Safety Publications

Safety Publications

Rainfall Shutdown Procedures – Overview for Licensees

Hazardous geotechnical processes are more likely to occur under some environmental conditions than others. Specifically, many mass movement processes, such as landslides and debris flows, occur when the ground is unusually wet, and slope instability is elevated. As part of their duty to ensure worker safety, Licensees have responsibilities to make sure workers are aware of the risks and have a plan to respond. One might ask why a Rainfall Shutdown Procedure is necessary now, if one has not been needed in the past. In a world of changing weather, think of it as a seat belt. As a safe driver, you may have never needed it to save your life, but when the unexpected happens, you sure appreciate you have it. Having a simple process to monitor rainfall and to train crews in recognizing when conditions are changing for the worse can save lives. Read more here.

Rainfall Shutdown & Resumption Procedures

Forest tenure holders/Licensees must provide and maintain their land and premises used as a workplace in a manner that ensures the health and safety of workers. This includes direct employees as well as contractors who are working on their behalf. One of the obligations is to ensure that there is effective rainfall shutdown and resumption procedures in place, not only on active work sites but also on the travel routes to and from these sites. This is particularly important given recent rain fall triggered landslide events within BC which have resulted in workers being injured or killed. These events are getting more common place, leading to increased importance for having these procedures in place. Read more here.

Making safety part of good community relations

In all cases, safety is a top priority that licence holders should keep in mind. When those activities occur on the tenure area, the licence holder has, at a minimum, safety accountabilities as the site owner. Even when legal duties are ambiguous, upholding community interests includes the social responsibility to do what you can to minimize the risk of anyone getting hurt. This bulletin gives valuable suggestions for how to incorporate community safety into the work of building and maintaining good relationships with neighbours on and off the community forest.  read more

Weather Related Worker Safety Issues

British Columbia is experiencing the effects of climate change: temperatures are increasing, sea levels are rising, and variable and extreme weather is becoming more frequent. Specifically, as Owners, Woodlot Licensees and Community Forest Agreement holders, must provide and maintain the land and premises in a safe manner. The owner must know, control, and communicate any health and safety concerns at or near the workplace, that could result in a person being harmed by a condition or use of the workplace. The owner must also ensure a plan is in place to address the hazards. read more

 

Management of Prime Contractor requirements and the Mitigation of Corporate Liabilities Related to WorkSafe BC Legislation

The complex nature of the Prime Contractor process and the common misunderstandings related to its application can have implications for worker safety and lead to Woodlot Licence and Community Forest Agreement holders being exposed to potential liabilities.  Often, these liability risks are tied to the omission or execution of some key aspect of the Prime Contractor process.  The process controls, identified in the document, aid the Owner in confirming and recording information related to contractor qualifications, identification of Owner and Prime Contractor responsibilities, the transfer of site plan and hazard information and ongoing communication.

This document summarizes actions required by the owner to address worker safety and mitigate risks related to safety incidents or violations of safety legislation.

Management of Prime Contractor requirements can be found here

 

Templates for Development of a Safety Plan

In BC, each community forest licensee has a responsibility to have a safety plan in place to guide forest management activities on their tenure area.  Recognizing that tenure holders manage those operations in a range of ways, the Woodlot Licence and Community Forest Agreement Safety Committee of the BC Forest Safety Council has developed three safety plan templates based on the type of work being conducted and who is doing the work. Each template provides guidance and resources (checklists, example forms, links) that will help community forest agreement holders build a new safety plan or enhance their existing program.  If you are interested in becoming SAFE Certified, these templates will also assist you in pursuing that objective.

Templates can be found here

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