cases of leakage due to malfunction.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency or the EPA, Spill, Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure or the SPCC has guidelines for electrical and oil companies for them to follow for safety measures. This is in order to protect the environment from hazardous solutions. That is the reason why methods to contain leakages or other incidents, are being developed to prevent any further damage to both the industry and to the environment as well.

For most of the transformers that are usually placed on the ground, it has a concrete barrier or the concrete berm. It is placed just beneath it but these materials are outdated. What they usually use now is a geotextile boom in order to absorb the spill and turns them to solid to block the flow of the leak.

So, since a boom is mentioned, here are their differences. Basically, a berm traps and contains the liquid in an area using a pool makeshift equipment. It is placed under the the transformer or any source that contains oil or any hazard chemicals in case of a leak. It is called a secondary spill containment.

A portable berm is what most industries use because of how convenient they are. They can be moved around quite easily and are very versatile and flexible for use in containing spillage. It comes with either assembly or non assembly types. It is up to the agency and the company which kind they should go for depending on their guidelines or how they want to use them in terms of what they have as containers or sources.

Now for a boom, its structure is different as well and it may be more convenient depending on how it is used. It is also a secondary spill containment but instead of catching the liquid, what it does is absorb it. In the case of geotextile boom it solidifies it. These can be very useful when there is a need to just place it over or around the area.

In cases of spill and oil leaks on various bodies of water, this can be highly convenient to use. Booms are known to be used most often when cleaning spills on the sea since it lets water pass through while absorbing the oil that is floating on the surface of the water. Although it comes with two types, the absorbent and the containment. So do not be confused between them. The material used is what differs them.

When choosing what kind of berms and booms, it is necessary to consider its durability and what materials they are made from. Engineered and designed polymer materials for the barriers are important The containers that are used and the setup should also be noted in order for them to provided with the right type of secondary spill containment. Take also into consideration the guidelines from environmental agencies and what they can suggest.




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