Orica fined $1.2 million over workers’ cobalt dust exposure
02 May 2024•BlueSafe Team•Source: SafeWork NSW
Orica Australia Pty Ltd has been fined $1.2 million in the District Court of NSW after two workers were exposed to cobalt dust between 2014 and 2019. One worker developed occupational asthma.
Following a SafeWork NSW prosecution, Orica pleaded guilty to a Category 1 offence under section 19 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 over the exposure at its Kooragang site.
Category 1 is the highest offence category under NSW law. It involves a person with a health and safety duty recklessly engaging in conduct that exposes an individual to a risk of death, serious injury or illness.
The two men worked in the Cobalt Catalyst Manufacturing Shed at Orica’s industrial chemical manufacturing facility on Kooragang Island, where the company produces cobalt catalyst pellets.
The court found that manufacturing generated visible cobalt dust and powders. The amount varied according to the stage of production and the condition of the cobalt catalyst.
The exposure involved inhalation, skin irritation and direct contact with the eyes, nose, mouth and skin. Cobalt dust is a known respiratory sensitising agent that can cause occupational illness. Chronic exposure can cause asthma, fibrosis and lung damage, and, more rarely, cardiac effects and congestion of the liver and kidneys.
Head of SafeWork NSW Trent Curtin said the court found that exposure was certain, and that Orica had taken few protective steps, which were poorly implemented and inadequate.
Curtin said the Category 1 prosecution sent a clear message to industry that SafeWork NSW would prosecute those who put people at risk to the full extent of the law.
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