Information for your safety

In recent years, AustroCel has made considerable financial and personal investments in the areas of safety and the environment to minimize the impact of a potential accident on both people and the environment.

Here, you can read about what to do if an industrial accident should occur unexpectedly. Of the few hazardous substances used at AustroCel, it is essentially sulfur dioxide (SO₂) that can pose a hazard to neighboring areas or the environment. In the past, there have been isolated accidents in which sulfur dioxide has escaped.

Sulfur dioxide has a typically intense odor which means it can be perceived long before it poses a health hazard. It is an acidic irritant gas and acts mainly on the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract and the eyes. The possibility of an unnoticed leak of this product can therefore be excluded, as it causes irritation even in low concentrations. In high concentrations, sulfur dioxide impedes the natural gas exchange in the lungs of humans and animals, it can cause stress to the heart and circulation, and in very high concentrations it is lethal.

Plants are sensitive to sulfur dioxide. Even at low concentrations, SO₂ begins to inhibit or even completely prevent the closing movements of the stomata on the underside of plant leaves. When the leaves are no longer able to close their stomata, it becomes impossible for the plant to regulate its transpiration and therefore its loss of water, so that the plant doesn’t wilt due to the SO₂ but the lack of water. Due to the existing safety equipment, safety precautions and emergency measures at AustroCel, this kind of a hazard can only occur for a short time, if at all.

It is very important to know and follow the rules of conduct. If you find out about an accident, please observe the code of conduct and follow the instructions of the emergency services.