NSW tunnelling taskforce sets silica safety action plan

Trent Curtin, A/Deputy Secretary, SafeWork NSW, chaired the meeting, which was attended by Minister for Industrial Relations and Minister for Work Health and Safety Sophie Cotsis. The Minister stressed the need for shared responsibility and collaboration to tackle silica-related safety issues in tunnelling. She also urged members to turn their collective expertise into practical improvements. Members endorsed the draft terms of reference and agreed on four broad areas of action identified by the NSW Government.

The Taskforce examined notifications received by SafeWork NSW under section 529CE of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011. These come from persons conducting a business or undertaking carrying out high-risk processing of crystalline silica substances, where workplace air monitoring shows respirable crystalline silica concentrations above the workplace exposure standard. Members noted that an exceedance does not necessarily establish that an individual worker was exposed above the standard, because personal exposure depends on the health and safety controls in place.

Members supported SafeWork NSW’s decision to publish the notification data, which is now available on its website, and offered suggestions to improve data collection. The expert medical view was that workplace exceedance data should be considered alongside actual worker exposure data to provide a fuller understanding of health risks and better target worker health screening. SafeWork NSW will use the feedback to continue updating its website and make the data more transparent and accessible.

Data sharing between stakeholders, including government agencies, was also discussed. Members committed to sharing information to improve its use and access. They considered existing sharing mechanisms broadly adequate, particularly between agencies, but said they needed to be used more effectively, including for research. Medical experts provided insights into silicosis and silica-related diseases in NSW, while other contributions covered the state’s tunnelling infrastructure pipeline and SafeWork NSW’s compliance activities.

The Taskforce encouraged greater collection and availability of information to support research into early detection, intervention and long-term follow-up for tunnelling workers exposed to crystalline silica. Engineering controls were another major focus, with broad agreement that their successful implementation depended on addressing them during project procurement and design.

Members noted that effective use of engineering controls and other safety measures required consistent worker education and training across the industry. Union experience indicated that this consistency was currently lacking. The discussion also identified the importance of drawing on industry and union experience when developing best practice engineering controls and other safety measures. SafeWork NSW noted that an external working group would soon be convened to inform the rewrite of the Tunnels Under Construction Code of Practice.

Compliance discussions covered penalties, statutory prosecution time limits, and the roles and powers of unions and entry permit holders. SafeWork NSW will review existing legislative mechanisms supporting compliance, including those relating to unions and entry permit holders, to inform discussion of further Taskforce actions at the next meeting. Any legislative changes would be a matter for the Minister and the Government.

The meeting resulted in a 10-point action plan identifying areas for members to collaborate on and progress. The plan may evolve over time, with the Taskforce now turning its attention to implementation. It will report on progress through regular communiques.

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