Maureen Luggi, appearing with her son Robert Jr. in Victoria on March 6, 2014, reflects on her late husband Robert, who was killed at a mill explosion in Burns Lake, B.C., in 2013.Chad Hipolito/The Globe and Mail
There has been a marked shift in the way B.C. sawmills are managing combustible dust since two deadly sawdust-fuelled explosions in 2012 put a new focus on inspections, says the author of a July report that reviewed the province's inspection and enforcement regime.
"This is a dramatic improvement from where things stood six months ago, but it also indicates that there is still work to do," WorkSafeBC administrator Gordon Macatee said Tuesday on a conference call.
"Controlling combustible dust in a wood-manufacturing plant is a daunting challenge and there will never be a time when it won't be necessary to continue to be vigilant."
During the most recent inspection period, between Oct. 6 and Nov. 25, two of 188 mills received deficiency notices in relation to dust management, while one received a short-term stop-work order for a dust accumulation.
By comparison, an August update for the period covering April 7 to June 23 found 14 of 85 sites received compliance orders related to combustible dust.
Mr. Macatee said WorkSafeBC has also changed the way it handles major investigations, which was called into serious question after the Criminal Justice Branch decided not to lay charges in relation to either of two sawmill explosions.
An explosion at the Babine Forest Products sawmill in Burns Lake in January, 2012, killed two workers and injured 20. Then, in April, 2012, an explosion at a Lakeland Mills sawmill in Prince George killed two people and injured 22.
The Criminal Justice Branch decided not to pursue charges in either case, in part because evidence collected by WorkSafeBC was likely inadmissible in court. A February fact-finding report by John Dyble, the head of B.C.'s public service, into the Babine explosion found WorkSafeBC had "not paid enough attention" to legal precedents around gathering of evidence even though the Criminal Justice Branch had voiced concerns about that issue before WorkSafeBC began its investigation into the Babine incident.
Mr. Macatee was appointed to WorkSafeBC in April to change "the culture and process" at the agency and released his first report in July.
That report included 43 recommendations, including two from the Dyble report. WorkSafeBC and the provincial government accepted them all. Of the 43 recommendations, 13 have been completed, 18 are in progress and 12 require legislative changes.
As part of the process, a new investigations system has been set up with two distinct teams so that WorkSafeBC can carry out "cause" investigations – determining what caused a workplace accident – and, when necessary, prosecution investigations.
"While prosecutions are an important tool, I think it is important to remember that we don't want WorkSafeBC to diminish its primary function of investigation – to determine cause and to be able to prevent further injuries," Mr. Macatee said.
The new system is designed to prevent any files or evidence being handled in a way that could compromise an investigation. An internal "gatekeeper" will oversee the process of determining when a cause investigation turns into a potential prosecution.
On Tuesday, WorkSafeBC also named Diana Miles president and chief executive officer. Ms. Miles, who joined WorkSafeBC in 2004, had been acting as interim president and CEO since July 1.
Wendy Stueck