OHS in the Australian Offshore Petroleum Industry Document Preview: SEB323 The Professional Environment for Engineers and Scientists, T2 2012 Assignment 3: OHS in the Australian Offshore Petroleum...

OHS IN THE AUSTRALIAN OFFSHORE PETROLEUM INDUSTRY
OHS IN THE AUSTRALIAN OFFSHORE PETROLEUM INDUSTRY
Name
OHS in the Australian Offshore Petroleum Industry
Instructo
Course
Date
Executive Summary
Regulatory measures for occupational health and safety (OHS) vary for offshore and onshore operations. Regulation of various offshore activities have been harmonised since the creation of the National offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA). On the other hand, onshore operations are under the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) regimes, which are applied in each te
itory and state. The formation of NOPSEMA has ensured improvements in the effectiveness and efficiency of OHS regulations. The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority ensure professionalism in the petroleum industry to avoid accidents. Despite the formation of NOPSEMA, there has been various incidents reported lately that have left the public in doubt of the integrity of NOPSEMA. There is a need to reduce uncertainty among the public and this can be done by extending the coverage of NOPSEMA to include the integrity and safety of sea equipments, wells, and pipelines. In that case, NOPSEMA should be given additional responsibilities to avoid future accidents. The laws governing the onshore and offshore petroleum industry should be harmonised in order to minimize accidents. Moreover, the Australian government should come up with firm laws that will ensure the safety of the petroleum industry in both offshore and onshore operations. This report reflects the cu
ent situation on OHS environment, the safety measures undertaken in the offshore petroleum industry and how offshore and onshore operations differ. It will also discuss extensively on the OHS regulatory and legislative environment in relation to offshore facilities that are located beyond 200 nautical miles off Australian’s te
itories and states. Finally, it will focus on harmonisation of OHS laws and regulations.
Table of contents
2Executive Summary
1.0 Introduction
4
2.0 Discussion
5
2.1The existing OHS environment for the offshore petroleum industry in Australia
5
2.2 Safety issues in the offshore and onshore petroleum industry
7
2.3 OHS Legislative and Regulatory Environment in Relation to Offshore Facilities above 200 Nautical Miles
8
2.4 Harmonisation of OHS Laws and Regulations
9
3.0 Conclusion
10
4.0 Recommendations
10
References
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or! Bookmark not defined.
OHS in the Australian Offshore Petroleum Industry
1.0 Introduction
The National Offshore petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) started operating early this year (Creary 2012, p. 45-47). Its main responsibility is to ensure integrity in the industry, there is optimum management of the environment, and wells and other related equipments are secure. NOPSEMA is an Australian agency that has other mandates that includes ensuring safety and health of the workers. In addition, NOPSEMA works with the workforce, industry, stakeholders, and other relevant authorities to ensure that the petroleum industry is controlled properly and environmental risks are reduced. It also develops systems and processes that are effective ensuring that there is enhancement of legislative framework that encourages integrity, safety, and professional performance of the offshore industry. They ensure safeties of all persons that are engaged in offshore operations are adhered to. Though in 2002, the National OHS strategy came up with clear and unambiguous targets for the reduction of injuries, illnesses and work related deaths, the OHS performance is still very poor in Australia mostly in the petroleum industry. There have been immense accidents in the petroleum industry mostly from people extracting the petroleum products. Various factors have contributed to increase in such risks such as human intellect and cu
ent technology. These two factors have contributed a lot in risking personnel and workers.
Furthermore, the laws governing offshore health and safety have been enhanced in Australia and there has been advancement of offshore knowledge. The Australian government should come up with firm policies that prioritize on avoiding such accidents. A number of issues of concern in respect to the safety measures have arisen in the Australian petroleum industry hence, the Australian government should come up with methods of ensuring that these concerns are dealt with promptly to avoid future calamity. It is imperative that safety and health matters be addressed. Inherent in this is that health and safety requirements and regulations keep pace with the today’s best practices. Additionally, the government should offer motivation for the petroleum industry to ensure that they look at their safety and health responsibilities. This report aims to place cu
ent safety design activities in Australia into context by offering an overview of the regulatory environment, harmonisation of laws, the background of safe design initiatives in Australia, and the OHS environment.
2.0 Discussion
There have been numerous accidents reported one being on the Stena Clyde where two workers lost their lives. It is therefore the objective of this paper to give a succinct analysis of the OHS in relation to the Australian petroleum industry. It will look onto the safety issues, laws and measures, the OHS environment, legal framework governing the agency and the major differences reported between onshore and offshore operations. Finally, the report will discuss in length on the main...