2017 HSEC Conference award winners announced

"Each award recipient has been acknowledged for their innovation and excellence in ‘workers health’, ‘mine safety’, ‘environmental sustainability’ and ‘community engagement."

“As always, our awards entrants were all of a very high calibre, demonstrating mining’s commitment to innovation and the pursuit of excellence,” NSW Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee said today.

“These awards are an important part of our industry’s continuous improvement and will deliver better outcomes for our industry, our workforce, and local communities.”

“On behalf of all our members I warmly congratulate our awards winners for 2017.”

Winner - Health Excellence 

NCIG Bounce Program

Newcastle Coal Infrastructure Group

In 2012 NCIG introduced a Health and Wellbeing Program called Bounce to positively impact the health and welfare of NCIG employees, contractors and their families by managing safety risk together with overall productivity of the NCIG workforce. 

The programme incorporates assessment, prevention and treatment strategies. However, the key element that sets this program apart is setting health initiatives based on ongoing identified workforce health risks and needs. Annual themes have included weight loss, improvement to BMI, increasing functioning movement, improved nutrition and increasing fitness and movement.

Winner - Safety Excellence

Project Arrive Alive

Evolution Mining - Cowal Gold Operations

In 2016, Cowal Gold Mine identified two incidents had been caused by micro-sleeps. There were a number of employees who had a commute that prevented them from being able to have at least 8 hours sleep between shifts, causing fatigue and in numerous cases stress. The investigation also identified that some past incidents may have involved fatigue.

During Project Arrive Alive, workplace changes were implemented including a maximum of 14 hours door-to-door, mandatory use of buses where buses operated, fatigue education, sleep and fatigue management through technology and psychological training to help employees understand the long term impact of fatigue. Employees now feel that fatigue is being well managed.

Winner - Environment Excellence 

NCIG Offset Delivery

Newcastle Coal Infrastructure Group

Since 2012, Newcastle Coal Infrastructure Group (NCIG) has progressively implemented its Compensatory Habitat and Ecological Monitoring Program (CHEMP). The program is focused on conservation and offset measures for the endangered Green and Golden Bell Frog (Litoria aurea) as well as species of migratory shorebirds protected under international and federal environmental laws. 

NCIG has restored degraded land and areas previously occupied by Endangered Ecological Communities (EECs) to sites of high biodiversity value, all within a National Park. This has been done with numerous stakeholders including government and non-government organisations to help deliver enhanced ecological outcomes for the Hunter Wetlands National Park.

Winner - Community Excellence 

Enterprise Facilitation

Rio Tinto Coal & Allied

Coal and Allied’s Enterprise Facilitation program was established in 2015 in response to the economic impact of the previous mining downturn, the need for economic diversification in the Upper Hunter region and as a Social Licence improvement project.

Free advice is provided to assist local entrepreneurs, business owners and community groups to establish, strengthen or expand local businesses and social enterprises. This work is supported by a network of volunteers with experience and networks across various business disciplines. 

More than 100 clients have been helped, at least a dozen new businesses have commenced operation and a number of Social Enterprises have also been assisted.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcoal.com/mining/15082017/2017-hsec-conference-award-winners-announced/