The expert notes that lessons have to be taken away and learned from past incidents.
How important are the occupational safety and health areas in the mining companies?
These are fundamental because they have to do with safeguarding safety management and workers’ health. They are guidelines to apply and establish process where work, such as maintenance, is properly executed and without any fatal consequences.
How is this working in Antofagasta Minerals?
In general, we have reached low accident rates. However, we are in debt with the decrease of fatal accidents. The main mining corporations, like Anglo American, BHP Billiton, and us (Antofagasta Minerals), are currently working specific programs to manage this type of event.
Has the scenario changed ever since the accident of the 33 miners?
New regulations have appeared. The families and society in general, have a different view, more critical towards the organizations with respect to how safety management is and how companies look after or not their workers. The scenario has definitely changed, we have evolved, and for that reason, we have to be more careful and manage our own risks.
What are the existing challenges in mine safety?
The main challenge in the mining area has to do with the decrease of fatalities. There is a lot to do there. This is an industry where great energies and dangers are always present. We have to work on management of workers behavior and focus on reporting and taking the lessons learned of the past incidents.
