Occupational health and safety in mining status, new developments, and concerns

Transcription

1 Syopsis Occuptiol helth d sfety i miig sttus, ew developmets, d coces by M.A. Hemus* This ppe exmies the occuptiol helth d sfety pefomce (OHS) of the South Afic miig secto gist the bckdop of chges i the compositio of the secto, itetiol teds i OHS pefomce, d the geemet o OHS milestoes d tgets by miig stkeholdes t the Mie Helth d Sfety Summit of Although OHS pefomce hs impoved, pogess is slow d thee is eed fo sigifict the th icemetl chge if the tgets e to be elized. Sice 2003, ftlities d ijuies e 20 25% shot of ul milestoes d ot ll commodities show cosistet impovemet. Sttistics o occuptiol helth impcts e uvilble, but oise d espible dust levels e kow to be high i mies, with much wok lyig hed to ddess exposues t souce. Teds i egultig d ddessig OHS hzds e discussed with efeece to the otio of systemsthikig d the tgets. Effots to impove OHS d to espod to chges i the secto e costied by lck of tiig d cosistecy i isk mgemet, guidce fo juio, smll d tisl mies, d holistic ppoches to isk. Fo exmple, tetig isk holisticlly would ivolve tkig pope ccout of cotctos d wome i the wokplce, d ttedig to hum fctos d egoomics. Itoductio Occuptiol ijuies d ill-helth hve huge socil d ecoomic implictios fo idividuls, thei fmilies d thei commuities. They lso hve ecoomic impcts i the fom of diect d idiect costs fo society s whole. Totl costs of occuptiol ccidets d disese hve bee estimted t betwee 1 d 3 pe cet of GDP i vious couties1,2. Diect costs iclude compestio costs, costs ssocited with dmge i the wokplce d the costs of iteuptio of poductio. Idiect costs iclude the costs of livelihoods lost, icome to depedets, d the cost ssocited with cegivig by fmilies d the commuity. Poo commuities ted to be the but of extelized idiect costs, but tody miig compies c lso suffe loss of eputtio d withdwl of ivestmet cpitl. I the bode cotext of sustible developmet, helthy d sfe wokig coditios e mog the fist expecttios fo sustibility, i.e. the expecttio tht isks i miig will ot depive wokes of thei livelihoods o of thei qulity of life. Occuptiol ccidets d helth hzds c lso ffect public helth d sfety, d the eviomet. These fctos, the effects o the helth d sfety of people, costs to the ecoomy d impcts o the eviomet, lik effots to ddess occuptiol helth d sfety to the bode socil ged fo sustible developmet. The ccidet d ill-helth ecod of the miig secto compes pooly to tht of othe ecoomic sectos such s mufctuig, costuctio d il, ledig to miig s eputtio s the most hzdous idustil secto. Mie eviomets e especilly chllegig becuse they c degde fily pidly d they chge s miig pogesses. Dust d oise e iheetly ssocited with ock bekig, d i udegoud mies, i d light must be supplied tificilly. Blstig, s well s miig itself, eleses hmful gses ito the udegoud eviomet. Egoomic hzds e commo i miig s mies geelly hdle hevy equipmet d do hevy wok, ofte i cmped coditios. I some istces egoomic hzds, which e ssocited with poo egieeig desig, cotibute to icesed sfety isks. A exmple fom South Afic mies is the positioig of the dive s set i my of the locomotives still used i hulge t the bck of the vehicle d t ight gles to the diectio of tvel. South Afic mies cuetly employ bout wokes d cotibute sigifictly to GDP (7.1%)3, expots (34% of vlue)4 d foml employmet (6.5%)5. Most wokes e employed i gold d pltium mies i Guteg d the Noth West * Cete fo Sustibility i Miig d Idusty, Uivesity of the Witwtesd. The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy, SA ISSN X/ Ppe eceived My 2007; evised ppe eceived My T s c t i o P p e The Joul of The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy VOLUME 107 REFEREED PAPER AUGUST

2 Occuptiol helth d sfety i miig sttus, ew developmets d coces Povice. Miig lso hs multiplie effect o the est of the ecoomy, which, whe tke ito cosidetio, ises the cotibutio of miig to the GDP to close to 12%6. Give the impotce of miig to employmet d i the ecoomy, thee is sigifict vlue i ddessig helth d sfety systemticlly. Whe miig stted o idustil scle i the 1880s, mies fced vey high levels of isk to both sfety d helth. Ove the yes the sfety pefomce of mies impoved, but ot t the sme te s t i othe mjo miig couties such s Austli, Cd d the USA. It is difficult to compe helth pefomce. I 1995, the Commissio of Iquiy ito Mie Sfety d Helth cocluded o the bsis of umbe of studies tht exposues to dust i miig hd emied uchged fo 50 yes. The Commissio ttibuted this to bsece of systemic ppoches to cotollig espitoy disese7. I ecet yes, chges i legisltio, bette ppecitio of the eltioship betwee silic exposue, TB d HIV/AIDS, d commitmets mde by idusty stkeholdes hve esulted i fesh effots to educe helth d sfety isks. Howeve, compehesive iititives to cotol helth exposues e still ew d i developmet. Sice exposue dt fo iboe pollutts d oise idicte tht isks to helth e seious, they e likely to emi so util effective cotol sttegies e implemeted coss the secto. Recet developmets such s icesig umbes of cotctos wokig o mies, the emegece of juio miig compies, the ecogitio of smll-scle d tisl miig, d the pesece of wome i miig pose ew chlleges fo helth d sfety egultio d pctice, fo exmple: With moe cotctos d cotctig compies o site, occuptiol helth d sfety mgemet is moe complex. Give the eed fo cotctos to quote competitively fo wok, tesios betwee helth d sfety gols, d poductio outputs e heighteed. I 1999, the umbe of subcotctos employed i the idusty ws estimted t 10%8. My juio miig compies lck the esouces of thei lge coutepts to idetify best pctice fo helth d sfety, d to develop compehesive ppoches to isk mgemet. Util ecetly, tisl d smll- scle mies, which ply ole i povety llevitio by povidig employmet, wee ot cteed fo i South Afic miig policy. About smll-scle d tisl mies e ctive i the couty9. Smll scle d tisl mies ofte lck busiess mgemet skills, weess of the legl equiemets fo miig d the mes to ddess helth d sfety isks. Wome i miig fce gete isks to thei sfety th me becuse they use mchiey, tools d equipmet tht hve bee desiged fo me. Futhemoe, give tht the physicl demds of miig e mtched to physiology of select goup of me, wome fce icesed isks of ijuy d ill-helth. Mie sfety The Itetiol Lbou Ogistio (ILO) estimtes the ul umbe of wok-elted ftlities tht occu woldwide. Amog the figues published by the ILO e estimtes of the umbe of wok-elted ftlities i South Afic. Accodig to the ILO wokes i totl died i wokelted ccidets i I the sme ye, 288 wokes died i mie ccidets11. Give tht mies ccout fo fewe th wokes (less th 4% of the totl wokfoce) i the tiol wokfoce which is ely 14 millio stog, dispopotiote pecetge of wok-elted ftlities (ppoximtely 15%) e ssocited with miig. Tble I sets out the umbes of ftlities d ftlity tes pe millio hous woked i South Afic Mies i the lst fou yes12. I cotst to these eltively high tes, i Austli i 2003 (the most ecet ye fo which dt e vilble) the ftlity te ws 0.05 ftlities pe millio hous woked, d coespoded to the deths of 12 mies13. Compiso of Austli d South Afic tes suggest tht mies e 4 5 times moe likely to lose thei lives i mie ccidets i South Afic th i Austli. A mjo diffeece betwee South Afic d othe mjo miig couties is the depth of gold mies, the lbou itesiveess of gold d pltium miig, d the lge umbe of wokes o sigle mie (the lst pesets sigifict ogiztiol d logisticl chlleges). I cotst, Austli mies e moe mechized d fewe people e diectly exposed to miig hzds. The ftlity tes of the South Afic col secto e moe compble to the tiol tes fo Austli mies, eflectig gete simility i miig methods d coditios. It is estimted tht the sfety pefomce of the South Afic miig idusty must impove by t lest 20% pe ye to ech by 2013, the vege pefomce of Austli, US, d Cd (Otio)14. I 2005 the best eve impovemet i oe ye, 16%, ws chieved15. Figues 1 d 2 show how the sfety pefomce of gold d col subsectos of the South Afic miig idusty chged ove time16. Fo gold miig (Figue 1), the ftlity te declied shply fom 1904 to Fom the o util 1943, the te of impovemet slowed. Fom 1944 to the peset dy impovemets cotiued slowly d wee puctuted by sevel evesls coespodig to yes i which mie disstes occued. The ovell ted i ijuy tes (steep ise util 1943 d the steep fll util 1988) cot be esily explied, d suggests icompleteess i the dt. The steep peks tht puctute the dowwd ted i the ftlity tes i Figue 2, fo col mies, clely show the effect of miig disstes o ftlity tes (shp evesls i sfety pefomce i yes i which disstes occued). The ted i the ijuy dt suggests icompleteess, s is the cse fo the gold secto. Tble I Aul umbe d te of ftlities i miig Ye Numbe of ftlities Ftlity te pe millio hous woked (povisiol) AUGUST 2007 VOLUME 107 REFEREED PAPER The Joul of The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy

3 Occuptiol helth d sfety i miig sttus, ew developmets d coces Figue 1 Ftlity d ijuy tes i South Afic gold mies T s c t i o P p e Figue 2 Ftlity d ijuy tes i South Afic col mies, Sfety dt published by the Deptmet of Miels d Eegy (DME) oly icludes dt o ftlities d ijuies tht esult i wokes beig wy fom wok fo t lest 14 cosecutive dys. I shot, the dt e esticted to seious ccidets d these e mily ssocited with flls of goud, tspottio, d mchiey, ppoximtely 30%, 20% d 7% espectively i Alysis of this dt suggests tht the mjo cuses of ftlities ted to be the sme s those fo seious ijuies, while disstes hve diffeet pofile. I the lst decde, miig disstes wee ssocited with explosios due to flmmble gses, coveyo belt fie, iudtio of mud d wte, d ock busts. Thee is, howeve, othe lge ctegoy of ccidets tht is o-specific, etitled geel, which cofouds lysis of ccidet teds. This geel ctegoy ccouts fo 40% of ll ccidets, most of which esult i o-ftl ijuies, d icludes slips d flls, d hd ijuies. Some of the itevetios tht hve ove the yes cotibuted to educig sfety isk levels iclude: stdds fo explosives used i miig dmiisttive cotol of explosives udegoud stoe-dustig i col mies flme-poofig of equipmet impoved cp lmp techology d cotol impoved vetiltio systems istllig explosio-poof wlls to sel off mied out es explosio bies egiol suppot systems i seismiclly ctive mies hydulic pops d othe foms of ctive oof suppot. Cuet ides o ddessig sfety (d helth) emphsize the ole of ledeship i settig cle OHS expecttios, ledeship s ole i ligig busiess d OHS gols, poctive isk mgemet bsed o ledig idictos, commuictio, d esposiveess to feedbck. Mie helth Most couties do ot hve compehesive souces of occuptiol helth dt. Much of the dt e fgmeted d whe tke togethe, lso icomplete. Exposue dt, which c be pedictive of disese, e pticully scce d uelible. This is becuse the equiemets fo epesettive smplig, smple lysis d dt lysis e stiget d complex, d diffeet citei pply i diffeet couties d idusties. Relibility of the occuptiol helth dt is especilly poblem i developig couties whee epotig systems d epotig citei e ot well estblished. I 1999, it ws cosevtively estimted tht wold-wide thee wee deths due to occuptiol disese, i.e. upwds of seve times moe th the estimte of ftlities due to occuptiol ccidets18. The ILO estimted tht the totl umbe of occuptiol diseseelted deths i South Afic ws i It is ot cle how my of these deths wee ssocited with miig, lthough the vilble dt suggest tht the umbe would be sigifict d dispopotiol to the umbe of wokes employed i miig d tht thee is huge bude of occuptiol disese mog fome d cuet mies. The Joul of The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy VOLUME 107 REFEREED PAPER AUGUST

4 Occuptiol helth d sfety i miig sttus, ew developmets d coces Mjo helth isks ecouteed i miig iclude iboe pollutts such s silic dust d col dust, oise, het d vibtio. Othe sigifict helth isks iclude chemicl isks, which e ot elted to udegoud i pollutts o gses, ski disodes, egoomic stesses, ioizig ditio d, i the dimod secto o the west cost of the couty, decompessio illess ssocited with divig. Although helth isks c be voided by implemetig cotols t souce i the wok eviomet, desigig such cotols fo miig eviomets pesets cosideble chlleges becuse dust d oise e geeted by miig itself. Othe fctos lso ise the level of isk to helth i South Afic mies. Appoches to dust moitoig delyed the ecogitio of the seveity of the isks posed by iboe pollutts. Gvimetic dust smplig methods wee itoduced ito the miig secto oly i the lte 1980s, d util the vegig of exposues mesuemets fom divese situtios ws commoplce. Added to the poblem of ecogizig the seveity of helth isks e the effects of chges i employmet pttes d wokig hous o exposue time. Fo my decdes fte the stt of miig i the couty, mies woked o mies fo limited peiods befoe etuig to the ul es. It is possible tht these mies left the idusty befoe espitoy diseses such s silicosis becme evidet. By the mid-1980s, howeve, my mies emied i mie employmet fo moe th two decdes, suffeig pologed exposue to dust d developig occuptiol diseses i gete umbes19. Moe ecetly, the dequcy of potectio systems desiged oud occuptiol exposue limits fo eight-hou wokig dys hs bee clled ito questio. It is commo i olde mies fo mies to sped hous udegoud, with much of the ext time tke up by joueyig to d fom thei wokplces. Dust exposue Studies o South Afic udegoud mies show tht idividul dust cotol mesues c chieve eductios of betwee 25 to 50% of espible dust20. A ge of cotol mesues tht ct togethe to educe exposue isks is theefoe ecessy. These could iclude methods fo miimizig dust levels by educig dust geetio d methods fo dilutio, suppessio, cptue, d cotimet. Cuet guidelies o ddessig iboe pollutts emphsize the impotce of idetifyig d chcteizig ll souces of iboe dust, both pimy d secody, d popely itegtig cotol itevetios ito pocedues fo choosig d mitiig equipmet, d ito the dily wok cycle. While sigifict ucetities emi i cotollig dust exposues d mitiig the effectiveess of cotols, the use of ppopite pesol potective equipmet (PPE) is impott. I ecet yes i the Uited Sttes legl ules fo veifyig dust cotol pls i col mies hve bee developed. At opetiol level it is expected tht the followig be checked befoe the stt of shift: wte pessues d wte flow to dust suppessio spys o cotiuous mies; i qulity d i velocity t the loctios whee mchiey opetes; dust collectos o dills d othe equipmet; d y othe cotols specified i mie vetiltio pls. Should cotols be foud wtig, poductio must be hlted util they e popely fuctiol21. Aes of esech i the US to impove moitoig d cotol of dust, iclude el-time dust moitoig tools to check whethe iboe dust is mitied withi cceptble limits, impovig dust collectio uits o mchies though edesig d epositioig, d educig dust levels withi the eclosed cbis of olde equipmet by etofittig dust filttio d pessuiztio uits. Noise exposue Noise exposue is widesped poblem i miig becuse of the use of hevy equipmet; dillig d ock bekig; tsfeig, sotig d millig of ock; d the cofied wokig eviomet. Avilble dt fo oise exposue fo South Afic mies suggest tht ely hlf the wokfoce is exposed to defeig oise, d of these wokes moe th 90% wok i zoes i which oise exceeds the 85 dba time weighted vege, with 11% wokig i zoes i which the oise levels e eve highe22. Thee wee ppoximtely cses of oise-iduced heig loss i 2004 d ppoximtely R75 millio ws pid out i compestio. As oise levels emi high i the secto d oise btemet itevetios e still i developmet, PPE is vey impott i pevetig heig loss. I some wokig es, oise levels ssocited with usileced peumtic dills e so high (i excess of 115 db (A)) tht PPE cot povide dequte potectio. It is theefoe likely tht oise-iduced heig loss will cotiue mog mies i the secto, d the umbe of compesble cses will ise gi i the futue whe the theshold fo compesble heig loss is beched. The South Afic situtio is mioed i miig eviomets elsewhee. Accodig to the Ntiol Istitute fo Occuptiol Sfety d Helth (NIOSH) i the US, 80% of mies wok i eviomet i which oise levels exceeds 85 dba, 25% e exposed to oise levels bove 90 dba, d 90% of col mies d 49% of metl/o-metl mies e heig impied by the ge of 50. Pevetig heig loss t peset ivolves ge of sttegies, which iclude egieeig cotols, eductio, suveillce d ivetios to impove complice to heig cosevtio pogmmes. Exmples of egieeig cotols dopted i miig to ddess oise iclude eclosue of equipmet, dmpeig of oise vibtios, the edesig of equipmet, d emotely cotolled opetios. Co-opetive effots ivolvig the supplies d mufctues of equipmet could big f-echig chge if pusued o idusty-wide bsis. Respitoy diseses, tubeculosis (TB), HIV/AIDS d silicosis I the peiod 1973 to 1993 (20 yes) the Miel Bueu fo Occuptiol Disese cetified cses of occuptiol lug disese. The ctul umbes of cses of disese is kow to be highe, sice blck wokes who e moe likely to hve bee exposed to high levels of espible dust, wee ot etitled to beefit exmitios i the pst. Tody, occuptiol disese is still ulikely to be digosed mog fome miewokes seved by esouce stpped cliics i ul es. Ifomtio vilble o exposue to iboe helth hzds suggest tht, depedig o the commodity ude cosidetio, betwee 9 d 50 pe cet of exposed wokes, who ccout fo bout hlf of the wokfoce, e oveexposed to iboe pollutts AUGUST 2007 VOLUME 107 REFEREED PAPER The Joul of The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy

5 Occuptiol helth d sfety i miig sttus, ew developmets d coces TB d HIV/AIDS e sigifict helth isks i South Afic miig becuse these diseses e boud up with the livig d wokig coditios of mies, such s migt lbou, sigle sex hostels, udigosed ctive TB, closed vetiltio systems i udegoud mies, d dese livig gemets. Tubeculosis cotol is filig ove much of sub-sh Afic, the egio of the wold most ffected by HIV/AIDS, sice HIV ifectio iceses susceptibility to TB. The sme effect is see o mies. I dditio, exposue to silic i miig opetios togethe with HIV ifectio, multiply the isk of ctive TB. These combied fctos lso cotibute to high tes of TB tsmissio. To educe the TB o mies, TB must be idetified ely d teted, d both silic dust exposues d HIV ifectio must be cotolled24. Dt souces, which e most eflective of the isk of espitoy disese i miig, e the ecods of TB otifictio cses collted by the Chmbe of Mies d collected by the helth sevices t mies. TB otifictio tes hve icesed pidly sice 1988 i the miig secto s whole, but e pticully high fo gold mies fo which otifictio tes e thee times highe th mog col d pltium mies25. Figue 3 shows how TB otifictios to the Chmbe of Mies hve icesed ove time. The popotio of TB cses ivolvig HIV ifectio is lso idicted i the gph. Gold miig TB tes e lso well bove the TB tes fo the geel popultio of South Afic. A lge-scle itevetio ivolvig isoizid pevettive thepy (IPT) fo TB is udewy i the gold miig secto, which hs the potetil to educe the isk of TB mog mies by elimitig ltet o ecet TB ifectios, d educig the possibility of subsequet ifectios26. The helth d sfety milestoes At the Mie Helth d Sfety Summit of 2003, the tiptite stkeholdes i miig geed to tgets d milestoes, which e imed t ddessig the mjo helth d sfety coces of the secto. The milestoes e cosideed to be the itemedite steps to chievig tgets of zeo ftlities d ijuies, silicosis elimitio d the elimitio of oise-iduced heig loss. Cuet teds i the vilble dt idicte tht the secto is ot chievig the level of impovemet eeded to ech the milestoes. Howeve, sigifict esouces hve bee glvized, fo exmple, to she ifomtio, idetify helpful existig techologies, develop ew techologies, suppot techology tsfe, Thousds/ popultio Figue 3 TB otifictio cses 27 (Souce: Auum Istitute, Johesbug) closely moito teds, d udestd the ole of ledeship. These ctivities bode well fo the futue. The thee miig idusty tgets d thei ssocited milestoes e set out below. The secto tget fo sfety is zeo ftlities d ijuies. The milestoes ssocited with this tget e: I the gold secto To chieve by 2013, sfety pefomce levels t lest (i.e. the vege of the sfety pefomce of mies i the US, Austli d Cd) equivlet to cuet itetiol bechmks fo udegoud metllifeous mies I the pltium, col d othe sectos to chieve by costt d cotiuous impovemet, t lest equivlet pefomce levels to cuet itetiol bechmks. Oe of the secto s helth tgets is to elimite silicosis. The milestoes ssocited with this tget e to: By Decembe 2008, educe 95% of exposues to below the occuptiol exposue limit fo espible cystllie silic of 0.1 mg/m3 (these esults e idividul edigs d ot vege esults) Afte Decembe 2013, usig peset digostic techiques, cuse o ew cses of silicosis to occu mog peviously uexposed idividuls (peviously uexposed idividuls e wokes who would ot hve bee exposed to silic pio to 2008, fo exmple wokes who e ew etts to the idusty i 2008 o who hve woked o mies o i occuptios i which silic exposues wee bset). The secod helth tget, which is lso the fil tget of the secto, is to elimite oise-iduced heig loss (NIHL). The peset oise exposue limit specified i egultio is 85 db (A). The milestoes ssocited with this tget e tht: Afte Decembe 2008, heig cosevtio pogmmes must esue tht deteiotios i heig e o gete th 10% mogst occuptiolly exposed idividuls. By Decembe 2013, the totl oise emitted by ll equipmet istlled i y wokplce must ot exceed soud pessue level of 110 db (A) t y loctio i tht wokplce. Systems thikig d occuptiol helth d sfety Questios hve lwys bee ised ove how legisltio c best ifluece OHS i the wokplce, how OHS eltes to othe mgeil esposibilities, whethe the esults of icidet ivestigtio c meigfully suppot pevetio, d how/why opetios become vuleble to smll devitios i hum behviou. I ecet decdes the otio of systems hs bee helpful i developig swes to these questios28. A system is udestood s ggegte of iteelted compoets tht hve ovechig pupose. Compoets my iclude policies, stdds, istitutios, people d mchiey. A impott chcteistic of systems is tht they e dymic. They chge whe idividul compoets chge. Keepig system liged with its pupose d esuig the systems espod ppopitely to chge equies coscious effot, fo exmple espodig to chges i employmet pttes, wokig hous d mgemet. T s c t i o P p e The Joul of The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy VOLUME 107 REFEREED PAPER AUGUST

6 Occuptiol helth d sfety i miig sttus, ew developmets d coces I systems, both the compoets d dymics (withi the compoets d betwee compoets) e impott. Fo occuptiol helth d sfety, typicl system compoets e stkeholde goups, OHS committees, policies, pocedues, stdds, specific ccoutbilities, uditig d moitoig potocols, d pefomce idictos. The dymics of the system e povided by the ctios d itectios of these compoets. This icludes ledeship, ivolvemet, commitmet, plig, cosulttios, itectios with egultos, esposes to poblems d ctig o udit fidigs. Well developed system compoets c be dvtge but i the bsece of good dymics (e.g. commitmet, ivolvemet, feedbck o esposiveess), system pefomce is likely to be sub-optiml29. Tody, evidece of systems thikig c be foud i OHS legisltio, wokplce pogmmes d i ppoches to stkeholde eggemet, isk ssessmet d ccidet ivestigtio. Lw Miig legisltio i South Afic d elsewhee developed piecemel, usully i espose to disstes ivolvig loss of life d multiple ijuies. The fct tht sfety isks e moe mifest i the wokplce th helth isks hs lso skewed legisltio towds sfety d physicl hzds. I pctice i the log-tem, howeve, moe deths d disbility e ssocited with helth isks th with sfety isks. The peiod of ltecy betwee exposue to helth hzd d disese is oe of the mjo esos why helth isks e udeestimted o uecogized. I 1972, the epot of committee of iquiy ito helth d sfety t wok i Biti (the Robe s epot), which ws chied by Lod Robe, lid the bsis fo moe compehesive d systemic ppoches to helth d sfety. Robe citicized the bis i lw d egultio towds sfety d physicl coditios; the bsece of povisios fo ddessig helth isks i the wokplce; pesciptive legisltio; d ective ppoches to developig lw. He clled fo bodeig pespectives o OHS to iclude cosidetio of the ogiztio of wok d hum fctos; ogoig eggemet betwee employes d wokes o helth d sfety, d employes duties to mge OHS o cotiuous bsis. He lso poposed tht pesciptive legl povisios be eplced by pefomce o outcomes equiemets, which wee to be suppoted by geel duty of ce plced o employes30. The Robe s epot iflueced the thikig of the ILO31, d the desig of legisltio i my couties, fo exmple Biti, Austli, New Zeld, Nowy d Swede. I South Afic, the Commissio of Iquiy ito Sfety d Helth i the Miig Idusty, which published its epot i 1995, ws lso stogly iflueced by the ppoch dvocted by Lod Robe d by his coces. The Commissio ecommeded tht legisltio be pomulgted to ddess occuptiol helth i mies, d tht mie employes tke uget steps to impove moitoig stdds d pctice, medicl suveillce, d the cotol of helth isks32. The Mie Helth d Sfety Act of 1996 (MHSA) ises out of the fidigs of the Commissio d is eblig the th pesciptive. Its mi fetues e tht: Employes be pimy esposibility fo sfe d helthy wok eviomet Risk mgemet ppoches to ddessig helth d sfety hzds e mdtoy Wokes hve ights to pticipte i helth d sfety, to helth d sfety ifomtio, to tiig d to withdw fom dgeous wokplces Tiptite istitutios e chged with esposibilities to develop policy, legisltio, egultios d pomote cultue of helth d sfety. I South Afic, ll egultoy istumets fo mies, e.g. egultios d codes of pctice, ted to be fmed s outcomes sttemets. I cotst i Biti, whee pefomce-bsed ppoches wee pioeeed, the ppoch of the Helth d Sfety Executive (HSE) is moe uced. While the HSE geelly follows gol-settig ppoch, pesciptio is cosideed to be ppopite fo ceti situtios. Fo exmple, mies e equied to povide two exit outes i Biti. The HSE lso equies licesig of iheetly hzdous ctivities such s explosive use d sbestos emovl33. Aothe itetiol ted coces the cosolidtio of ll occuptiol helth d sfety legisltio ito sigle ovechig sttutes34,35, s well s the mlgmtio of the istitutios esposible fo OHS. This pocess is still beig plyed out i South Afic36, whee decisio of the Cbiet i 1999 to hmoize d cosolidte OHS legisltio d istitutios is ude cosidetio, ude the ledeship of the Deptmet of Lbou. Eggemet Wokes hve fudmetl iteest i occuptiol helth d sfety becuse it is thei helth, lives d limbs which e t isk. A commo obsevtio i esech d ccidet ivestigtios is tht wokes hve ot bee egged i wys tht eble them to ifom mgemet of specific OHS coces, o to cotibute thei expeietil d tcit kowledge of wok d of OHS hzds. Advesil o poo lbou eltios c ule out y fom of pteship betwee mges d wokes o helth d sfety37 d c ffect commuictio. The eview of the 2005 ccidet t BP s Texs City Refiey, flgged s impott willigess by mges to liste to the wokfoce d ppecitio by the wokfoce of how sfety cosidetios shpe mgemet decisios38. Aothe bie to effective eggemet my be mges coces tht pticiptoy pocesses will udemie thei cotol of opetios. Yet evidece suggests the coty. Fo exmple udit of the itel esposibility system i Otio Mies foud tht: The wokplces i which wokes d supevisos wee ivolved hevily i plig the wok, teded to be the mies whee thee wee fewe ccidets (s mesued by medicl id cses)39. Risk mgemet Risk mgemet pocesses e fudmetl to the Mie Helth d Sfety Act d most othe mode OHS sttutes. The udelyig pemise of isk mgemet is tht impovemets i helth d sfety c be mde by coectly idetifyig d ddessig hzds o fctos (which my be udelyig o diect) tht cotibute to occuptiol isk. The mi compoets of isk mgemet e hzd idetifictio, isk ssessmet, implemettio of cotols, moitoig of cotols, eview, d djustmet o edesig of cotols s ecessy. The pctice of isk mgemet hs led to udestdig d ppecitio of the followig: 536 AUGUST 2007 VOLUME 107 REFEREED PAPER The Joul of The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy

7 Occuptiol helth d sfety i miig sttus, ew developmets d coces Effective isk mgemet is fouded o good egieeig desig d systems of wok. Whee isk cot be elimited, cotol sttegies c be desiged to educe the cosequece o the likelihood of the isk (o both). A udestdig of the impct of cotol sttegies is impott fo both cotigecy plig d impovig cotols ove time. Whe isk ssessmets e doe too lte, little c be doe to void hzds. Complex wok pocesses such s those with umeous itedepedet ctivities d my levels of supevisio, offe moe oppotuities fo hum eo d equipmet filue. To pevet deths t wok, sevee isks must be elimited o educed, e.g. septig the tvel pths of hevy mobile equipmet fom smll vehicles o pedestis, o usig emote cotols tht eble people to sty out of hzdous es. Risks e educed by keepig low ivetoies of hzdous mteils o wok sites (e.g. low volumes of explosives o chemicls). Hum beigs e fllible, d desigs should be tolet of hum filue d eo. The fctos tht shpe usfe behvious i the wokplce, c be idetified d elimited o modified though ppopite itevetios d chges i the ovell system. Repet ccidets occu becuse the lessos of pevious ccidets e ot leed o fogotte o e ot pssed o. Accidet ivestigtio My theoies of ccidet custio c be tced bck to the wok of Hebet Heiich who studied idustil ccidet epots i the 1920s. He cocluded tht 88% of ccidets wee cused by usfe cts, 10% by usfe coditios d 2% wee uvoidble40. Heiich s theoy (the domio theoy) plces the ctios of wokes t the cete of ccidets. I South Afic this theoy domites thikig o ccidet ivestigtio, but ehcemets hve bee mde to fcto i isk mgemet pctice, d pocedul d opetiol cotol. These ehcemets d moe ecet ppoches to ccidet custio ecogize the multi-fctoility of the ccidet pheomeo 41 d iclude cosidetio of the ogiztio of wok, egoomics, the wok eviomet, boml wokig situtios, pocess sfety d the esposibilities of employes to povide sfe systems of wok d sfe wokig eviomets. Itetiolly, iteest hs shifted to pplyig systems theoy to ccidets. I systems theoy ccidets e viewed s flwed pocesses ivolvig itectios mog system compoets icludig people, societl d ogiztiol stuctues, egieeig ctivities d physicl system compoets 42. Models bsed o system theoy e olie d e ulikely to coclude, o eifoce the ide, tht oe cuse, someoe o somethig, is diectly to blme fo ccidet. Isted they povide isight ito the fctos elted to ogiztiol stuctue, egieeig desig, mufctuig d opetios tht move systems ito sttes i which smll devitios fom the om c tigge ctstophes. Costits i the South Afic eviomet Idetifictio, ssessmet, elimitio o cotol of isks is teet of the Mie Helth d Sfety Act, yet tiig i isk mgemet is ot well estblished. I Austli whee iskbsed ppoches e lso ooted i lw, such tiig is ccedited by egultos i my sttes d isk mgemet pctice hs become moe stddized43. I South Afic, the bsece of cosistet ppoches to isk mgemet is coce. Effective eggemet mog mges, supevisos d the wokfoce is vitl to impovig OHS pefomce. Ufotutely, South Afic s histoy of divisio log the lies of ce, lguge, clss, gede d eductiol oppotuity pesets sigifict bies to buildig commo cuse oud OHS, d cetig ope d esposive wokig eltios. Howeve, umbe of exmples of good pctice exist, which could be documeted, shed d emulted. Cotctos ow pefom wide ge of fuctios o mies fom shft sikig, to developmet wok, miig itself, d othe geel wok, but specific guidelies o cotcto sfety hve ot yet bee cosideed, despite the vulebility of cotct wokes. Resos fo this iclude icomplete dt o the helth d sfety of cotct wokes, d the bsece of systems to eble tiig d egisttio of cotct wokes. Pefomce-bsed ppoches i helth d sfety lw do ot meet the eeds of compies tht e smll d udeesouced, d tht equie explicit guidce o wht is equied of them. Gete ppecitio of the cicumstces of juio, smll-scle d tisl mies could suppot the developmet of ppopite OHS policy d itevetio sttegies. The eblig ppoch of the MHSA plces moe demds o egultos. Mie ispectos hve to execise pofessiol judgemet i my istces d cot cofim complice by simply compig thei obsevtios gist items o checklists. Pogmmes fo the developmet d tiig of ispectos e impott i ddessig this coce. Histoiclly high-isk wok hs bee ssiged to me, d wome hve bee excluded fom such wok. Wok i the miig secto flls ito the ctegoy of high-isk wok. Repoductive hzds44 i miig iclude ioizig ditio, iogic solvets d toxic metls. Fo biologicl esos, wome my be moe t isk fom some of these hzds th me. Hevy physicl wok is lso epoductive hzd fo wome, d hevy wok s well s equipmet desiged fo me, expose wome e ecessy to moe isks. Moe holistic ppoches to isk mgemet, which iclude cosidetio of gede implictios of isk ivolvig wome wokes i isk ssessmets, d ethikig ppoches to egoomic fctos, if the pticiptio of wome is to be sustied i miig. Coclusios Whe miig stted o lge scle i South Afic i the lte 19th cetuy, mie wokes fced vey high levels of isk to both sfety d helth. Ove the yes the sfety pefomce of mies impoved, but ot t the sme te s miig couties such s Austli, Cd d the USA. Give tht the mies ccout fo fewe th 4% of the totl wokfoce i South Afic, dispopotiotely high pecetge of occuptiol deths, 15% of the estimted totl fo the couty, e ssocited with miig. Globlly, the souces of dt o occuptiol disese e fgmeted d icomplete d exposue dt is scce d uelible. T s c t i o P p e The Joul of The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy VOLUME 107 REFEREED PAPER AUGUST

8 Occuptiol helth d sfety i miig sttus, ew developmets d coces Noetheless, i South Afic, the vilble dt suggest thee is sigifict bude of occuptiol disese mog fome d cuet mies. Systems thikig hs stogly iflueced developmets i legisltio, d ppoches to isk mgemet, ccidet ivestigtio d woke ivolvemet i helth d sfety. The full implictios of this ppoch, which e eteched i the Mie Helth d Sfety Act, hve ot yet bee popely ppecited d icopoted ito pctice. Costits to impovig OHS d espodig to chges i the miig secto i South Afic iclude lck of: Resouces d guidce to ddess the eeds of cotct wokes, juio, smll d tisl mies Tiig d cosistecy i isk mgemet pctice Holistic ppoches to ddessig isks by, fo exmple, popely cosideig OHS isks to wome, hum fctos d egoomics; d Impovig the qulity of eggemet betwee mges, wokes d supevisos. The secto s histoicl legcy of udeestimtig helth isks costis cuet effots to impove OHS pefomce. The bude of occuptiol disese ssocited with pst pctice hs ot yet u its couse. I the loge tem, howeve, the impcts of cuet iititives, which e midful of the ifluece of TB d HIV/AIDS, should be beeficil. The tgets d milestoes, which the tiptite miig stkeholdes geed to t the Mie Helth d Sfety Summit of 2003, e imed t ddessig the mjo helth d sfety coces i the secto, d e divig moe systemtic effots to ddess the cuses of ftlities, ijuy d illhelth. Refeeces 1. RIKHARDSSON, P.L. Copote Socil Resposibility d Eviometl Mgemet, Accoutig fo the Cost of Occuptiol Accidets. vol. 11, pp LEIGH, J.P., MARKOWITZ, S.B., FAHS, M.C., BERNSTEIN, J., d LANDRIGAN, P. Costs of Occuptiol Ijuies d Illesses, Chpte 1.Uivesity of Michig Pess Clculted fom Reseve bk, Qutely Bulleti, Mch Chmbe of Mies, Aul Repot, Clculted by the MQA fom: Sttistics South Afic, Lbou Foce Suvey, Septembe Miig Qulifictio Authoity, Secto Skills Pl, Commissio of Iquiy ito Sfety d Helth i the Miig Idusty, 1995, pp CRUSH, J., ULICKI, T., TSEANE, T., d JANSE VAN VUUREN, E. Udemiig Lbou: Migcy d Sub-cotctig i the South Afic Gold Miig Idusty. Migtio Policy Seies, o. 5. The South Afic Migtio Poject MUTEMERI, N. d PETERSEN, F. Smll-scle Miig i South Afic: Pst, Peset d Futue. Ntul Resouces Foum, vol. 26, p ILO SfeWok. Globl Estimtes of Ftl Wok Relted Diseses d Occuptiol Accidets, Wold Bk Regios Souce: Deptmet of Miels d Eegy, Mie Ispectote. 12. Souce Deptmet of Miels d Eegy, Mie Ispectote 13. Miels Coucil of Austli. Sfety Pefomce Repot of the Austli Miels Idusty Souce: Mie Helth d Sfety Coucil d the Chmbe of Mies of South Afic (Employe Summit 2006). 15. Mie Ispectote. Aul Repot Souce: Mie Helth d Sfety Coucil. 17. Souce: Mie Helth d Sfety Coucil. 18. LEIGH, J., MACASKILL, P., KUOSMA, E., d MANDRYK, J. Globl Bude of Disese d Ijuy due to Occuptiol Fctos. Epidemiology. vol.10, o. 5, Sept Commissio of Iquiy ito Sfety d Helth i the Miig Idusty, 1995, pp. 9 d KESSEL, F. Dust Cotol Methods i Tuels d Udegoud Mies. Joul of the Mie Vetiltio Society, vol. 55, o. 4, Octobe/Decembe Mie Sfety d Helth Admiisttio, USA. Exmitio of Respible Dust Cotols t Udegoud Col Mies. (udted). 22. Souce: Deptmet of Miels d Eegy, Mie Ispectote. 23. Deptmet of Miels d Eegy, Mie Ispectote. 24. GUILD, R., ERLICH, R., JOHNSTON, J., d ROSS, M. MHSC, Simc. Editos: Hdbook of Occuptiol Helth Pctice i the South Afic Miig Idusty. p GUILD, R., EHLICH, R., JOHNSTON, J., d ROSS, M. MHSC (SIMRAC). Editos, Hdbook of Occuptiol Helth i the South Afic Miig Idusty, p Mie Helth d Sfety Coucil: Thibel Study. 27. Souce: Auum Istitute, Johesbug, South Afic. 28. GUNNIGHAM, N. d JOHNSTONE, J. Regultig Wokplce Sfety. Systems d Sctios. Oxfod Uivesity Pess pp PLUMMER, I., STRAHLENDORF, P., d HOLLIDAY, M. Except fom: The Itel Resposibility System i Otio Mies. Fil Repot: The Til Audit d Recommedtios. Full epot fom [email protected]. p GUNNINGHAM, N. d JOHNSTONE, J. Regultig Wokplce Sfety. Systems d Sctios. Oxfod Uivesity Pess pp Covetio 176 Sfety d Helth i Mies, ILO, Commissio of Iquiy ito Sfety d Helth i the Miig Idusty, 1995, p HERMANUS, M. Teds i Occuptiol Helth d Sfety Policy d Regultio Issues d Chlleges fo South Afic. Developmet d Lbou Moogphs 1/01. Istitute of Developmet d Lbou Lw, Uivesity of Cpe Tow pp GUNNINGHAM, N. d JOHNSTONE, J. Regultig Wokplce Sfety. Systems d Sctios. Oxfod Uivesity Pess pp HERMANUS, M. Teds i Occuptiol Helth d Sfety Policy d Regultio Issues d Chlleges fo South Afic. Developmet d Lbou Moogphs 1/01. Istitute of Developmet d Lbou Lw, Uivesity of Cpe Tow pp The Repot of the Joit Fedel-Povicil Iquiy Commissio i to Sfety i Mies d Miig Plts i Otio. Towds Sfe Poductio. vol. 1, pp The Repot of the BP U.S. Refieies Idepedet Sfety Review Pel PLUMMER, I., STRAHLENDORF, P., d HOLLIDAY, M. Except fom: The Itel Resposibility System i Otio Mies. Fil Repot: The Til Audit d Recommedtios. p. 15. Full epot fom [email protected]. 40. GOETSCH, D. Occuptiol Sfety d Helth fo Techologists, Egiees d Mges. Simo d Schuste p The Repot of the Joit Fedel-Povicil Iquiy Commissio i to Sfety i Mies d Miig Plts i Otio. Towds Sfe Poductio. vol. 2, p LEVESON, N., DAOUK, M., DULAC, N., d MARAIS, K. Applyig STAMP i Accidet Alysis. MIT, Egieeig Systems Divisio JOY, J. Occuptiol Sfety Risk Mgemet i Austli Miig. Occuptiol Medicie 2004, vol. 54, pp helth2.htm 538 AUGUST 2007 VOLUME 107 REFEREED PAPER The Joul of The Southe Afic Istitute of Miig d Metllugy