Mining has long been one of SA's most dominant industries. The country boasts rich deposits of gold, platinum, base metals and coal, and is also the fourth-largest producer of diamonds in the world. It has often been called a treasure trove of natural resources.
Yet great rewards are usually won at great risk, and this is proven nowhere better than in the mining industry, which is seen as inherently dangerous. As one of the country's largest employers, the SA mining industry is frequently in the spotlight due to health and safety issues, particularly mining accidents.
The mine safety audit report released early this year by the then department of mineral & energy details the number of injuries and fatalities in SA's mines over the past year. According to the report, almost 5 000 people are injured on the mines every year, with about 200 deaths. Mining minister Susan Shabangu recently announced that SA has lost 143 miners to mining accidents in 2009 alone.
Rockfalls, seismic events, transport, machinery and materials handling are some of the main causes of injuries and fatalities on SA mines. Others such as silicosis, tuberculosis (TB), HIV/Aids and noise-induced hearing loss remain widespread occupational health issues.
"Most accidents are preventable and many happen because people take shortcuts" - NIGEL TOWNSHEND
According to Nigel Townshend, CEO of mining engineering company TWP Holdings, SA's mining industry faces many of these health and safety challenges for the simple reason that most of the country's mining operations are underground as opposed to surface or open-pit mining. "Many of these operations are at considerable depth, which makes for a challenging working environment," he says.
Also, because many of the country's ore bodies are tabular as opposed to globular masses, Townshend says that SA's mining industry is compelled to be far more labour-intensive and less mechanised than its counterparts abroad.
"Our labour force is also generally less skilled or specialised, and, culturally, the SA population is by and large more willing to take risks," he says.
"For example, it's difficult to expect a mine worker who has just travelled to work in an overcrowded minibus taxi that's probably not roadworthy to suddenly put safety at the top of his priorities for the day."
All of these factors make mining health and safety challenging, and the responsibility in addressing these challenges, Townshend says, lies with every stakeholder - from the mine employees to management, industry bodies and government.
WHAT IT MEANS
 This year alone SA has already lost 143 miners due to mining related accidents
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"Most accidents are preventable and many happen because people take shortcuts," he says. "It's up to employees, mine management and engineering, procurement, construction management (EPCM) service providers like ourselves to drive mine safety through taking responsibility and focusing on education and training, proper management and addressing behavioural issues."
The regulatory framework also plays a role in addressing mining health and safety. Since the 1994 Leon Commission of Inquiry, which found that more than 69 000 mineworkers had died on the mines between 1900 and 1994 and over a million had been seriously injured, government, in partnership with the industry, has made a concerted effort to improve health and safety.
The Mine Health & Safety Act (MHSA) was established in January 1997, replacing the Minerals Act 50 of 1991 in regulating occupational health and safety in SA mines. It aims to promote a culture of health and safety as well as a legal basis for the enforcement of health and safety measures. The Chamber of Mines notes that since the mid-1990s, there has been an impressive improvement in mine health and safety, with the number of fatalities being reduced by more than 50%.
Nevertheless, there is room for improvement, which is why the 2008 amendment to the MHSA was introduced, aiming to address various industry-wide challenges. In a document commenting on the proposed changes to the MHSA, the Chamber of Mines noted: "All stakeholders were hoping that the industry would be on track to achieve the 2013 health and safety milestones agreed to by government, industry and labour in 2003. Unfortunately, the trend of continuous improvement, especially with respect to safety, was interrupted in 2006 and even worsened in 2007, and this has resulted in all stakeholders reconsidering whether enough is being done to improve safety and health."
The chamber, aside from co-operating with government and the mining industry on various initiatives, has implemented a proactive programme of action. This includes targeting leadership, promoting the adoption of best practice, a study on seismicity and rockburst and a project that aims to improve ex-mineworkers' access in rural areas to compensation benefit medical examinations - this is in partnership with the department of health.
Townshend says within the industry there is "a huge push" towards better health and safety, and that it has become a key deliverable. "A responsible company can't accept accidents," he says, "And shareholders won't stand for a poor safety record. Project engineering companies like TWP are measured on their safety record."
Though companies are under legal obligation to fulfil certain requirements, many mining houses have developed their own innovative programmes to address health and safety issues. These range from voluntary HIV testing and counselling campaigns to introducing pioneering technologies and dedicating time and money to training and development initiatives.
Yet Townshend believes that achieving the goal of zero harm will take time, as social and behavioural issues need to be changed. "In SA, our focus seems to be on [making] engineering extremely safe, even in the case of someone doing something really stupid that he shouldn't be doing," he says. "Overseas, the focus seems to be more on educating people not to do those stupid things. We need to change the whole mentality and get people to take responsibility for their own safety. And that's not just in the mining industry - SA has a safety record that's not very good in general."
The SA Mining Industry's Sustainability & Transformation Report, published by the Chamber of Mines, points out that care for people should be at the heart of leadership's vision of zero harm and that change should start from the top with leaders enacting these in their decisions on health and safety. Also, leaders should move from a command and control style to one of participation and empowerment that respects diversity. It is also imperative that tensions between production and safety be resolved.
Despite the health and safety challenges facing the mining industry, SA continues to strive towards better safety records and to conceive, pilot and execute actions designed to assist in working towards the ultimate goal of zero harm. As employees, management, government and other stakeholders focus on engagement, co-operation escalates, and health and safety within the high-risk mining environment seems set to improve.
"We're doing a lot," says Townshend. "But can it ever be enough? Probably not. One accident is always one accident too many."
