10:47 am, Monday 9 January, 2012

NT WorkSafe has ordered a mining company to clean up the site of a train derailment in the Edith River, north of Katherine.

About 1,200 tonnes of the toxic mineral ore copper concentrate was washed from a freight train into the river during a flash flood last week.

WorkSafe says the material is a health and environmental hazard.

It issued the direction pursuant to section 51 of the Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road and Rail (National Uniform Legislation) Act, which directs the company, as the consignor of the copper concentrate, to remove it and to urgently facilitate the clean-up of the site.

It has given the company until the end of the month to transport any remaining material to the South Australian border.

The Company has been given special permission to transport the ore in tarpaulin covered wagons, even though this practice is now banned.

WorkSafe says the rules have been relaxed so the copper concentrate can be quickly taken to the South Australian border.

It says it is worried wet season rain and storms will wash the remaining ore into the river.

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10:19 am, Thursday 25 August, 2011

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10:01 am, Thursday 25 August, 2011

The Environmental Protection Agency has fined two contaminated soil to sites where houses were to be built.

The companies were each fined $6000 dollars for taking truckloads of contaminated soil from a former service station in Strathfieldsaye, near Bendigo, and depositing it at two properties in Emu Creek and Junourton.

EPA Victoria’s north west regional manager Tim Eaton said it was well known in the industry that former petrol stations were contaminated and that they were “notorious for hydrocarbon contamination”.

“It was probably contaminated with petrol from leaking tanks over many decades,’’ Mr Eaton said.

You could certainly smell the petrol in the soil.’’

The soil was then used as ‘‘clean’’ landfill at two separate residential building sites where house were to be built.

“Sixteen piles of soil were seen at one of the properties by EPA investigators, who were tipped off about the incident from a community complainant.

Mr Eaton said the dumping was carried out in blatant disregard of the law.

“This sort of behaviour is not tolerated and this incident should serve as a warning to operators that those who break the law will be caught.”

The environmental regulators ordered that 30 truckloads of the contaminated soil be removed to an industrial waste site at Bacchus Marsh landfill.

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11:23 am, Tuesday 19 July, 2011

A gas installation which left a man blinded has resulted in two companies being fined a total of $155,000 by the NSW Industrial Court.

The incident occurred at a welding facility in Yagoona, in western Sydney in October 2006.

A 63-year-old shift supervisor was badly injured after a high-pressure gas hose fitting came loose.

The man was switching over the gas lines when an explosion occurred and he was struck in the face and head.

He sustained multiple skull and facial fractures and lost his sight in both eyes.

A WorkCover investigation found that two companies, being a welding company and a company which installs and maintains fluid gas equipment, had each failed to carry out appropriate safety protocols.

The NSW Industrial Court found the gas company fitted the wrong kind of hose, while the welding company failed to carry out a risk assessment.

The gas company was fined $95,000 and the welding company $60,000.

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07:40 am, Wednesday 20 October, 2010

Workplace Health and Safety Queensland is reminding businesses of the amendments to the Workplace Health and Safety Regulation 2008 and the Dangerous Goods Safety Management Regulation 2001

The hazardous substance and dangerous goods legislation.

This development affects all chemical products imported, prepared for export, or manufactured in Queensland.

Other key amendments are in connection with:

* the application of asbestos regulations to buildings previously not covered by local government approval;
* extending the rural exemption for high risk and crane occupations);
* extending the transition period for adoption of the national units of competency and national assessment instruments for high risk work for another 12 months;
* updating references to Australian Standards;
* development of a new competency option for underwater diving work.

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06:14 pm, Tuesday 7 September, 2010

An investigation is underway following exposure of a worker to hazardous fumes in Darwin yesterday morning.

Northwern Territory WorkSafe is looking into the incident where the worker inhaled a noxious odour, which took place in the premises of a shipping company at Lindsay Street.

Police said the worker was cleaning a container at the work site when he became nauseous.

The man was apparently alone in the area.

He was later taken to a clinic for check-up.

Police said the fumes could have been caused by magnesium phosphate – a pesticide used in shipping containers.

A section of the street was closed for around half an hour while the substance was being removed.

According to police, tests are being conducted to determine the exact nature of the hazardous substance.

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03:29 pm, Monday 26 July, 2010

Operations at the zinc works in Hobart have been halted on Thursday morning after a power surge triggered a plant shutdown.

Reseidents in the plant’s vicinity said they saw steam and  smoke coming from the smelter about 7am.

One worker was affected by sulphur dioxide gas escaping from the plant. He was taken to a hospital as precaution.

Operations at the smelter resumed later in the day.

The cause of the power loss is currently being investigated, the company’s general manager said.

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01:13 pm, Wednesday 16 June, 2010

A factory at East Arm in Darwin has been chemical spill.

Emergency crews cleared the factory just before 4pm.

While several people were taken to the hospital for assessment, no injuries were reported.

“They’re apparently dangerous,” Duty Superintendent Louise Jorgenson said about the chemicals.

She said the hazardous substances involved are styrene and bondo body filler.

“It’s only 120 litres [but] the immediate area has been evacuated.

“There’s about 15 people who are being assessed by St Johns.

“There’s no apparent injuries but the area has been secured.”

She said WorkSafe is investigating if any OHS standards were breached.

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11:18 am, Wednesday 2 June, 2010

A nuclear facility whistleblower has received the backing of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) chief, who said the informant was “absolutely correct” to raise serious safety concerns at the site.

The 55-year-old whistleblower, who worked as a reactor operator at the south Sydney facility for 28 years, was indefinitely suspended last year for alleged workplace bullying.

He claims the suspension was due to his probe on the safety issues at the radiopharmaceutical production facility.

“If you don’t follow the safety procedures and investigate the accidents, somebody is going to pay the ultimate price one day,” the man said in an ABC interview.

In August 2008, an employee at the facility dropped a vial containing radioactive matter in a containment cell. An incident report was not filed until after several hours.

“We started investigating and the more we investigated the more we couldn’t understand because it was such a massive dose,” he said.

“None of our instruments could measure it – it was way off scale. We cleaned up everything and we still couldn’t get the dose down.”

He revealed a worker received a substantial dose of radiation from the hazardous material.

He also claimed the organisation’s follow-up of the incident was insufficient; more than a year had passed after the affected employee received an offer to get medical and psychological support.

The ANSTO head said in a Senate hearing on Monday that “while there were management deficiencies at the time, there were no attempts to cover up this incident or not report it at any time.”

“Importantly, in that discussion and the matters that he raised did not change ANSTO’s view of its findings in its investigation,” he said.

He told the Senate inquiry substantial changes to the operations at the facility have been made after the 2008 incident.

“There has been a change in approach, there’s been an improvement in incident reporting, there has been an improvement in the close-out of the investigations and there’s better tracking of the actions,” he said.

The ANSTO chief also conceded the whistleblower had done the right thing.

“I think he was absolutely correct in his position as an HSR [Health and Safety Representative] to raise it internally which he did and I applaud that… I certainly believe those actions were very solid,” he said.

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05:47 pm, Monday 19 April, 2010

The Northern Territory Government has announced an inquiry on Friday after a video showing chemical sludge in Darwin’s port became public.

A video by ABC had shown big black plume in the water and sludge on the wharf.

There is a concern that the copper concentrate coming from the port may wash into the city’s harbour. Darwin’s port has an open-sided conveyor belt, and when the concentrate is transferred to a ship, it is possible that some of it will spill onto the wharf.

It is a serious issue, according to Dr Stuart Blanch of the Environment Centre.

“Copper concentrate is a cocktail of nasty chemicals,” he said.

“Copper, arsenic, silica, uranium: all of them have impacts on human health and the environment.

Glen Williams, a Maritime Union of Australia organiser , said they have been asking for the conveyor belt to be covered for 18 months.

“The level of containment down there of the product is clearly not adequate,” he said.

“We have been calling for some time to have the loader fully enclosed to reduce – not completely – but I’m sure that you would reduce spillage and the dust being blown all over the wharf, if we had a fully contained and concealed conveyor system.”

Mr Williams said its members have also raised concerns over manganese and iron ore.

“It’s not only the copper concentrate that is the issue – you have got iron ore and manganese being trucked down from the stockpile area,” he said.

“While copper concentrate is the nastiest product down there, I don’t think it would be very good for your health working around that wharf area with iron ore dust blowing around and you are breathing that in.”

The Port Corporation said it will cooperate with Government authorities in the investigations, and has already made steps to address some of the issues.

The Country Liberals’ Peter Styles has called out WorkSafe to ask serious questions about the port’s safety procedures.

“What procedures were put in place in relation to this particular product being moved from train to storage and into ships?” he said.

“Those particular standard operating procedures should be investigated to ensure that the people who work in that environment are protected and not exposed to some of the carcinogenics that are involved in this particular copper concentrate.”

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