SafetyDataNet.com

1st Annual SafetyDataNet® Rock & Talk Breakup Bash Wrap Up

tthompson — Thu, 09 May 2013 21:04:26 +0000

The 1^st annual SafetyDataNet® Rock & Talk Breakup Bash was a success! We are very pleased with the turn out, and hope that the event continues to grow each year. Operating as a virtual company, it’s a rare occurrence to meet face-to-face with our clients and colleagues; the Rock & Talk Breakup Bash was able to put “the face to the name”, and our employees and clients benefited greatly from the personal contact.

We were thrilled to present SafetyDataNet Awards of Distinction to FloRite Environmental, Enerpro Engineering, Goliath Snubbing and Tundra Oilfield Rentals.

We would like to thank our guest speakers, Dave Campbell and Brian Nodwell, for taking the time to prepare some very informative presentations and joining us in Penticton. Another big thank you goes out to the staff at the Penticton Ramada Inn & Suites for being such wonderful hosts. And finally, we are so appreciative of our employees and clients who attended this event; we hope you come back next year!

2nd largest pipeline spill in Alberta history leads to charges

tthompson — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 22:56:06 +0000

2nd largest pipeline spill in Alberta history leads to charges

The company that owns a pipeline that leaked 28,000 barrels of crude oil near a First Nations community in northwest Alberta — the largest spill in the province in 35 years — is now facing environmental charges.

Plains Midstream Canada ULC is facing three counts under the province’s Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act:

The April 2011 spill of almost 4.5 million litres of oil contaminated eight acres of beaver ponds and muskeg in a densely forested area.

Lubicon Cree residents of Little Buffalo, 30 kilometres from the spill site northeast of Peace River, claimed fumes from the leaking crude made them sick with nausea, burning eyes and headaches.

The community closed its school and ordered children to stay at home.

But the Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board, which monitored the air quality during the cleanup, did not believe the symptoms were related to the spill.

Alberta’s premier at the time, Ed Stelmach, criticized the company’s cleanup efforts.

“From what I gather, they could be doing a better job and we’re going to hold their feet to the fire to make sure they’re there and they will have to pay all the costs related to the cleanup,” he said just days after the leak was discovered.

The Energy Resources Conservation Board later reprimanded the company saying it had inadequate leak detection and failed to test its emergency response plan.

Plains Midland is charged with releasing a substance that damages the environment, failing to take reasonable measures to repair, remedy or confine the impact of the substance in an appropriate amount of time, and failing to clean up the substance to prevent further environmental impact.

The maximum penalty for each violation is $500,000, but the court may consider a creative sentence that allows companies to fund environmental projects or research instead of paying a fine, said spokesperson Nikki Booth.

The company declined comment saying it will review the charges with its lawyers and the Crown before responding.

No court dates have been set in the case.

The 60-centimetre Rainbow pipeline runs 775 kilometres from Zama, Alta., to Edmonton and is capable of moving 220,000 barrels of crude oil per day.

The company also made headlines in 2012 for an oil spill near Sundre, Alta.

About half a million litres of light sour crude spilled into the Red Deer River with some of it washing into the Gleniffer reservoir, which provides thousands of Albertans with drinking water.

Source: CBC

Dangling worker rescued from side of Vancouver hotel

tthompson — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 18:01:33 +0000

Dangling worker rescued from side of Vancouver hotel

A worker was left dangling by his safety harness on the outside of a six-storey building in the heart of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside after he fell from scaffolding while doing work during the middle of the night.

At around 2 a.m. PT, police and rescue crews arrived to find the man hanging off the Regent Hotel, near the corner of Main Street and East Hastings.

Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services crew members rappelled off the roof of the building to reach the man, secure his line, and bring him down safely.

Once on the ground, Vancouver police officers took him into custody.

Sgt. Randy Fincham said the incident appeared suspicious at first.

“It is odd for somebody to be working at that time of the day,” he said.

But police are no longer involved in the incident, and the investigation is now under the jurisdiction of WorkSafeBC, he said.

“My understanding at this point is, was a person doing some work afterhours. Thankfully this person was wearing an industrial safety harness,” he said.

Source: CBC News

Minister ‘disgusted’ by safety inspection results

tthompson — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 23:51:12 +0000

Minister ‘disgusted’ by safety inspection results

Alberta’s employment minister says he is disgusted and disappointed with the high number of workplace safety violations in the province.

“The results have been nothing but disappointing, and frankly, I have to tell you, I’m quite disgusted by the numbers that I have seen,” Thomas Lukaszuk said Tuesday.

Safety officers issued 39 stop-work orders during a six-week inspection blitz of the province’s construction sites.

Officers carried out 298 initial and followup inspections of 146 construction employers on 70 sites across the province from Oct. 8 to Nov. 22.

A total of 214 orders were issued. Fifty-seven orders were issued for worksites that lacked a plan or proper equipment to prevent workers from suffering injury or death if they fall.

Another 49 orders were issued for worksites that lacked proper safeguards, like coverings for openings and guardrails.

Lukaszuk vowed to continue unannounced inspections until the industry gets the message.

“The hammer is coming down in Alberta and if we continue seeing numbers like these, the hammer simply will be getting bigger and bigger,” he said. “I take this very seriously and I expect that this will be a wakeup call.”

But Gil McGowan from the Alberta Federation of Labour said Lukaszuk has to do more than just talk tough.

“If he really wants to bring that hammer down, he has to put his money where his mouth is,” McGowan said. “He has to hire more inspectors, give them tools and resources to do their jobs and he has to prosecute employers who put their workers at risk.”

Alberta has the lowest per-capita number of safety inspectors of any province in Canada, McGowan said.

Source: CBC News

Alberta targets workplace accidents

tthompson — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 23:49:22 +0000

Alberta targets workplace accidents

Alberta is hiring 30 new occupational health and safety officers to improve the province’s record on workplace accidents.

“I hope this sends a strong message to any company or worker in Alberta who feels the law doesn’t apply to them,” said Employment Minister Thomas Lukaszuk.

“Albertans demand safe workplaces and there shall be safe workplaces.”

The officers will be hired over the next three years, meaning the province will have 132 officers by 2014, a number that includes the 16 officers hired last year. That compares to only 86 in early 2010.

The ministry is also dividing the province into three enforcement regions instead of two. This will allow for a greater focus in northern Alberta, where the province is seeing the greatest industrial growth, said Lukaszuk.

“It’s hard not see this as a big step in the right direction,” said Gil McGowan with the Alberta Federation of Labour. “However I think it needs to be put in context.”

“Here in Alberta we’ve actually suffered probably 15 or maybe even 20 years of underspending on health and safety, and [worksite] inspection in particular.”

Source: CBC News

Stricter safety guidelines coming for Alberta employers

tthompson — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 23:38:52 +0000

Stricter safety guidelines coming for Alberta employers

Jobsite fatalities, serious injuries or multiple stop work orders will force an immediate review of employers safety accreditation staring July 1, according to new rules introduced by the province Thursday.

The povince will make it harder for companies to keep their safety Certificate of Recognition or COR.

About 9,000 of 160,000 companies in the province hold the certificate which means they have approved safety programs in place.

Those companies however employ more than 40 per cent of Alberta workers.

Employers without the certificate do not receive annual Partnerships in Injury Reduction rebates from the Workers’ Compensation Board – Alberta (WCB) and cannot bid on certain projects, particularly government infrastructure projects, said Employment Minister Thomas Lukaszuk.

“Losing a COR is bad for business,” said Lukaszuk. “However, Albertans have the right to work in safe and healthy conditions.”

If a company is placed under review, it must develop an action plan focused on making improvements to the workplace.

The COR program was a good idea, but poorly executed, said Gil McGowan, Alberta Federation of Labour.

“For years now this provincial government has been handing out CORs like they were candy,” he said. “Any employer that asked for one got them without having to prove they had a good health and safety program in place.”

McGowan pointed out that last year the Auditor General identified 63 employers that persistently failed health-and-safety orders, and that about half of them still held CORs.

Source: CBC News

February 2013 News

tthompson — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 00:51:30 +0000

It’s been a busy winter with partner implementations and the recent advancements in the various prequalification systems and ever changing owner requirements at the SafetyDataNet® control center.

Our growing team of SafeSitesEP® Field Analysts are mobilized on various energy projects across BC and Alberta.

The company’s 2013 internal COR audit is scheduled in early Q2 before break up.

The first annual SafetyDataNet Rock and Talk Breakup Bash will kick off May 2, 2013 in beautiful Penticton B.C. at the Penticton Ramada Inn & Suites. Email mwatson@safetydatanet.com for details and to RSVP. The event will be closed out with a banquet and entertainment by some musicians we borrowed from Prism and The Headpins.

Welcome to our new partners:

NEDG
Kavya Projects
Acorn Well Services
Patmore Oilfield Services

We look forward to helping these companies with their health safety programs, prequalification and compliance systems.

Congratulations to the following partners on the completion of their Q1 2013 COR audits:

Caliber Oilfield
Grey Owl Engineering
Patmore Oilfield Services

Call us today for all your safety program, compliance and contractor prequalification needs.

2012 Prime Essential Systems Corp Environmental Performance Report

tthompson — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:35:46 +0000

2012 Prime Essential Systems Corp Environmental Performance Report

Our Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy

1. Work Virtually, Travel less, Drive less

2. Target “zero” paper using the technology held in your hand

3. Reuse and recycle

Working Virtually and Using Mobile Forms

Environmental achievements – 12 tonnes of CO2 saved annually

Corporate Benefits – 15.9 days of lost time in commuting saved annually and $1379 savings in cash

Individual Savings – $3961.00 individual Savings Per Telecommuter annually.

Community Savings – $1345.00 community savings per commuter annually.

Calgary judge OK’s $10M fine for company in Chad bribery case

tthompson — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 21:55:20 +0000

Calgary judge OK’s $10M fine for company in Chad bribery case

A Calgary judge has approved the biggest fine ever to a Canadian company involved in foreign bribery, calling the crime an “embarrassment to all Canadians.”

Griffiths Energy, a privately held oil exploration and development company, pleaded guilty to a charge under the Corruption of Public Foreign Officials Act earlier this week.

Griffiths Energy and the Crown agreed the $9-million fine, plus a 15 per cent victim fine surcharge, reflected the severity of the offence, which took place under the watch of the company’s previous management team.

The company admitted it paid $2 million to a company controlled by the wife of Chad’s ambassador to Canada, to get an advantage in two exploration blocks in the oil-rich African country.

“The actions were wrong. They were inappropriate. When we found those actions we blew the whistle, we co-operated with authorities because that’s the way our management team and board do business,” said President and CEO Gary Guidry outside of court on Friday.

RCMP Inspector Greg Shields credits Griffiths’ new managers for disclosing the bribe.

“I think it sends a positive message in that we are investigating these type of complaints and that by coming forward voluntarily, as the judge mentioned, the fines have been more favourable to the corporation,” said Shields.

The current management discovered the suspect contracts as they were doing preparations for an initial public offering, which has been called off.

Source: CBC

Oilsands company fined $1.5M in Chinese workers’ deaths

tthompson — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 21:50:19 +0000

Oilsands company fined $1.5M in Chinese workers’ deaths

A company operating near Fort McMurray has been hit with the largest penalty in Alberta for a workplace safety violation.

Sinopec Shanghai Engineering Company Canada will have to pay out a total of $1.5 million.

“I expect the court is right in its belief that a penalty like this will deter,” said Crown prosecutor Marshall Hopkins outside of the St. Albert court house Thursday.

The company pleaded guilty to three charges of failing to ensure the health and safety of workers.

The charges stem from an accident that happened almost five years ago that killed two temporary foreign workers and injured two others.

The workers from China died in 2007 near Fort McMurray when a storage tank collapsed at Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.’s Horizon project.

A judge ruled Thursday the company will pay a fine of $200,000, with the rest of the money — $1.3 million- going to a new program teaching temporary foreign workers about their rights when it comes to safety on the job.

“We’re hoping to do good things with the creative sentencing,” said Kevin Flaherty, with Alberta Workers Health Centre which will run the program. “It enables us to do some good work with a bad situation.”

In a written statement the company said it “sincerely regrets the deaths” and fully supports the proposal to use the fine to fund the program which should be up and running later this year.

Source CBC