Survey reveals lack of safety programs

New Horizons

A recent PDAC national survey of the mineral exploration industry reveals a worrying lack of corporate safety programs. Conducted in partnership with the Association for Mineral Exploration British Columbia (AME BC), the survey examined the health and safety practices of mineral exploration companies with projects in Canada.

The questionnaire went out to 557 companies. There were 93 responses and more than half those companies said they had no safety program in place. The survey, which is available on the PDAC website at www.pdac.ca/pdac/advocacy/health_safety, was the work of the new PDAC health and safety committee, chaired by former president Bill Mercer. It will be conducted annually and serves three purposes: to track health and safety trends nationwide; to promote health and safety awareness; and to encourage companies to institute accident-prevention measures.

The health and safety committee was established last year with the goal of reducing accidents in the exploration industry to zero. Mineral exploration takes place in environments that show an extreme range of conditions. Exploration companies, most of which are small, face significant challenges recognizing workplace hazards that lead to accidents and in addressing risks to employee health and safety.

An additional complication is the considerable amount of often hazardous fieldwork that is done by contractors. Canadian workplace law assumes that the contracting company shares responsibility with contractor management for employees on-site.

In the area of health and safety, there are a number of workplace expectations that need to be met by management and employees. For example, project managers should take every precaution to avoid accidents, risks and hazards. They also need to educate and train employees so that they can protect themselves. Employees have a responsibility to refuse to do unsafe work and to point out unsafe conditions to their supervisors and co-workers. A good health and safety record has an impact on a company’s bottom line. The company may qualify for lower insurance premiums. It can also avoid unbudgeted costs that result from delayed work due to accidents.

The health and safety committee will develop a set of universal health and safety guidelines for use by large and small exploration companies. These guidelines will suggest ways to prevent accidents in exploration and provide companies with the means to operate globally with a zero accident rate, both in exploration and contractor operations.

The committee also has tentative plans to offer first aid and safety training courses to individuals working in the exploration industry. Experienced training companies will lead the courses. For more information, contact the Prospectors and Developers Association at (416) 362-1969.