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  • Contaminated Land & Remediation
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  • Process Safety Consultants

Sustainability Consulting

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  • ISO Management Systems Services
  • Sustainability Strategy, Reporting and Verification
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  • Sustainability Programme Delivery Support
  • Sustainability Skills and Training

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COMAH – Secondary and Tertiary Containment
Home | Services | Environmental Engineering | COMAH – Secondary and Tertiary Containment

COMAH – Secondary and Tertiary Containment

Arthian’s consultants provide COMAH secondary and tertiary containment solutions to control spills, protect the environment, and meet regulatory requirements. Our expertise supports operators in designing compliant containment systems for tanks, bunds, and process areas.

View All Environmental Engineering Services
COMAH OBRA

COMAH Containment & Firewater Modelling | Bund Overtopping & Hydraulic Risk

Arthian delivers advanced modelling and containment assessments to support COMAH compliance across Upper and Lower Tier sites. Our team combines process safety, structural engineering, and environmental risk expertise to simulate firewater runoff, bund overtopping, and loss of containment scenarios—ensuring risks are understood, mitigated and documented to a level that is As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP).
 
We support:

     

  • Distilleries and drinks manufacturing
  • Chemical and pharmaceutical facilities
  • Energy from waste and renewables
  • Industrial gases, fuels and bulk storage
  • High-risk manufacturing and processing sites

Our Modelling and Containment Services

Whether you’re preparing a COMAH Safety Report, responding to inspection findings, or planning infrastructure upgrades, our modelling helps you make informed, regulator-aligned decisions. We also support bund inspection programmes, firewater containment planning, and emergency response strategy development.

Hydraulic & Structural Modelling

We simulate firewater runoff and overland flow to understand how liquids behave during emergency scenarios. Our team assesses bund overtopping risks and evaluates tertiary containment capacity to prevent environmental release. We model catastrophic tank failure scenarios to quantify potential impacts and inform mitigation strategies. Hydrodynamic analysis is used to test bund strength and wave loading under extreme conditions. For critical infrastructure, we apply non-linear, dynamic time history analysis to assess the structural resilience of bund walls and tank foundations.

Containment System Design & Assessment
Integration with COMAH Safety Reports
Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) Consultancy

Containment System Design & Assessment

  • Bund permeability testing and integrity surveys
  • Secondary and tertiary containment strategy development
  • Below-ground oil migration modelling
  • Bund capacity verification and topographic modelling
  • Heat transfer, ventilation and smoke movement analysis
Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) Consultancy

Integration with COMAH Safety Reports

  • Source-pathway-receptor modelling for environmental risk
  • CDOIF-aligned consequence analysis for MATTE scenarios
  • ALARP justification and cost-benefit analysis
  • Predictive Climate Risk Assessment (PCRA) for future resilience
Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) Consultancy

Containment System Design & Assessment

  • Bund permeability testing and integrity surveys
  • Secondary and tertiary containment strategy development
  • Below-ground oil migration modelling
  • Bund capacity verification and topographic modelling
  • Heat transfer, ventilation and smoke movement analysis
Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) Consultancy

Integration with COMAH Safety Reports

  • Source-pathway-receptor modelling for environmental risk
  • CDOIF-aligned consequence analysis for MATTE scenarios
  • ALARP justification and cost-benefit analysis
  • Predictive Climate Risk Assessment (PCRA) for future resilience
Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) Consultancy

Why Choose Arthian's Process Engineering team?

Engineering services delivered by specialists:

Integration

Fully integrated with geotechnical, hydrological, and ecological disciplines.

Our Experience

National experience with regional insight and regulatory familiarity.

Our Understanding

Deep understanding of planning, infrastructure, and environmental interfaces.

Results Driven

Commitment to technical rigour, clear communication, and long-term outcomes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need firewater runoff modelling for COMAH?

Yes—firewater runoff can cause a Major Accident To The Environment (MATTE). Hydraulic modelling helps define containment volumes, flow paths and receptor risks.

What is tertiary containment?

Tertiary containment refers to systems that prevent off-site environmental impact if primary and secondary containment fail. Examples include sacrificial areas, lagoons and shut-off valves.

Can you model catastrophic tank failure?

Absolutely. We simulate dynamic fluid release, bund overtopping and structural impact using validated hydrodynamic models.

Do you assess bund integrity and capacity?

Yes—we offer bund permeability testing, capacity modelling, and structural appraisal aligned with CIRIA C736 and COMAH containment policy.

Get in Touch

We’d love to hear from you – whether you have a question, a project in mind, want to explore job opportunities, or just want to say hello.

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