Overview

From December 16, 2019 to March 17, 2020, the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development (MLTSD) conducted a health and safety initiative which focused on emergency preparedness at mines and mining plants.

We began by focusing on education, outreach and awareness partnering with Workplace Safety North (WSN) to provide training and education to employers. The goal was to help employers understand and comply with the requirements for emergency preparedness at mines and mining plants under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and its regulations prior to focused inspections.

Beginning February 1, 2020, we conducted a focused inspection blitz at mines and mining plants to check that employers were complying with the Occupational Health and Safety Act and Regulation 854: Mines and Mining Plants. This initiative was a self-audit that covered:

  • underground fires
  • fire drills
  • escapeways
  • secondary accesses
  • checks of risk registry for potential emergencies and mine rescue
  • refuge stations
  • remote sites work
  • emergency preparedness
  • potential emergencies
  • mine rescue
  • risk assessment for emergency preparedness

Our inspectors:

  • conducted 42 field visits with eight support role activities footnote 1
  • visited 40 mining workplaces
  • issued 60 orders and requirements, including five stop work orders

Emergency Preparedness

As mines are getting deeper and more remote, mine rescue capabilities and emergency preparedness need to be up to date.

Our health and safety initiative focusing on emergency preparedness at mines and mining plants is one way we address this hazard.

Full report

Workplace inspection initiatives

Inspection initiatives are part of our Safe At Work °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû compliance strategy. We announce to the sector, in advance, that we will be conducting an initiative, although individual workplaces are not notified in advance. The results of the initiative are typically posted online within 90 days. Inspectors’ findings may impact the number and level of future inspections of individual workplaces.

Inspectors may also refer employers to health and safety associations for compliance assistance and training.

Focus of the initiative

We provided information on the initiative on December 16, 2019, at a webinar co-hosted by the ministry and WSN. The webinar offered details on what our inspectors would be looking for during the blitz, Occupational Health and Safety Act requirements for emergency preparedness in mines and mining plants, and gave attendees an opportunity to ask questions about emergency preparedness.

Hazards involving emergency preparedness mainly involve:

  • underground & surface fires, smoke & toxic gases
  • falls of ground, rockburst, seismicity, rescue trapped workers
  • water accumulation, backfill runoffs/material failure
  • working at heights and retrieval
  • diamond drilling, remote operations
  • alimak raising, retrieval
  • escapeways and secondary access maintenance

Inspectors focused on:

  • the  (PDF) containing 21 categories with simple yes/no responses to the questions
  • written procedures: for emergency response plans to manage the known and potential emergencies based on risk assessment
  • underground mines rescue capabilities: to address the mines capabilities and mutual response readiness of the surrounding mines

Inspectors took appropriate action if violations were found under the Occupational Health and Safety Act or its regulations.

This included:

  • reviewing the completion of the self-audit for the OHSA and mining regulations based on the facts at the time of the inspection
  • writing orders to employers, supervisors and workers to have them comply with legal requirements
  • issuing stop work orders requiring employers to comply before work could continue

Inspection activity summary

Visits to workplaces

  • 42 field visits with eight support role activities
  • 40 workplaces visited
  • 60 orders and requirements issued
    • 55 orders issued for violations under the OHSA and its regulations, including five stop work orders
    • five requirements issued to provide an inspector with workplace information
  • an average of 1.50 orders and requirements issued per workplace visited
  • an average of 1.43 orders and requirements issued per visit

Most frequently issued orders

Most of the orders issued under the Occupational Health and Safety Act were for:

  • as an employer, failure to ensure that the equipment, materials and protective devices provided by the employer are maintained in good condition [section 25(1)(b)] – 11 orders or 18.33% of the total orders and requirements issued during the initiative
  • as an employer, failure to take every precaution reasonable in the circumstances for the protection of a worker [section 25(2)(h)] – five orders or 8.33% of the total orders and requirements issued during the initiative
  • stop work order [section 57(6)] – five orders or 3% of the total orders and requirements issued during the initiative

The most frequently issued orders under Regulation 854: Mines and Mining Plants were for employers’ failure to:

  • ensure that a conveyor has a guard that, unless it would render the pinch point inaccessible, extends at least 0.9 metres from the pinch point. [section 196(3.1)] – eight orders or 13.33% of the total orders and requirements issued during the initiative
  • where a motor vehicle is disabled or parked in the travelled portion of a roadway, provide a warning to approaching traffic by flashing lights [section 106(2)(a)] – three orders or 5% of the total orders and requirements issued during the initiative
  • before work is begun in a workplace in an underground mine, examine the ground conditions of the workplace for dangers and hazards and, if required, made safe [section 66(1)] – three orders or 5% of the total orders and requirements issued during the initiative

Observations

The results of this initiative indicate that workplace parties need to improve compliance with emergency preparedness.

  • Workers continue to be exposed to the hazards of working in a mine. When the hazards are not being managed and contained they can become an emergency. When a work place experiences an event, a comprehensive emergency preparedness plan can reduce the impact on the work place and workers
  • Heightened awareness of any hazard can bring change. All workplaces parties must continue to be diligent and not allow complacency to creep into their daily routines
  • The risk of an uncontrolled event or emergency can be prevented by raising awareness and taking proper precautions

Conclusion and next steps

Ministry inspectors will continue to pay attention to the above areas related to emergency preparedness.

The results of the initiative confirm our need to continue focusing on emergency preparedness in underground and surface mines.

A key to workplace health and safety in °ÄÃÅÓÀÀû is the internal responsibility system (IRS). Workplace parties are encouraged to work together to identify and control all hazards.

Help for employers

Please contact our for more information.