Quarrying Sector Reminded of Importance of Safety at All-Island Conference.
Wednesday 17th November
An all-Island conference on Quarry Safety took place in Meath today (Wednesday 17th November). Over 100 delegates from the quarrying sector heard calls for the sector to maintain its recent good safety record. The conference, which was co-hosted by the Health and Safety Authority and the Health and Safety Executive Northern Ireland, heard from speakers who emphasised the need for leadership and maintenance of standards even in the current economic downturn.
Delegates were invited by both safety bodies to give feedback on how they can further assist quarries in reducing accidents and maintaining standards.
Pat Griffin, Senior Inspector with the Health and Safety Authority, believes that high safety standards must be maintained in the sector. “I am very pleased with the high turn-out at this years’ conference and I believe that this reflects that safety is still high on the agenda for the sector. For our part, the Health and Safety Authority will work with quarry managers and representative bodies to develop a means of achieving even higher standards.”
Malcolm Downey, Senior Inspector with the Health and Safety Executive in Northern Ireland echoed Griffins comments. “Due to the dangerous nature of quarry work, the very large machinery involved and potentially dangerous activities, accidents on quarries can be very serious and the sector’s accident rate was traditionally very high. Any reduction in activity should not mean a reduction in safety standards.”
