HAZWOPER Decontamination

Decontamination, or decon for short, is the removal of hazardous materials from workers and equipment to prevent adverse health effects. It is critical that all emergency responders are protected and off-site contamination is prevented. The correct approach must balance safety with responding in a timely manner to contain the incident. This module covers decontamination best practices.

• Define decontamination • Describe the purpose of a decontamination plan • Describe how contamination can occur • Describe safe practices and procedures to prevent contamination • Describe how permeation occurs • List common decontamination methods and describe their applicability • List the questions that should be answered when selecting decontamination methods • Describe how to select a location for decontamination • List and describe the steps for technical and emergency decontamination • Describe how to assess decontamination effectiveness