Vancouver Island Safety Conference: Managing Risk—empowering good decisions

Geraldine Manson, Snuneymuxw Elder, and Elder in Residence at Vancouver Island University, welcomed delegates at the 13th annual Vancouver Island Safety Conference to the traditional, unceeded territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation. …Rob Moonen, CEO of the BC Forest Safety Council (BCFSC), said he wanted to provide delegates with information about some of the industry accomplishments and some of the challenges in safety. Rob said the overall injury rate for harvesting in 2017 was the second lowest on record outside of 2009 (year of financial crisis and record low harvest levels). …Speaking from the heart, Minister Bains shared how he had worked at a Canfor sawmill and understood the many is- sues industry faces. He said that there had been both challenges and opportunities about health and safety at his time at the mill.