HSE celebrates 10 years of safer quarries

Reportable injuries in UK quarries are down 76% from 10 years ago, according to the 2938 Health and Safety Executive. The organisation has said that the achievement has been delivered by the Hard Target initiative that was launched in 2000 in a bid to tackle the industry’s safety issues.

HSE chair Judith Hackitt commended the companies, trade bodies and trade unions that have helped to deliver this target in a special address at the 427 Hillhead exhibition in Buxton, UK.

Hackitt also underlined the industry’s aim of reaching Target Zero with an interim target of reducing reportable accidents by a further 15% year on year by 2015.

“The quarrying industry has demonstrated what can be achieved when an industry sector commits to improvement in health and safety,” she said. “However, there is no room for complacency. As the number of incidents decrease, it will get ever more challenging for the industry to make further gains. Reaching the new goals will require even more hard work, determination and the development of new approaches.

“The improvements made so far are down to strong leadership, with employers promoting a safety culture right across their organisations, bolstered by the efforts of the unions and trade associations.

“It’s also about creating an environment that encourages sharing and learning. This can be best demonstrated through the example of an explosives engineer who has been sharing his expertise on safe drilling and blasting and safety reps who have devised worker involvement courses in their own time.”