Safe Quarry - Health and Safety Authority

PART 2 SAFETY AND HEALTH MANAGEMENT
5. GENERAL DUTIES OF OPERATOR
(Regulation 9)
9.
(1) The operator shall, so far as is reasonably
practicable, ensure that -
(a) the quarry and any machinery, tool or other
article used at work there are, as appropriate,
selected, designed, constructed, installed,
equipped, commissioned, protected, operated
and maintained in such a way that persons at
work can perform the work assigned to them
without endangering the safety, health and
welfare of themselves or others,
(b) if any of the articles referred to in
subparagraph (a) is located in an area of the
quarry within which risk of fire or explosion
from ignition of gas, vapour or volatile liquid
exists, or is likely to exist, that article is -
(i) suitable for use in that particular area, and
(ii) if necessary, fitted with suitable protective
devices and fail-safe systems,
(c) mechanical equipment and plant at the
quarry is of adequate strength and free from
patent defect and suitable for the purpose
for which it is intended, and
(d) electrical equipment and plant at the quarry
is of sufficient capacity for the purpose for
which it is intended.
(2) The operator shall ensure, as regards that
quarry, that -
(a) work is planned taking into account the
elements of the safety statement that
concern the risks of falls, movements or slips
of ground and, in particular, that -
(i) the height and slope of overburden
2 “Competent person” is defined in Section 2(2) of the Safety,
Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 as follows -
“(2) (a) For the purposes of the relevant statutory provisions, a
person is deemed to be a competent person where, having
regard to the task he or she is required to perform and taking
account of the size or hazards (or both of them) of the undertaking
or establishment in which he or she undertakes work,
the person possesses sufficient training,experience and knowledge
appropriate to the nature of the work to be undertaken.
(b) Account shall be taken,as appropriate,for the purposes of
paragraph (a) of the framework of qualifications referred to
in the Qualifications (Education and Training) Act 1999.”
stripping and extraction faces is appropriate
to the nature and stability of the ground
and the methods of working,
(ii) benches and haul roads are stable enough
for the plant used and are constructed and
maintained in such a way that plant can be
moved safely,
(iii) before the start or restart of work, stripping
and extraction faces above work areas or
haul roads are checked for loose ground or
rocks and scaling is carried out where
necessary, and
(iv) faces and tips are not worked in such a way
that instability is created,
(b) it is organised so as -
(i) to provide adequate protection against
hazards,
(ii) to be kept in good order, with any hazardous
substances or deposits removed, and
(iii) not to endanger the safety and health of
persons at work,
(c) workstations are designed and constructed
according to ergonomic principles taking
into account the need for persons at work to
carry out their work safely and without risk
to health at their workstations,
(d) a sufficient number of persons with the
requisite competence to perform the tasks
assigned to them are present,
(e) where a workstation is occupied by a person
on his or her own, the necessary supervision
or means of communication is provided, and
(f) in the event of the permanent cessation of
quarrying operations there, the quarry is left,
so far as is reasonably practicable, in a safe
condition.
The operator is in overall control of the quarry.Most
of the statutory duties fall on the operator.
As outlined in Section 2 (the owner) the person
entitled to work the quarry,if competent ,could and,
in the majority of cases, would be the operator. In
any other circumstances,he or she must appoint the
operator, normally a company, in writing.
There can only be one operator for each quarry, and
it is very important that this role is clearly allocated.
SAFE QUARRY GUIDELINES TO THE SAFETY, HEALTH AND WELFARE AT WORK (QUARRIES) REGULATIONS 2008 15