BP recognized as national leader in safety

The BP Cherry Point Refinery has been recognized as one of the safest refineries in the U.S. In May the National Petroleum Refiners Association gave the refinery its Meritorious Award for keeping the number of workplace injuries well below the national average.

BP’s rate of injuries reportable to the federal Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) for 2001 was 0.08, well below the national average for refineries which is close to four, and below the award threshold of 1.5. In addition, BP received the “Gold Award” for achieving a 25 percent reduction in OSHA incident rate compared to the last three years.

“BP is proud to accept these awards and continues to look for ways to enhance our safety and environmental performance”, said Greg Rust, BP safety and security supervisor. “This recognition reinforces our mission of No Accidents, No Harm to People and No Damage to the Environment,” he said.

This month the refinery passed another milestone of one million hours without an injury that kept the worker off the job for a day or more. “These accomplishments reflect the commitments of everyone who works out here.

Special thanks to everyone on our safety committee, who continue to help make Cherry Point a safe place to work,” said Michael Abendhoff, manager of government and public affairs.

The National Petrochemical and Refiners Association represents almost 500 companies, including almost all U.S. refiners and petrochemical manufacturers. One of their goals is to promote technical advancement and continued progress in safety and environmental performance.