Coal Mining Occupational Health and Safety Regulations (SOR/90-97)

157 All openings to any underground area that is not being worked or developed shall be

• (a) stopped off; and

• (b) posted with a warning sign that states “DO NOT ENTER” and “ENTRÉE INTERDITE”.

PART VIPlans

Pre-development Requirements

• 158 (1) The employer shall submit to the Coal Mining Safety Commission for approval a notice in writing of the employer’s intention to carry out any of the following activities in a coal mine, at least 90 days before beginning any of those activities, namely,

  • (a) the development, construction or alteration of a portion of a coal mine;

  • (b) the introduction or alteration of mining methods or technology;

  • (c) the use of new methods of construction, operation or installation of equipment;

  • (d) the introduction or alteration of any main fan, booster fan, machine, equipment or instrument;

  • (e) the introduction or alteration of transportation equipment or a transportation system for employees or materials;

  • (f) the construction underground of a bulkhead, dam or permanent stopping;

  • (g) the construction of a tailing dam, a water storage reservoir or a structure above ground for the storage of explosives;

  • (h) the introduction of any electrical equipment or electrical system that has not been previously approved, or the alteration of any electrical equipment or electrical system; or

  • (i) the bulk transportation of explosives.

• (2) The notice referred to in subsection (1) shall contain pertinent detailed drawings, plans and specifications.

• (3) Where the drawings, plans and specifications referred to in subsection (2) are in respect of a submarine area, they shall indicate

  • (a) the mining method to be used;

  • (b) the area from which coal is to be extracted;

  • (c) sections of the strata between the sea bottom and the workings;

  • (d) the location of any faults or other geological disturbances; and

  • (e) the calculated strain on the sea bottom.

• (4) For the purposes of subsection (3), a submarine area includes an area below any body of water or material that may flow.

Strata Control Systems

• 159 (1) The employer shall prepare a plan of strata control for any proposed underground workings of a coal mine that is designed to prevent the collapse of the roof and sides of those workings.

• (2) A copy of the plan referred to in subsection (1) shall be posted at every meeting station in such a manner that it is readily available for examination by employees.

Mine Survey Plans

• 160 (1) A mine surveyor shall prepare a plan of the coal mine using a scale of not less than 1:2,500.

• (2) The plan referred to in subsection (1) shall identify

  • (a) the name of the coal mine;

  • (b) the date of all surveys of that coal mine carried out by a mine surveyor;

  • (c) the boundaries of the coal mine;

  • (d) all working faces, shafts, rooms, pillars, longwall sections, meeting stations and passageways;

  • (e) the position, direction and extent of every fault and the displacement of the fault;

  • (f) the direction and rate of dip of the coal seam;

  • (g) the depth of every shaft;

  • (h) the elevation of the floor of the coal seams and roadways at intervals of 30 m;

  • (i) vertical sections of each coal seam;

  • (j) the airways and direction of air flow;

  • (k) roadways;

  • (l) barriers between adjacent coal mines in the same seam; and

  • (m) all stoppings.

• (3) A mine surveyor shall prepare additional plans of the coal mine to show details of

  • (a) the ventilation system, including airways and airway crossings, doors, air ducts, brattice sheets, stoppings, methane drainage pipes and holes, auxiliary fans and booster fans;

  • (b) compressed air lines;

  • (c) the water circuit, including the position of hydrants, stop valves and tanks and the diameter of the pipes;

  • (d) the electrical equipment and control devices, including cables, substations, pump rooms, telephones and environmental monitoring equipment;

  • (e) roadways and manholes; and

  • (f) the transportation system for employees and materials.

• (4) The plan referred to in subsection (1) and the additional plans referred to in subsection (3) shall be brought up to date as of January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1 of every year and a copy of the up-to-date plans shall be submitted to a safety officer at the district office not later than on the 20th day of the month for which they are brought up to date.

• (5) A copy of the plans and the additional plans, brought up to date in accordance with subsection (4), shall be posted at the lamp house.

Notices of Closure

• 161 (1) At least 90 days before closing a coal mine or any portion of a coal mine, the employer shall submit a notice of the employer’s intention by registered mail to the Coal Mining Safety Commission.

• (2) The notice referred to in subsection (1) shall be accompanied by a plan of the coal mine prepared in accordance with subsection 160(1) and revised to show the boundaries of the mine and the limits of all workings as they exist on the day the notice is mailed.

• (3) At the time when a coal mine or a portion of a coal mine is closed, the employer shall submit to the Coal Mining Safety Commission, by registered mail, a final plan of the coal mine or portion of the coal mine as it exists on the day of closure.

PART VIIHazardous Occurrences

Application

161.1 This Part does not apply in respect of occurrences of harassment and violence in the work place.

Reports by Employees

162 Where an employee becomes aware of an accident or other occurrence arising in the course of or in connection with the employee’s work that has caused or is likely to cause injury to that employee or to any other person, the employee shall, without delay, report the accident or other occurrence to the employer, orally or in writing.

Investigations

163 Where an employer becomes aware of an accident, occupational disease or other hazardous occurrence affecting any of the employees in the course of employment, the employer shall, without delay,

• (a) appoint a qualified person to carry out an investigation of the hazardous occurrence;

• (b) notify the safety and health committee or the safety and health representative, if any, of the hazardous occurrence and of the name of the person appointed to investigate it; and

• (c) take necessary measures to prevent a recurrence of the hazardous occurrence.

Reports by Employer

• 164 (1) Where a hazardous occurrence referred to in section 163 results in a death, a fire or an explosion, the employer shall forthwith report the hazardous occurrence to a safety officer at the district office by telephone or telex.

• (2) The employer shall submit a written report to a safety officer at the district office of any hazardous occurrence referred to in section 163 that had one of the following results, as soon as possible but not later than 48 hours after becoming aware of that result, namely,

  • (a) an injury for which a person is hospitalized;

  • (b) a death;

  • (c) a fire or an explosion; or

  • (d) damage to a hoist, ventilation system or other equipment that is essential to the safety or health of employees.

• (3) The employer shall, as soon as the investigation referred to in paragraph 163(a) is completed, submit a written report of the findings of the investigation to a safety officer at the district office.

165 Where the employer becomes aware of an emergency or an unusual dangerous condition in the mine, the employer shall, without delay, report the emergency or condition and any action the employer has taken or proposes to take in respect thereof to a safety officer at the district office by telephone.

166 The employer shall, not later than on the 15th day of every month, submit to a safety officer at the district office a written report of all accidents, occupational diseases and other hazardous occurrences referred to in section 163 that occurred in the previous month.

PART VIIIEntering a Closed Mine

167 If an employer proposes to enter a mine that has been closed but does not intend to significantly disturb the ground, the employer shall, in accordance with paragraph 125(1)(v) of the Act, adopt and implement a safety code that contains information relevant to the health and safety of employees entering the mine and that is approved by the Senior Director, Occupational Health and Safety and Injury Compensation.

168 The Senior Director, Occupational Health and Safety and Injury Compensation, shall approve the safety code if

• (a) it is filed at least 30 days before the proposed day of entry into the mine;

• (b) it contains provisions having substantially the same purpose and effect as these Regulations; and

• (c) it includes

  • (i) the name and geographical location of the proposed entry,

  • (ii) a description of the work to be done and its duration,

  • (iii) a description of safety and control measures that will be used when entering the mine, including a description of

    • (A) how

      • (I) the mine will be ventilated,

      • (II) ground control will be managed,

      • (III) electrical and mechanical safety will be ensured, and

      • (IV) water will be handled,

    • (B) mine rescue resources and communication,

    • (C) air quality and air quantity testing in the ventilated part, and

    • (D) the type of personal protective equipment that will be used,

  • (iv) a list of equipment to be used,

  • (v) a description of the health and safety responsibilities of the employer and the employees,

  • (vi) a list of individuals who will be entering the mine, and

  • (vii) a description of how the mine will be sealed.

169 Sections 4 to 166 do not apply to employment in a mine that is entered after having been closed if the employer has adopted and implemented the safety code referred to in section 167 and as long as the employer does not significantly disturb the ground.