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Mine Health and Safety Act, 1996 (Act No. 29 of 1996)

Guideline for a Mandatory Code of Practice

Occupational Health Programme on Thermal Stress

Part A. The Guideline

1. Foreword

 

1.1 In an attempt to address matters affecting the health and safety of workers in the South African mining industry, the MHSC established a tripartite sub-committee under the auspices of the MOHAC. The MOHAC found it necessary, in order to address these matters, to draft a guideline for a mandatory COP on thermal stress.

 

1.2 Significant risks to the health of employees in the mining industry exist. In order to protect, monitor and promote the health status of employees, an occupational health programme is required where exposure to such significant risks occurs. The MOHAC considered it appropriate to prepare a guideline covering both occupational hygiene and medical surveillance, to ensure compliance to the requirements of the MHSA and to bring about uniformity of health standards in the South African mining industry.

 

1.3 Where the risk assessment of employers indicates a need to establish and maintain either a system of occupational hygiene measurements or a system of medical surveillance, or where regulation(s) required either of the systems, the employer must prepare and implement a COP based on this guideline.

 

1.4 Thermal stress management is a multifaceted approach to promote worker health and safety through minimizing human thermal stress and the incidence of heat or cold disorders.

 

1.5 Occupational thermal exposure is a health and safety hazard of no uncertain dimensions and typically has to be dealt with through strategies that embrace environmental engineering, administrative controls and personal protection. This scenario finds application in most South African mines and associated surface operations. The fundamental perspective to retain is that source control through engineering means it represents the primary strategy, irrespective of the hazard in question (refer to Part C, paragraph 7.1). Conversely, personal protection is not a convenient alternative to source control. At best, it merely serves as an interim cost effective expedient.

 

1.6 This guideline assists employers with the establishment of an occupational health programme, but does not stipulate specific requirements for specific circumstances. It sets out a basic system for managing the risks to health. The first component of any management system is finding out what the situation is, and secondly deciding what to do about it.