The Western Australian Government is seeking feedback on proposed safety reforms including the Work Health & Safety (Mines) Regulations.
Public comment on the proposed regulations will close on the 26th of November.
The Regulator said that there are some special features of the proposed conceptual regulations.
- One being the jurisdiction where these regulations will apply;
- The second is that there is an intention to minimise prescription; and
- The third as the prescription is minimised that will be replaced mine safety management systems.
There is also proposed changed to certain approvals to be obtained from the State Mining Engineer and to replace those approvals with a range of notifications.
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The Regulator has foreshadowed changes to statutory positions. It said that “our experience shows complying with some of these requirements is little too rigid and complex so we have tried to simplify these”
Significant changes likely to affect mines include that some operations associated with the primary function of the mine will be considered as mining operations despite being off the mining lease. This is likely to include exploration, extraction, processing, handling and transport which may be associated with mining operations. The definition of mining operations in the new proposed regulations will have more flexibility than in the current regulatory framework.
The Department said the new proposed regulations will be more ‘outcome based’ but some specific operations will remain prescriptive.
You can find out more by visiting the DMIRS Website or watch the video below.
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