Resources Safety Division Please read this before using presentation This presentation is based on content presented at the Industry Forum held in February 2010 It is made available for non-commercial use (e.g. toolbox meetings) subject to the condition that the PowerPoint file is not altered without permission from Resources Safety Supporting resources, such as brochures and posters, are available from Resources Safety For resources, information or clarification, please contact: or visit
Resources Safety Division Towards Best Practice Safety Regulation Petroleum Regulations Presentation February 2010
Resources Safety Division Occupational health and safety Mining operations (includes processing/export/etc) Petroleum operations onshore (includes pipelines) Exploration activities (includes geo-thermal) Worker safety/ Community safety and security Import, export, manufacture, transport, storage and use of dangerous goods; operation of explosives reserves; 24/7 emergency response arrangements; counter- terrorism measures.
Resources Safety Division Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994 Dangerous Goods Safety Act 2004 Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Resources Act 1967 Petroleum Pipelines Act 1969 Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1982
Resources Safety Division In addition to inspections, audits, etc – Review, develop and amend legislation Develop technical standards and safety policies Inform; promote safety; give advice Collect, collate, analyse, publish safety data Issue licenses and certificates of competency Counter-terrorism controls; emergency response; etc
Resources Safety Division Required expertise Petroleum engineering Process engineering Electrical, mechanical and structural engineering Geotechnical engineering Mining engineering Radiation Health management Explosives and dangerous goods Legal Data management
Resources Safety Division 7 Bar is set to match industry and nature of operations Less prescriptive regulation and external control BETTER SAFETY PERFORMANCE MORE TRUST Self-regulation Meta-regulation (”safety case”) Performance-based standards Prescriptive standards Prohibition POOR SAFETY PERFORMANCE LESS TRUST
Resources Safety Division Risks?
Resources Safety Division
Government decision of August 2009 Adopt “best practice” safety regulation Drive cultural change across industry Introduce a cost recovery regime to secure sufficient resources for effective regulation
Resources Safety Division “best practice” regulation – Must cover all types of organisation while encouraging improvement among good and poor performers. Must apply evidence-based decision making Must be transparent, consistent and pro-active Whilst ensuring that responsibility rests with risk- generator.
Resources Safety Division 12 “best practice” safety regulation requires: Sufficient incentives for whole of industry (including those reluctant to comply) Highly skilled and appropriately resourced regulatory inspectorate A sound legislative base Industry recognising that it has the primary role
Resources Safety Division Best Practice is: ▲ Proactive approach to safety regulation ▲ Less prescription, with safety case the ‘norm’ ▲ Data-driven decision making ▲ Improved transparency/communication ▲ Nationally recognised staff competency ▲ Internationally recognised performance measures Competency Legislation Capacity