Introduction

This course is the first of two Environmental Health and Safety courses by the author. It has been prepared with the intention of providing mining personnel with a set of practical guidelines on Environmental Emergency Preparedness, i.e. how to start managing and preparing for an environmental emergency.

The second course focuses on Environmental Emergency Response. With a little adaptation using local information, such as local emergency contacts and the inclusion of MSDS sheets and local emergency procedures, the guidelines in this course can be applied to any mining or processing operation.

They can also be used in a site Environmental Management System (EMS), site Environmental Management Plan (EMP), and/or site Emergency Management Preparedness and Response Plan. At the very least, these guidelines can be used as a site emergency planning and response checklist.

This course is split into three parts:

• Part 1: Environmental Emergencies, including discussion of their occurrence, outcomes, and risk analysis.
• Part 2: Corporate Governance, including discussion of corporate strategy, management, and an example of risk reduction.
• Part 3: Preparedness Plans, including discussion of plans to deal with possible or probable emerging emergencies or disasters, plans to manage after-effects of an emergency or disaster, an emergency preparedness checklist, and the level of emergency services typically provided by government.

Course Content

The course comprises 10 learning sessions, each of average 15-30 minutes duration, supported by figures, tables, and worked examples, plus three interactive reviews that confirm the viewer's achievement of learning objectives. The total duration of the course is approximately 4 hours. 

Learning Outcomes

1. Develop a checklist to be used to prepare contingencies for an emergency.
2. Develop a guideline for environmental emergency management accreditation as described in ISO 14000 Environmental Management.
3. Develop leadership in emergency preparedness and response processes.
4. Create a process of recording, investigating, and acting on all complaints and incidents relating to environmental matters.
5. Create a process to ensure compliance with all statutory requirements and minimise potential for occupational or environmental harm.

Duration: 4 Hours

Category: Safety

Level: Introductory