British Columbia Order in Council — Order under Mines, s (O.C. 646/2022)

O.C. 646/2022

British Columbia — Orders in Council

PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA ORDER OF THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR IN COUNCIL Order in Council No. , Approved and Ordered Lieutenant Governor Executive Council Chambers, Victoria Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation Presiding Member of the Executive Council (This

part is for administrative purposes only and is not part of the Order.) Authority under which Order is made: Act and section: Mines Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 293, s. 34 (6) Other: O40627096 page 1 of 12 On the recommendation of the undersigned, the Lieutenant Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Executive Council, orders that, (

a) subject to paragraph (b), the amendments to the Health, Safety and Reclamation Code for Mines in British Columbia, as prepared by the Health, Safety and Reclamation Committee and set out in the attached Schedule, are approved, and (

b) effective May 1, 2023, approval is given to

section 2.11.9 (5) of the Health, Safety and Reclamation Code for Mines in British Columbia, as enacted by

section 18 of the amendments referred to in paragraph (a). 646 November 30, 2022

page 2 of 12

SCHEDULE 1 The definition

section of the Health, Safety and Reclamation Code for Mines in British Columbia is amended (

a) by adding the following definition: “autonomous” means designed to perform the full job cycle without operator interaction or direct control by a person; , (

b) in the definition of “deleterious substance” by striking out “ man” and substituting “humans”, (

c) in the definition of “dust exposure occupation” by striking out “ his” and substituting “the person’s”, (

d) by repealing the definition of “health professional” and substituting the following: “health professional” means a person registered in a health profession, as defined in the Health Professions Act , in which a person exercises skill or judgment or provides a service related to (

a) the preservation or improvement of the health of individuals, or (

b) the treatment or care of individuals who are injured, sick, disabled or infirm;”, (

e) in the definition of “qualified professional” by striking out “ his or her ” and substituting “the individual’s”, (

f) by repealing the two

definitions of “soil” and substituting the following: “soil” means the naturally occurring, unconso lidated mineral or organic material above bedrock that is capable of supporting plant life; , and (

g) by adding the following

definitions: “reportable incident” means an incident referred to in

section 1.7.1; “risk assessment” means a systematic process of ev aluating the potential risks that may be involved in a projected activity or undertaking; “semi-autonomous” means designed to perform a subset of tasks within the full job cycle without operator interaction or direct control by a person; “serious injury” means an injury that can reasonabl y be expected at the time of an incident to endanger life or cause permanent injury; . 2 Sections 1.6.5 and 1.6.6 are repealed. 3

Section 1.6.9 (1) is amended by adding the following paragraph: (c.1) if autonomous or semi-autonom ous mobile tracked or rubber-tired equipment is in use at the mine, safe working procedures for the equipment, .

page 3 of 12 4 The heading preceding

section 1.7.1 and fo llowing

section 1.6.12 is repealed and the following substituted: Reportable Incidents . 5 Sections 1.7.1, 1.7.2 and 1.7.3 are repealed and the following substituted: Reportable Incidents 1.7.1

(1) The following incidents are classified as dangerous occurrences and must be reported in accordance with

section 1.7.2: (

a) an incident that causes serious injury or loss of life; (

b) an incident that had the potential to cause serious injury or loss of life.

(2) In addition to an incident referred to in subsection (1), the following incidents are classified as dangerous occurrences and must be reported in accordance with

section 1.7.2: (

a) unexpected major groundfall, slope failure or subsidence; (

b) unexpected structural failure or collapse of any part of the mine; (

c) for dams or dikes: (

i) unexpected cracking, subsidence, seepage, springs; (ii) loss of freeboard; (iii) washout, structural erosion, or any other deficiency that may adversely affect the integrity of the structure; (

d) equipment going out of control or an unexpected movement of equipment; (

e) unexpected inrush of water, mud, slurry or debris; (

f) unexpected significant inflow or release of explosive, fl ammable, toxic or other dangerous gas, or ignition or explosion of gas or dust; (

g) any of the following if it has the pot ential to cause, or causes, injury to persons or damage to equipment or property: (

i) an incident involving explosives; (ii) outbreak of fire; (iii) an incident involving electrical equipment; (iv) failure of a pressure vessel or boiler; (

v) unintentional contact with a falling object or drilling or other rotational equipment; (vi) exposure to hazardous environmental conditions; (

h) for underground mines, (

i) unexpected cracking, seepage, failure or pressure on a bulkhead, (ii) an incident involving a mine hoisting plant including, without limitation, sheaves, hoisting rope, shaft conveyance, shaft, shaft timber or headframe structure, (iii) unplanned stoppage of the ma in underground ventilation system, or (iv) an underground fire.

page 4 of 12 Notification of a Reportable Incident 1.7.2

(1) In the event of a reportable incident, the manager must (

a) in the case of a reportable incident referred to in

section 1.7.1 (1) (a), within 4 hours of the reportable incident, provide a verbal notification of the incident to an inspector, the manageme nt co-chair and the worker co-chair of the OHSC or their designates and the local union, (

b) within 16 hours of a reportable incident, provide a written notice of the incident to an inspector, the manageme nt co-chair and the worker co-chair of the OHSC or their designates and the local union, and (

c) within 60 days of a reportable inci dent, or within any longer time that may be specified by the chief inspector, submit the investigation report required under

section 1.7.4 (2) to the chief inspector.

(2) The manager must engage with First Nations that may be affected by reportable incidents to determine which reportable in cidents must be reported to the First Nations. Release of a Scene of a Reportable Incident 1.7.3 Subject to any order under

section 15 of the Act, the manager must ensure that, except for the purpose of saving life or relieving human suffering, the scene of a reportable incident is not disturbed without approval of (

a) the OHSC worker representative, (

b) an inspector, or (

c) in the case of an incident resulti ng in loss of life, the chief inspector. 6 The following

section is added: Investigation of a Reportable Incident 1.7.4

(1) The manager must ensure that an inv estigation into every reportable incident is carried out by persons knowledgeable in the type of work and in collaboration with the management co-chair and the worker co-chair of the OHSC or their designates.

(2) On completion of the investigation, the manager must prepare a report, signed by all participants listed in subsection (1), that includes the following: (

a) a description of the incident; (

b) a description of the work conducted at the time and place of the incident; (

c) an identification of the causes of the incident and any unsafe conditions, acts, or procedures which may have contributed to the incident; (

d) an identification of any corrective actions that are necessary to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents, including a projected timeline for implementation of the corrective actions; (

e) any additional information required by the chief inspector.

page 5 of 12 7

Section 1.9.2 is repealed and the following substituted: Health and Safety Reports Monthly Reporting 1.9.2 At the end of each month, the manager must provide (

a) a report of all reported first aid cases to the OHSC and local union or worker representative, and (

b) a report of all reported medical aid cases to the Chief Inspector, the OHSC and local union or worker representative. 8

Section 1.10.1 is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the person”. 9

Section 1.10.3 is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the person’s”. 10

Section 1.10.4 is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the supervisor’s” and by striking out “he/she” and substituting “the supervisor”. 11

Section 1.10.6 is amended (

a) by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the person’s”, and (

b) in subsection (2) by striking out “ him/her” and substituting “the alternate”. 12

Section 1.12.3 (2) is amended by striking out “ foreman” and substituting “foreperson”. 13

Section 1.13.1 is amended by striking out “ chairman” and substituting “chair”. 14

Section 2.2.2 is amended by striking out “ him/her” and substituting “the inspector” and by striking out “his/her” and substituting “the inspector’s”. 15

Section 2.4.2 (3) is amended (

a) in paragraph (

b) by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the person’s”, (

b) in paragraph (

c) by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the person”, and (

c) in paragraph (

d) by striking out “ his/her” in both places and substituting “ the person’s”. 16

Section 2.8.4 is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the person’s” and by striking out “he/she” and substituting “the person”. 17

Section 2.10.1 (3) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the manager”. 18

Section 2.11.9 is repealed and the following substituted: Washroom Facilities 2.11.9

(1) The manager must provide separate washroom facilities for male and female employees.

page 6 of 12

(2) The washroom facilities must be c onveniently located and equipped with (

a) subject to subsection (3), (

i) one toilet and one urinal for every 25 male employees or fraction thereof, and (ii) one toilet for every 9 female employees or fraction thereof, (

b) one wash basin, or equivalent f acility, provided with hot and cold running water for every 15 employees or fraction thereof, (

c) a means for drying hands hygienically, and (

d) adequate heat, light, and ventilation.

(3) Despite subsection (1), for a mine that has 6 employees or less, (

a) the manager must provide at least one universal washroom facility, and (

b) if the manager provides additional w ashroom facilities, some or all of them may be universal washroom facilities.

(4) The washroom facilities must have separate entrances with signs clearly indicating for which gender they have been provided or indicating that they are a universal washroom facility.

(5) With respect to new mines or substa ntial renovations to the permanent washroom area of an existing mine on and after May 1, 2023, in addition to the washroom facilities referred to in subsection (1), for a mine that has more than 6 employees, the manager must provide at least one universal washroom facility. 19

Section 2.11.10 is repealed. 20

Section 2.11.11 is amended by striking out “

section 2.11.10” and substituting “

section 2.11.9 (3)”. 21

Section 2.12.1 is amended (

a) in subsection (1) by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the manager”, and (

b) in subsection (2) by striking out “ him/her” and substituting “the chief inspector”. 22

Section 2.12.3 (1) and (2) is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “ the person’s”. 23

Section 2.12.4 (1) is amended (

a) in paragraph (

a) by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the person”, and (

b) in paragraphs (

b) and (

c) by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the person’s”. 24

Section 2.13.3 (2) and (3) is amended by striking out “ his or her” and substituting “the person’s”. 25

Section 3.1.1 is amended by striking out “ his/her” in both places and substituting “ the person’s”.

page 7 of 12 26

Section 3.1.3 is amended by striking out “ himself/herself” and substituting “ the person”. 27

Section 3.3.1 is amended by striking out “ him/her” and substituting “the manager”. 28

Section 3.8.2 (1) is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the manager’s”. 29

Section 3.13.1 (3) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the employee”. 30

Section 4.1.6 (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the person”. 31

Section 4.3.2 (3) is amended by striking out “ manned” and substituting “crewed”. 32

Section 4.4.15 (2) is amended by striking out “ All manlifts” and substituting “All aerial lifts”. 33

Section 4.6.1 is amended (

a) by repealing subsection (4) and substituting the following:

(4) Mobile diesel-powered equipment must not be left unattende d while the engine is running. , and (

b) by adding the following subsections:

(5) When the operator parks mobile diesel-p owered equipment, there must be a cool down period as established by the OHSC or the manufacturer’s specification.

(6) Subject to subsection (7), when th e operator leaves a piece of diesel-powered equipment the master switch must be turned off.

(7) If autonomous or semi-autonomous tracked or rubber-tired mobile equipment is parked in a designated parking area and the engine or power source is turned off, the master switch may be left on. 34

Section 4.9.13 (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the registered professional engineer”. 35

Section 4.11.1 (1) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the manager”. 36

Section 4.11.3 (2) is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the person’s”. 37

Section 4.11.4 (1) is amended by striking out “ his/her” in both places and substituting “the person’s”. 38

Section 4.11.7 is amended by striking out “ watchman” in both places and substituting “watchperson”, by striking out “ he/she” in all three places and substituting “ the watchperson” and by striking out “his/her” and substituting “the watchperson’s”. 39

Section 4.18.6 (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “ the person” and by striking out “his/her” and substituting “the person’s”.

page 8 of 12 40

Section 4.19.1 is amended by striking out “ his/her” in both places and substituting “the operator’s”. 41

Section 4.19.4 (1) is amended by striking out “ he/she” in both places and substituting “the operator” and by striking out “his/her” and substituting “the operator’s”. 42

Section 4.19.6 (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the operator”. 43

Section 5.5.1 is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the person”. 44

Section 6.4.1 is amended by adding the following subsections:

(3) Subject to subsection (4), work areas containing underground autonomous or semi-autonomous tracked or rubber-tired mobile equipment must be inspected by the shiftboss or supervisor prior to empl oyees entering the work area, or at least once per shift.

(4) In an underground coal mine, the fireboss must conduct the workplace inspections required by subsection (3). 45

Section 6.6.1 is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “ the underground shiftboss’s”. 46

Section 6.7.1 (1) (

b) is amended by striking out “ his or her ” and substituting “ the fireboss’s”. 47

Section 6.16.2 is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the inspector”. 48 The following heading and sec tion are added after

section 6.18.2: Mobile Autonomous and Semi-autonomous Machines Autonomous and Semi-autonomous Machines 6.18.3

(1) Prior to the use of autonomous or semi-autonomous tracked or rubber-tired mobile equipment, the manager must submit to the chief inspector an Autonomous Mining Project Management Plan prepared by a qualified professional.

(2) The plan must contain the following elements, as described in the BC Guideline for Safe Mobile Autonomous Mining: (

a) a detailed risk assessment for the purpose of identifying, assessing and managing hazards; (

b) a

summary of the health and safety plan that includes general safety rules and safe working procedur es for autonomy as required in

section 1.6.9 of this code; (

c) a

summary of the project plan, project milestones and scope; (

d) details on location, access, infrastructure, and equipment; (

e) a

summary of key roles and res ponsibilities associated with the project; (

f) a

summary of system functionality , redundancy, limitations and safety features;

page 9 of 12 (

g) an autonomous or semi-aut onomous mine and operations plan; (

h) an interaction plan for huma n operated equipment and personnel; (

i) a commissioning plan; (

j) maintenance and inspection plan; (

k) training program and competence as sessment for working with and around autonomous and semi-autonomous machine systems as required in

section 1.11.1 and 1.11.2 of this code; (

l) the process for investigating failures; (

m) a Mine Emergency Response Plan as required by

section 3.7.1 of this code; (

n) an assessment of this code to id entify any variances or additional project specific considerations that may be required; (

o) a

summary of critical controls as identified in the risk assessment.

(3) The OHSC must be provided with an opportunity to review and provide comments relating to worker health and safety within the plan and risk assessment, and associated updates as required in subsection (5), prior to submission to the chief inspector.

(4) The manager must implement and adhe re to the plan once the chief inspector confirms that it meets the requirements of this code and is appropriate for the site.

(5) If the manager wants to change th e operational use of autonomous or semi- autonomous tracked or rubber-tired mobile equipment set out in the Autonomous Mining Project Management Plan, the manager (

a) must have an update of the plan prepared by a qualified professional and submit the updated plan to the chief inspector, and (

b) must not make operational changes until the chief inspector confirms that the updated plan meets the requirements of this code. 49 Sections 6.19.1, 6.19.2 and 6.19.3 are repealed and the following substituted: Operator’s Responsibility 6.19.1

(1) The operator of a unit of mobile equipment (

a) is directly responsible for its saf e operation and for maintaining full control of the unit and complying with the Mines Act, the regulations and this code insofar as the operation of the equipment is concerned, and (

b) must wear a seatbelt and drive with the headlights and, where required, a flag equipped whip antenna light or a flashing light on at all times.

(2) A person who enters commands or in puts information into an autonomous or semi-autonomous system that governs th e behavior of tracked or rubber-tired mobile equipment, must do so in a manne r that ensures the safe operation of the equipment and that the system can maintain full control of the mobile equipment.

page 10 of 12 Logbook to be Maintained 6.19.2 The manager must provide and maintain an effective logbook system for each unit of mobile equipment over 7000 kg gross vehicle weight in which the vehicle operator prior to operating of the vehicle, or the qualified person examining the equipment under 6.19.3 (2), (

a) notes the condition, (

b) notes any unsafe conditions, and (

c) in the case of a qualified person ma king repairs, notes any repairs made and if the vehicle is safe to operate. Examination of Equipment 6.19.3

(1) The operator of equipment must exam ine and check the equipment and read the logbook before putting the e quipment into use and, if an unsafe condition is discovered, the operator must not operate the equipment until (

a) repairs have been made, or (

b) a qualified person has assured the ope rator that it is safe to operate the equipment and noted the reason in the logbook.

(2) In the case of autonomous or semi-autonomous tracked or rubber-tired mobile equipment, the manager must (

a) when the unit is serviced, or at a minimum of every 24 operating hours, ensure that a qualified person examines and checks the equipment and reads the logbook, and (

b) if an unsafe condition is discovered, ensure that the equipment is not put into operation until (

i) repairs have been made, or (ii) a qualified person has assured the manager that the equipment is safe to put into operation and noted the reason in the logbook. 50

Section 6.19.5 is amended (

a) by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “ the person’s ” and by striking out “he/she” and substituting “the person”, and (

b) in subsection (2) by striking out “ man” and substituting “person”. 51

Section 6.20.2 is amended by striking out “ he/she” in both places and substituting “the person”. 52

Section 6.20.4 (1) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the driver”. 53

Section 6.25.1 (1) is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the worker’s” and by striking out “he/she” and substituting “the worker”.

page 11 of 12 54

Section 6.25.3 is amended (

a) in subsection (1) by striking out “ manway” and substituting “passageway”, and (

b) in subsection (2) by striking out “ manway” in all three places and substituting “passageway”. 55

Section 6.27.1 is amended by striking out “ manways” and substituting “passageways”. 56 Sections 6.27.2, 6.28.3 and 6.28.4 are amended by striking out “ manway” and substituting “passageway”. 57

Section 6.28.7 is amended by striking out “ manways” and substituting “passageways”. 58

Section 6.28.8 is amended by striking out “ manway” and substituting “passageway”. 59

Section 6.32.2 (4) is amended by striking out “mandoor” and substituting “door”. 60

Section 6.42.3 is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the person’s”. 61

Section 6.42.4 is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the person”. 62

Section 6.42.5 (1) (

b) is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “ the person’s”. 63

Section 7.1.5 (1), (2) (

a) and (

b) and (3) is amended by striking out “ manway” and substituting “passageway”. 64

Section 7.1.7 (1) is amended by striking out “ manway” in all three places and substituting “passageway”. 65

Section 7.1.18 (2) is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the authorized person’s”. 66

Section 7.2.7 is amended (

a) in subsection (1) (

a) by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the operator”, and (

b) in subsection (3) by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the hoist operator’s”. 67

Section 7.8.5 is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the person” and by striking out “his/her” and substituting “the person’s”. 68

Section 7.8.9 (3) (

b) is amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “ the person’s”. 69

Section 7.8.14 is amended (

a) in subsection (2) by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “ the hoist operator’s”, and (

b) in subsection (5) by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the hoist operator”.

page 12 of 12 70

Section 7.8.15 (1) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “ the hoist operator”. 71

Section 7.8.17 (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “ the hoist operator”. 72

Section 7.8.20 (2) (

d) is amended by striking out “ man”. 73

Section 7.8.22 is amended by striking out “ he” and substituting “the hoist operator”. 74

Section 7.9.1 (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “ the hoist operator”. 75

Section 7.9.2 (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “ the hoist operator” and by striking out “his/her” and substituting “the hoist operator’s”. 76 Sections 7.9.21 (3) and 7.9.24 (3) are amended by striking out “ his/her” and substituting “the supervisor’s” and by striking out “he/she” and substituting “the supervisor”. 77 Appendix 7-1 is amended under the heading “ 5 bell RELEASE SIGNAL ” by striking out “his/her” and substituting “the hoist operator’s”. 78

Section 8.2.1 (1) and (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “ the person”. 79

Section 8.2.2 is amended by striking out “ him/her” and substituting “ the blaster” and by striking out “his/her” and substituting “the blaster’s”. 80

Section 8.2.4 is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the applicant”. 81

Section 8.2.5 (2) is amended by striking out “ his/her” in both places and substituting “the blaster’s” and by striking out “he/she” and substituting “the blaster”. 82

Section 8.2.6 is amended by striking out “ his/her opinion ” and substituting “ the manager’s opinion” and by striking out “ his/her duties” and substituting “ the person’s duties”. 83

Section 8.2.7 is amended by striking out “ his/her opinion ” and substituting “ the inspector’s opinion” and by striking out “ his/her duties” and substituting “the holder’s duties”. 84

Section 8.4.5 is amended by striking out “ deckman” and substituting “deck person”. 85

Section 8.6.5 (2) is amended by striking out “ he/she” and substituting “the blaster”. 86

Section 8.10.2 (2) is amended by striking out “ himself/herself” and substituting “ the shiftboss”. 87

Section 8.11.5 (3) is amended by striking out “ himself/herself” and substituting “ the blaster”.

Document details

Collection	British Columbia — Orders in Council
Citation	O.C. 646/2022
Type	order_in_council
Volume / chapter	arc oic 0646 2022
Language	en
Format	pdf
Source	PROVINCIAL
Identifier	ff2bd6c9e22232217cfdbafd948d3906efcd75ee

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