Excerpt from the OH&S Canada magazine
The lack of training or just the lack of understanding of a confined space and its associated hazards was at the heart of an accident at a Quebec campsite. This happens a few years ago, (August 2004, to be exact) and an employee of Camping Lac Du Repos, located in the municipality of Saint-Jean-Baptiste, was trying to unclog the outlet pipe of the campground’s septic system when the deadly events were set in motion.
A trenching accident happened on a golf course in Saskatchewan in 2008 during the installation of new water and sewer pipes. The Elkridge Golf and Conference Centre pleaded guilty to four charges after a worker was partially buried in a trench. They received a fine of $14,000.
A Co-ordination Document
In a Confined Space with multi-employer involvement, rules are applied if the workers of more than one employer perform work in the same confined space or related work with respect to the same confined space. Before any worker enters the confined space or begins related work with respect to the confined space, the lead employer shall prepare a co-ordination document to ensure that the duties imposed on employers are performed in a way that protects the health and safety of all workers in or around the confined space. The co-ordination document may provide for the performance of a duty or duties by one or more employers on behalf of one or more of the employers, with respect to some or all of the workers.
A copy of the co-ordination document shall be provided to:
a) Each employer of workers who perform work in the same confined space; and
b) The JHSC or Health & Safety representative, if any, for each employer of workers who perform work in the same confined space.