Reducing the Negative Outcomes of Risks
Effective and comprehensive project risk management scans the physical, technical and organizational environments and subjects it to a disciplined process that will identify, evaluate and plan the responses for risks.
The risk management process will enforce the analysis and decisions of what is the best that can be done for each risk. The computation for risk value will reveal the severity of the risk that will demand action and decisions. Some of the risks assessed are daunting such as toxic contaminations and catastrophic events such as tsunamis that avoidance responses are the only options and even question the feasibility of the whole project. Without having gone through the motions of the risk management process, the dangers of these risks may be ignored or underestimated.
Maximizing the Potentials of Risks
After identification and assessment of risks, the risk management process can also lead to insights on opportunities for improvements that arise from successful execution of the risk responses.
Assuming the project gets approved, subsequent management guidelines for the community can be a good model for security vigilance and disaster alertness. The standards that were used in the evaluation of the projects’ risk can be used for similar sites anywhere. The safety standards for neighboring communities can also be emulated.
Risk identification can also lead to sound proposals to government authorities for worthwhile projects of their own. The dangers identified from being near the estuary can convince the Government’s and Local Authorities to include a public project for a breakwater for this project which is part anyway of its wider housing program. Another government project that that can be requested is the widening of the narrow slip road will prevent a public response over heavy traffic on the carriageway.
Sharing with government authorities the risk findings of the project can also lead to improvement of the surrounding community. The government can be moved to inspect the nearby gasworks and industrial units for health and safety for the interest of the future residents of the housing community.
Evaluating the Risks
Major risks have been identified and they are linked to the proximity to a large body of water, presence of toxic substances, presence of dangerous built structures like old buildings and the presence of the public near the construction site. Except for the pedestrian traffic, the other major risks are either permanent or semi-permanent which would require avoidance or retention methods of risk responses. The other risks such as security and vehicular traffic are considered moderate or low as they can easily be mitigated by procedures or built structures. The seemingly serious risk of tsunami needs more examination from geologic authorities.
This is a housing construction project and with the chosen site being a former dry-dock with adjacent settlements, many of the risks are from the physical environment. Being a dry-dock, the proposed project site is an existing and built facility with its inherent safety and health hazards. For one, a dry-dock is used for a heavy industry such as ship building and repair which uses a wide array of toxic substances and materials. One of them is asbestos which is a highly toxic substance and is widely used in dry-docks (Asbestos [no date]). Other dangerous substances can also come from a nearby gasworks which may have contaminated the soil. This is one area which will require much technical work for proper assessment.
Evaluation of Risk Responses
Most of the risk responses can be solely handled by the project’s resources. The risks to safety such as drowning, pedestrian passers-by and old buildings can be addressed by material resources such as the construction of safety barriers, fences and informative signage.
Risks to security such human intrusion by sea or through fences would require human resources such security personnel or assistance from police enforcement such as the coast guard.
There are also risk responses which require more costly structural and technical solutions. These would be the responses to the environmental risks of ground contamination, estuary swelling, tsunami, building demolition and inadequate public road works. This is the project can ask the government for support like in the building of breakwaters, widening of slip roads and inspection of the gasworks.
The primary concern for the site is if the health hazards of toxic contamination can be controlled. This is worth a separate and thorough study upon which if found unmanageable, the choice of another site should be considered.
Appendix – Risk Register
Risk Identification
Risk Assessment
Risk Responses
References
Asbestos Exposure in Shipyards [no date]. [Online]. Available at: http://www.asbestos.com/shipyards/ [Accessed: 2nd January 2016].
Calloway, E. 2015. Shipyards' soil contamination may alter development plan [Online]. News4JAX. Available at: http://www.news4jax.com/news/local/shipyards-soil-contamination-may-alter-development-plan [Accessed: 2nd January 2016].
McCarthy, J. 2015. Toxic Truth: Gasworks site significant risk [Online]. Newcastle Herald. Available at: http://www.theherald.com.au/story/3406035/toxic-truth-gasworks-site-significant-risk/[Accessed: 2nd January 2016].
Six Steps to Prevent Injuries from Falling Objects [no date]. [Online]. Safety Services Company. Available at: http://www.safetyservicescompany.com/industry-category/construction/six-step-to-prevent-injuries-from-falling-objects/[Accessed: 2nd January 2016].
Symington, M. 2014. Essex: Flooding on some roads in north Essex as weather warning for rain in place [Online]. East Anglian Daily Times. Available at: http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/essex_flooding_on_some_roads_in_north_essex_as_weather_warning_for_rain_in_place_1_3702334 [Accessed: 2nd January 2016].
Tsunami threat 'is growing in UK'. 2008. [Online]. BBC News. Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/south_east/7652040.stm [Accessed: 2nd January 2016].
