MSH GMP MineSafeDec06 Wholedoc

1 MINESAFE Vol. 15, No. 4 December 2006 1 MineSafeWestern AustraliaLong traditionof mine rescue ..page 6 Addressingwork life balance .. page 23 Road safety on mine sitesVol. 15, No. 4 December 2006 2 MINESAFE Vol. 15, No. 4 December 2006In this issueAn article by State Mining Engineer Martin Knee about what the term safety culture might mean for the mining industry leads this bumper fi nal issue of MineSafe for are also reports on the formal activities that Resources Safety is engaged in, such as the Conference of Chief Inspectors of Mines and Mining Industry Advisory have articles and pictorial spreads on the Underground Mine Emergency Response Competition, held recently in Kalgoorlie, and the Mines Safety Roadshow 2006.

2 Participants feedback on the Roadshow is hours and work life balance were important discussion topics during the Roadshow. In this issue, we present information on the recently released code of practice and include a report on a talk by Professor Linda Duxbury, a work life balance response to requests for information, we have started a themed section on road safety on mine sites. The aim is to alert readers to the availability of information and what is happening in this fi eld, and generate discussion topics, especially with the inclusion of selected summaries from Resources Safety s incidents continue the series on the functions of other divisions in the Department of Consumer and Employment Protection with an overview of Labour Relations.

3 To round out the series, Resources Safety will feature in the next issue of the safety and health representatives section, we introduce you to Dino Busuladzic, who is based in Perth. We also cover some of the activities that happened in Safe Work Australia Week. Readers are encouraged to check out the Resources Safety website regularly to fi nd out what s new updates and new information are posted there fi rst, including toolbox presentations from the is also news relating to dangerous goods safety and a review of a locally published paste and thickened tailings book that might interest you know if your ore contains heavy metals?

4 In this issue we ask What s in your dust? and provide information on how to reduce exposure to toxic also report on some safety innovations and awards, as well as passing on safety alerts released by other organisations but relevant to the Western Australian scene. Specifi c safety advice is included in the signifi cant incident report on a service truck tyre 2006 draws to a close, I wish MineSafe readers and their families a safe and happy new year, and thank you for your interest and support throughout the GoochActing Executive Director, Resources SafetyDepartment of Consumer and Employment Protection2. In this issue3.

5 Safety culture4. Chiefs meet4. Mine rescuers in real life scenarios5. Diverse competitors travel distance to learn6. Scenarios based on actual reports6. Long tradition of mine rescue7. Mount Charlotte tops10. Road safety on mine sites Part 114. Mines Safety Roadshow 200616. About Labour Relations16. Bowler urges focus on workplace safety17. Ask an inspector18. Work Safety Award winners lead the way18. Safe Work Australia Week a success19. What s in your dust?20. Nick is a safe driver20. Changes to Dangerous Goods Safety Act21. Review of paste and thickened tailings guide22.

6 Working hours code of practice23. Addressing work life balance24. MIAC s fi rst anniversary25. Oil-fi lled circuit breaker failure26. New technology for emergencyresponse monitoring26. Training for new technologies27. Signifi cant incident report28. What s new on the webCo e sCo e s Department of Consumer and Employment Protection 2006 ISSN 1832-4762 MineSafe is published by the Resources Safety Division of the Department of Consumer and Employment Protection (DOCEP). It is distributed free of charge to employers, employees, safety and health representatives and members of the of material from MineSafe for wider distribution is encouraged and may be carried out subject to appropriate acknowledgement.

7 Contact the editor for further of proprietary products does not imply endorsement by Resources Safety or and contributions from readers are welcome, but the editor reserves the right to publish only those items that are considered to be constructive towards mining safety and health. Reader contributions and correspondence should be addressed to:Resources Safety, Locked Bag 14, Cloisters Square WA 6850 Editor: Susan HoEnquiries: (08) 9222 3573 Email: publication is available on request in other formats for people with special of contributors (from Resources Safety unless otherwise indicated):Susan Ho Peter W Lewis Donna HuntMartin Knee Peter Drygala Peter O LoughlinDenis Brown Lindy Nield Rhonda JogiaAnita Rudeforth Susan Barrera, Labour Relations Division, DOCEPR obert Cooke, Paterson & Cooke Consulting Engineers, South AfricaDenis Brown was omitted from the list of contributors for the previousissue of MineSafe.

8 We apologise for this image courtsesy of Kalgoorlie Miner (photo: Jodi Kingston)MINESAFE Vol. 15, No. 4 December 20063management and organisation factors that we now know contribute many of the causes of major accidents. It is also critically important to recognise that learning can occur not just within the mining industry, but also across industrial sectors such as aviation, chemical or energy precisely because the latent preconditions, rooted as they are in organisational and human behaviour, are common to many sectors. Learning also depends upon our conception of the system. Although the photograph of the donkey-cart might appear humorous to us all and very far from the world of engineering hazards at a very general level the system failure that it represents can, and does, happen regularly, as depicted by the aircraft in the other all talk about safety culture from time to time, and it is one of the buzz-words that has crept into the discussion of safety in all industries.

9 We often give it a complex and pompous-sounding definition like: The safety culture of an organisation is the product of individual and group values, attitudes, competencies and patterns of behaviour that determine the commitment to, and the style and proficiency of, an organisation s health and safety programmes. Organisations with a positive safety culture are characterised by communications founded on mutual trust, by shared perceptions of the importance of safety and by confidence in the efficacy of preventive measures. A simpler and certainly a morehonest definition might be: What people at all levels in an organisation do and say when their commitment to safety is not being scrutinised.

10 Organisations with good safety cultures commonly exhibit a collective mindfulness or risk awareness a realisation that they may be only a heartbeat away from a major accident. They are constantly, and at all levels, asking the question, What is the worst thing that could happen here? Other organisations are less proactive in seeking out ways in which their safety management systems might fail. While risk awareness may seem intuitive, there may be in-built reasons why red flags or indicators of risk are ignored. The first is the belief that it can t happen here , based on conflicting trusted, yet incorrect, information.