Quarry operators on notice to improve safety performance
A quarry operator in the Darling Downs region has been fined $45,000 for failing to discharge its obligation to ensure that risk to workers at the quarry was at an acceptable level.
Charges were commenced in the Toowoomba Industrial Magistrates Court following an incident in 2020 where a worker at the quarry was injured when his left arm became entangled in the tail drum/pulley of a belt conveyor.
Chief Inspector of the Mineral Mines and Quarries Inspectorate, Hermann Fasching, said that any instance of a quarry or mine failing to prevent their workers from being exposed to serious harm is unacceptable.
“The injury in this case was completely preventable and should never have happened,” he said.
“If you have plant and equipment on your site you need to ensure that it is appropriately guarded and must be isolated and locked out before working on it."
Mr Fasching said that this incident was not an isolated incident and that the Minerals Mines and Quarries inspectorate had identified similar causal factors at other Queensland quarry sites during audits and investigations in the last two years.
“We will continue to stop work at quarries where controls are not effective to protect workers,” he said.
The case was prosecuted by the Work Health and Safety Prosecutor.
Last updated: 14 Dec 2021
