The Government of Saskatchewan has passed amendments to its Occupational Health and Safety Act (1993), which will see enhanced occupational health and safety duties for employers, supervisors, contractors and suppliers.

These amendments are the result of a comprehensive review by the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety's Occupational Health and Safety Council and consultations with stakeholders.

"Saskatchewan has the second highest injury rate in the country," Labour Relations and Workplace Safety Minister Don Morgan said. "This is unacceptable. This legislation contains provisions that are directed at helping eliminate injuries, illnesses and fatalities. It will also help lower health care and workers' compensation costs, and improve business opportunities."

The legislative highlights include:
The maximum penalty arising out of the serious injury or death of a worker will increase from $300,000 to $1.5 million, the highest in the country;
Clarification of the requirement for employers and other parties to provide training and supervision of employees, as well as maintenance of equipment to ensure the safety of all workers; and
Increased investigative authority of occupational health officers in the course of their duties.

The amendments will take effect following proclamation this fall. For more information about the amendments to the OHS Act visit www.lrws.gov.sk.ca/consultations-ohs-legislative-amendments.

The government is also undertaking a comprehensive review of all employment and labour relations legislation. To view the discussion paper, visit www.lrws.gov.sk.ca/modernizing-legislation.

Investigators have found similarities and possible sources for two separate sawmill explosions that killed four men.

Jeff Dolan, with WorkSafeBC, says investigators believe the ignition sources in both explosions were in contained areas in the conveyor level, or basement, of the buildings where electrical or mechanical equipment was in operation.

Dolan stresses their findings might be coincidental and the conclusions aren’t final, but says their discovery can’t be ignored by employers.

Roberta Ellis, vice president of corporate services with WorkSafeBC, says the agency has told other mill employers to pay extra attention to those locations inside their sawmills.

WorkSafeBC has already issued a directive to every sawmill employer in the province that they must clean up dust in their operations, which Dolan says could be one of the possible ignition sources in the explosions.

Two men were killed when the Babine Forest Products mill exploded in Burns Lake in January and another two workers were killed in an explosion and fire in the Prince George Lakeland Mill last month.

Stephen Hinde, electrical safety manager at the BCSA, issued the safety order as a precautionary measure to be acted upon without delay. “Although the investigations into the two recent fatal incidents are ongoing and the causes of those incidents have not been identified, this safety order is aimed at minimizing the risk of fire or explosion related to regulated electrical equipment being a potential combustion or ignition source in wood processing operations.”

Hinde explained further, “Electrical equipment is used throughout sawmills and during normal operation can create heat and electrical sparks. This could act as an ignition source for a fire or explosion, so it’s important that mills ensure they are following the Safety Standards Act”.

While this safety order is specific to owners and operators of sawmills around electrical equipment, other regulated technologies are also still under investigation at Babine Forest Products, including propane and natural gas. BCSA is not yet prepared to rule out propane or natural gas as either an ignition or fuel source at Babine while the investigation is ongoing.

As well as issuing this safety order, the following precautionary measures have been taken by the BCSA since the explosion at Babine in January:

• Beginning in February, gas safety officers with BCSA conducted assessments of gas operating permits in sawmills and industrial sites across the province. This action was taken to verify valid permits, and check technical elements of the gas equipment. This review did not identify any systemic concerns.
• In early April, electrical safety officers with BCSA began to conduct a survey of electrical operating permits at a select group of wood processing plants to assess the safety of regulated electrical equipment and the effectiveness of mandated electrical maintenance programs. It is anticipated this work will be complete in May.

Supplementing the general workplace safety measures ordered by WorkSafeBC, the following items are prescribed in BCSA’s safety order (the full and complete text can be found at www.safetyauthority.ca under Industry Alerts) which applies specifically to regulated electrical equipment:

• Verify that a valid operating permit is in place.
• Develop a process to report incidents involving electrical equipment or electrical work.
• Report any incidents that have occurred since January 1, 2010 and that have not been previously reported.
• Verify that the interior of enclosures of electrical motor control centres, power distribution centres, or similar switchgear are clear and free of known or potential combustible or explosive materials such as wood dust.
• Verify that electrical cabinet doors and access covers for energized electrical equipment are closed and secured.
• Verify that ventilation systems for electrical equipment enclosures are clean, working properly and installed in accordance with the equipment manufacturer’s instructions.
• Submit a completed copy of the Safety Order Response Form to the BC Safety Authority no later than July 13, 2012.

Welded Tube of Canada Limited, a Concord steel manufacturer, was fined $120,000 for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act after a worker was injured.

On August 19, 2009, a worker at the company's Concord factory was helping to change over part of a mill used to shape steel sheets into tubes. The worker was standing near the back of the mill when a section of the mill was moved into place using a rack and pinion drive system. The worker's leg was pinched between a moving rack and the mill, breaking the worker's leg.

A Ministry of Labour investigation found that the area of the mill where the worker was standing was not guarded to prevent access to the pinch point between the moving rack and the frame of the mill.

Welded Tube of Canada Limited pleaded guilty to failing to ensure that the machinery was guarded to prevent access to its pinch point.

The fine was imposed by Justice of the Peace Philip Solomon. In addition to the fine, the court imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.
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WorkSafeBC has initiated an investigation into the April 23 explosion at the Lakeland Mills in Prince George, B.C. WorkSafeBC sends condolences to the family of the deceased, the workers injured in the explosion and the community of Prince George.

The tragic events in Prince George have resulted in calls for the release of information gathered to date in the investigation into the Burns Lake sawmill explosion that took place earlier this year. This investigation is ongoing, however the site has been returned to the employer; equipment that must be examined has been removed from the site and transferred to independent laboratories for testing and analysis, and information and evidence gathered through witness statements is being analyzed.

“No preliminary findings into the Burns Lake investigation are available at this time and WorkSafeBC is not in a position to release information that might compromise the process,” said Roberta Ellis, vice-president of corporate services. “Investigators continue to examine fuel sources including combustible sawdust and gas as well as potential ignition sources.”

“Fatality investigations must be conducted within the law while respecting the rights of all parties to a fair and impartial investigation,” Ellis adds.

The site of the explosion in Prince George remains with the RCMP and the B.C. Coroners Service. WorkSafeBC will commence its site investigation as soon as it is released by both agencies and it is safe for officers to access.

In addition, WorkSafeBC will immediately be issuing orders to all sawmill employers in B.C., directing them to conduct a full hazard identification, risk assessment, and safety review, with particular focus on combustible dust; dust accumulation; and potential ignition sources. WorkSafeBC officers will be following up on these orders to confirm that the ordered actions have been taken and sawmills are in compliance with the Workers Compensation Act and Occupational Health and Safety Regulation in regard to combustible dust and potential safety hazards.

At present, WorkSafeBC does not have reasonable legal grounds to order sawmills closed. The agency will not hesitate to take such action should the circumstances warrant it.

“We recognize that there are similarities between the explosions in Burns Lake and Prince George — both are sawmills, dust was present in both, as in all sawmills, and both mills were working with beetle-infested wood.

“However,” Ellis says, “We cannot speculate, based on these similarities, as to the cause of these events.”

WorkSafeBC claim staff has been deployed to the area to assist the regional office in providing service to the injured workers and their families and the family of the fatally-injured worker.
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Westario Power Inc., a Walkerton power distribution company, was fined $110,000 for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act after a worker was killed.

On September 21, 2010, there was a severe thunderstorm in the Port Elgin area and the power went out at the company's Port Elgin substation. Workers went to the substation to restore power. They attempted to de-energize its equipment so that they could replace a damaged insulator. However, some of the equipment was still energized when a worker started replacing the insulator. The worker came into contact with the energized equipment and was electrocuted.

A Ministry of Labour investigation found that the substation did not have a current single line diagram to assist workers in developing a work plan, identifying hazards and fully de-energizing the equipment. As a consequence, the workers did not have the information they needed to perform their work in a safe manner.

Westario Power Inc. pleaded guilty to failing to provide the information, instruction and supervision required to protect the health and safety of a worker.

The fine was imposed by Justice George Brophy. In addition to the fine, the court imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.

Enbridge Gas Distribution Inc., a Toronto natural gas distributor, was fined $50,000 for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act after a fire at a worksite.

On Sept. 30, 2009, workers were installing a new section of natural gas pipe inside the company's Lisgar Gate Pressure Regulating Station in Mississauga. The workers noticed natural gas leaking from a previously installed section of pipe and the site was evacuated. Shortly afterwards, the natural gas ignited, resulting in a fire. Nobody was injured.

Enbridge Gas Distribution Inc. pleaded guilty to failing to take the reasonable precaution of ensuring that acceptable fabrication practices were used.

In July 2011, the contractor on the project, Robert B. Somerville Co. Limited, pleaded guilty to a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act and was fined $50,000.

The fine was imposed by Justice of the Peace Michael Barnes. In addition to the fine, the court imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.

Triple M Metal Corp., a Brampton company that recycles metal, was fined $75,000 for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act after a worker was injured.

On May 25, 2010, at the company's facility in Hamilton, a worker was using a torch to cut a railcar coupling. The coupling contained a cylinder that held compressed hydraulic fluids. The torch pierced the cylinder, allowing the hydraulic fluids to escape and ignite. The worker suffered second and third degree burns.

A Ministry of Labour investigation found that the company's procedures to identify hazardous materials failed to ensure that objects containing compressed hydraulic fluids were not cut using torches.

Triple M Metal Corp. pleaded guilty to failing take the reasonable precaution of having a safe procedure to ensure that objects being cut contained no hazardous materials.

The fine was imposed by Justice of the Peace Hugh Brown. In addition to the fine, the court imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.
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