Mining is an occupation fraught with many dangers. This is particularly the case where mining operations take place underground, which in some cases may be several kilometres underground. The Wankie Number Two Colliery disaster of 1972 is remembered every year on June 6. A total of 426 miners, 423 of whom remain buried in the collapsed mine, died after a series of underground explosions occurred there.
That was an immense tragedy involving hundreds of deaths at the large coal mine. However, it is not uncommon to read of deaths in smaller mines, often where a few individuals have decided to go down into a disused mine in search of gold or something else of value.
Mining requires extreme caution and the observance of safety regulations designed to minimise the dangers inherent in mining and ensure the safety of miners.
The Mining (Management and Safety) Regulations, 1990, contained in Statutory Instrument 109 of 1990 and made in terms of Section 427 of the Mines and Minerals Act, contain detailed regulations that apply to all mines.
The regulations deal with the responsibilities of managers and owners, surface protection, protection in working places, shafts, outlets of underground mines to the surface, ventilation, gases, dust, mine surveying, coal mines and fiery mines, winding, underground vehicles, raising and lowering people out of and into the mine, machinery, boilers, compressors and pressure vessels, elevators and electrical apparatus.
They also set out the powers and duties of inspectors and the procedures to be followed in the event of an accident.
The Zimbabwe National Occupational Safety and Health Policy identifies 21 occupational safety and health issues which every organisation or individual involved with mining should pay special attention to and monitor.
The first is an Environmental Impact Assessment. Mining which can have a huge negative impact on the environment and on the safety of communities around the mine.
The second is a Hazard and Operability Study (HAZOP). HAZOP is a structured and systematic examination of a planned process or operation to identify and evaluate problems that may involve risks to personnel or equipment, or prevent efficient operations. It is used across a wide spectrum of industries.
Mine decommission plans are also listed among the issues that require special attention. Decommissioned mines can pose a safety and health risk after their decommissioning, if adequate precautions are not taken.
They can be a danger to those who live near it or pass by it or those who are tempted to reopen a shaft or explore it.
Ground support and ground conditions require special attention and monitoring. As miners dig shafts deep into the earth, they need to ensure that the ground above is properly supported, so it does not collapse on them.
Underground ventilation and cooling is particularly important. Without adequate ventilation, miners could have difficulty breathing underground or succumb to some of the gases often found in mines.
Working in confined spaces is another problem miners often have to deal with that carries with it risks to safety and health. Working at heights is another.
Dust suppression is important in mines. If not suppressed the dust may be inhaled by miners and this can cause health problems.
Pneumoconiosis, which is a restrictive lung disease, can be caused by the inhalation <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inhalation> of dust. It is an occupational disease that often occurs in mines.
Pneumoconiosis is one of the health issues that the national occupational safety and health policy mentions as needing to be paid special attention to and monitored by organisations and individuals involved in mining.
The other health conditions the policy specifically mentions are tuberculosis, hepatitis B and HIV and AIDS.
Lighting, heat, noise and vibration are other potential safety and health hazards. Lighting needs to be installed underground and miners need miner’s lamps to be able to see what they are doing. The form of lighting and any wiring involved can itself be a danger. The Mining (Management and Safety) regulations stipulate the permissible voltage for underground lighting.
They also include provisions for ensuring the supply of electricity to electrical circuits can be cut off to prevent danger and will be automatically cut off in the event of a fault or overload.
Mine flooding is another danger that those involved in mining need to be aware of. Other dangers to the safety of miners include the risk of fires and explosions and the risk that maybe posed by gases.
Due to the many inherent risks there are in mining, it is important for due attention to be given to emergency preparedness and responses to emergencies that may occur.
Procedures to be followed in the event of an emergency should be put in place that all those working on the mine are aware of.
Ionizing radiation and chemicals may also pose dangers to the health of those working on mines. Special care is required in the handling and storage of chemicals.
Other issues listed in the national occupational safety and health policy document as requiring special attention by those involved in mining are housekeeping and waste management.
The mining sector is a major contributor to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) and offers huge employment opportunities.
The national occupational safety and health policy recognises this but warns that mining is generally a hazardous economic activity requiring stringent occupational safety and health systems.
The more hazardous an occupation is the more stringent must be the safeguards and occupational safety and health systems put in place.
Mining is by its nature hazardous and so requires strict adherence to safety regulations and procedures in order to ensure the safety of those engaged in it.
Talking Social Security is published weekly by the National Social Security Authority as a public service. There is also a weekly radio programme on social security, PaMheponeNssa/Emoyeni le NSSA, at 6.50pm every Thursday on Radio Zimbabwe and Friday on National FM. Readers can e-mail issues they would like dealt with in this column to mail@mhpr.co.zw or text them to 0772-307913. Those with individual queries should contact their local NSSA office or telephone NSSA on (04) 706523/5, 706545/9, or 799030/1.