Risk Management in

Mines
Dr P.C. Purohit
Group General Manager(Limestone)
Rajasthan State Mines & Minerals Ltd.
Jodhpur, India
pcpurohit@gmail.com

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 OBJECTIVES OF RISK MANAGEMENT

In the mining industry, at present it aims to:

Reduce the likelihood and impact of mishaps

of all kinds.

Reduce the inherent potential for major

accidents which could injure or kill many
people.

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 RISK MANAGEMENT PROCESS

Hazard
identification

Risk
assessment
CONTINUAL PROCESS

Developing and
implementing control Monitoring the
procedures effectiveness of procedures

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 Hazards Identification Processes
Previous experience

Work process evaluation

Consultation with employees

Specialists

Fault tree analysis

Safety data information

Significant incident or accident reports

In-situ surveys

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 HAZARD IDENTIFICATION,
WHICHEVER METHOD IS USED,
SHOULD BE DONE BY A TEAM OF
PEOPLE, WITH A VARIETY OF
RELEVANT BACKGROUNDS AND
EXPERIENCE.

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 The Questions
• What are the hazards?
• Where are the hazards?
• What is the likely result?
• Which factor will cause it?
• What can be done to control or eliminate it?
• What action must be taken?

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 What can go wrong?
• What people are present and what are they doing?
– Can it cause an accident?
• What energy sources are present?
– Can it cause an accident?
• What machinery and or equipment is present and what is its
condition?
– Will it be safe to use or operate?
– Can it cause an accident?

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 Which of the three factors is the most
likely to cause it to go wrong?

• Human error event, - Slip, Violation, or lack of

Ability.
• Energy event, - Failure to contain, or Failure to
control.
• Physical event,- Structural failure, or Machine
failure.

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 If it does go wrong what will the
Consequence be?

• Will it cause injury to a person or persons?

–If the answer is “yes” to any of the above!

–How severe will the injury, damage or harm

likely to be?

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 What action must we take?
 Should we stop the job?

 Should we change the equipment?

 Should we separate or guard?

 Should we put out a rule?

 Should there be extra training?

 Should we issue extra PPE?

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 RISK MANAGEMENT PROCESS
H azard
id e n t if ic a t io n

R is k
assessm ent CONTINUAL PROCESS

DDeveloping
e v e lo p in g and
and
imimplementing
p le m e n t in g o f M o n it o r in g t h e
p r controls
o c ed u res e f f e c t iv e n e s s o f p r o c e d u r e s

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Risk Assessment and Risk Management

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 A- Risk assessment consists of four steps:

1. Hazard Identification: is the process of determining

whether exposure to an agent can increase the incidence of a
health condition .
2. Risk Estimation :is the process of characterizing the relation
between the dose of an agent administered or received and
the incidence of an adverse health effect in exposed
populations; it expresses incidence as a function of exposure
to the agent.

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 Risk assessment consists of four steps:

3. Exposure Assessment: is the process of measuring or

estimating the intensity, frequency, and duration of human
exposures to an existing agent or of estimating hypothetical
exposures that might arise from the release of new chemicals
into the environment
4. Risk Characterization : is the process of estimating the
incidence of a health effect under the various conditions of
human exposure described in the exposure assessment.

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 Fix the Problem
Also known as risk control.
Aim to remove a hazard completely. If
this is not possible a ‘hierarchy of control’
exist.
 Eliminate the Hazard.
 Substitute the Hazard.
 Isolate the Hazard.
 Use Engineering Controls.
 Use Administrative Controls.
 Use Personal Protective Equipment.
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 B- Risk management

 Risk management : Refers to the process of evaluating

alternative regulatory options and selecting among them. The
results of risk characterization are used to identify potential
options that are then evaluated in terms of expected public
health, economic, social, and political consequences. The
responsible agency then makes a decision and implements the
selected option.

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 Risk Management consist of four steps

1. Decision: Is the process of choosing between the options .

2. Implementation : Is the process of creating the option that
we had choose .
3. Monitoring and Evaluation : Is the process of controlling
the option to be sure that we achieved our aim .
4. Review : Is the process of choosing other option in case we
didn’t have the best results.

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 Evaluate Results
This comes after the first three steps in the
hazard management process.
How effective are changes made to fix the
problem.
Talk to workers & their response.
 Are changes making a difference?
 Workers opinion on change.
 Do solutions reduce risk?
 Do solutions create new hazards or increase risk
of existing ones?
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• Why Risk Assessment
• What is Risk Assessment
• How to do Risk Assessment
• Common Mistakes in Risk Assessment

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 Why Risk Assessment ?

DGMS circular no.13 of 2002 issued on the process of risk

assessment
The issue was further discussed in the 10th Conference.
Education of stakeholders undertaken by DGMS & mining
companies through seminars, workshops, training programs,
etc.
Some mining companies also engaged consultants to undertake
risk assessment process
Idea & concept regarding the system disseminated and
understood by stakeholders
Pre-occupation with production & expertise constraints
hampered full-fledged implementation.
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 Why Risk Assessment ?

Purpose:
to establish a mechanism involving all concerned by which
dangerous events & accidents may be prevented
to identify potential sources for serious accidents, mishaps –
inherent in mining systems
It is now widely accepted world over that various techniques of
risk management contribute greatly towards improvement in
safety of mining operations
In India – essential to implement risk assessment based “Safety
Management System” in all mining operations
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 Risk Assessment: Where?

• Potential for mishap -with serious consequences

• Presence of large number of risks with varying
degree of consequence and likelihood
• Mines having limited resources
• Availability of early warning in way of “near miss”
situations
• Changed circumstances
• New equipment, methods, etc
• Modification of method, machines,

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 MERITS OF RISK ASSESSMENT
• Gainful utilization of resources
• Casts specific responsibility on operators
• Eliminates confusion
• More acceptable for involvement of grass root
levels
• Designed by operators
• Flexible
• Selection of best possible means to achieve goal
-left to operators
• Introduction of new technology expedited
• No scope for gray areas

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 Essentials for Risk Assessment

It has to be conducted by a Team not an

individual
There must be detailed and systematic
approach
This is not a one time exercise – but a
ongoing process
All stake holders must participate in the
process

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 Teams
Risk assessment team membership usually comprises of :
 Corporate management
 Mine/site management
 Machine operators/ relevant mine workers/ supervisors
 Union representatives
 Equipment suppliers
 Contractors

An appropriately skilled facilitator need to lead the process

through a step-by-step method
The facilitator’s role is to ensure that the specific risk
assessment method is applied effectively and consistently
throughout the exercise

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 Risk consists of basically 2 dimensions:

Consequence Likelihood

Where:
Consequence is the size of the loss or damage and
Likelihood is the chance that it might happen

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 Calculating Risk
Risk = likelihood x consequence

Risk = probability x exposure x consequence

Maximum Risk Rating = 500

Risks > 20 to be referred to Management for Action

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 Scale to rate consequence
EFFECT SCORE
•Several dead 5.0
•One dead 1.0
•Significant chance of fatality / 0 .3
one permanent disability
•Small chance of fatality 0.1
•Many lost time injuries 0.01
•One lost time injury 0.001
•small injury 0.0001

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 How do we rate exposure?
An example
 Continuous = 10
 Frequent (daily) = 5

 Seldom (Weekly) = 3
 Unusual ( Monthly) = 2.5
 Occasional (Yearly) = 2
 Once in 5 years = 1.5
 Once in 10 years = 0.5
 Once in 100 years = 0.02
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 Probability
This is the chance that a person will be harmed when they are
exposed. We use the following probability ratings:

 May well be expected = 10.0

 Quite possible = 7.0
 Unusual but possible = 3.0
 Only remotely possible = 2.0
 Conceivable but unlikely = 1.0
 Practically impossible = 0.5
 Virtually impossible = 0.1
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 Remember all these scales are not to
confuse you but to allow you to do a
comparable assessment.

The objective is mainly to rank the

hazard so that you know where to
spend your attention and resources

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 Some simple rules
We must stick to one system
There is more than one right way
We must remember the objective
One shouldn't try and pre-empt the answer
One shouldn't make the answer fit a hidden objective
Use the assessment to rank
Use one team to do comparative ranking
It is the input to the next step only
By doing an assessment we have not achieved anything else
except ranking the risks.
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 Some simple rules
Risk assessment should be carried out by a team because:
One person’s experience is limited and the consensus of a
team is always more accurate.

The more people involved in a risk assessment process, the

greater the awareness of hazards in the company.

Everybody in the team has a duty to make sure the risk

controls work.

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 Common faults or problems

• Omitting credible accidents or incidents

• Unwarranted or motivated optimism
• Un-stated or unsupported assumptions
• Use of the process to justify a predetermined outcome
• Difficulty of estimating the likelihood of human error

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 Prevention (The Best Cure)

The 4 Step System:

SAFE
Spot the Hazard
Assess the Risk
Fix the Problem
Evaluate Results

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Risks Are Usually Expressed as Probabilities

• Risk

• Probability and possibility

• Risk Assessment

• Risk Management

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 Spot the Hazard
Physical inspection of workplace.
A hazard is anything with potential to cause injury,
illness or damage.
Identified by:
 Observing Workers Tasks.
 Speaking to Workers.
 Using Safety Checklist.
 Review Manufacturers Info.
 View injury Records.

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 Assess the Risk

Once hazards are identified determine their

level of risk.
A risk is the likelihood of a hazard causing
injury, illness or damage to health.
Assessed by:
 Potential Impact of hazard.
 How likely is the hazard to cause someone
harm.

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 Most People Do Not Know How to Evaluate
Risks
• Fear

• Degree of control

• Whether a risk is catastrophic

• Optimism bias

• Unfair distribution of risks

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 Several Principles Can Help Us to Evaluate
and Reduce Risk
• Compare risks

• Determine how much you are willing to accept

• Determine the actual risk involved

• Concentrate on evaluating and carefully

making important lifestyle choices
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 Principle of Crocodile
• Identify the risk

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 Principle of Crocodile
• Evaluate the risk

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 Principle of Crocodile

• Eliminate the risk

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 Principle of Crocodile
• Substitute the risk

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 Principle of Crocodile

• Isolate the risk

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 Principle of Crocodile

• Use Personal Protective Equipment

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 Principle of Crocodile
• Or else……….Run away !

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 Steps after initial risk assessment
• The process of risk assessment is not a one time job
• After initial identification of hazards and assessing their risk ratings,
the risk control priorities are identified
• Risk control options are identified and implemented in a time
bound programme
• Audit of the risk ratings are done at regular intervals

• Once a risk is brought below the accepted value, the next risks are
taken for controlling
• This process is continued

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 Now we have a most
perfectly assessed risk

What do we do
now??
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 RISK MANAGEMENT PROCESS
H azard
id e n t if ic a t io n

R is k
assessm ent CONTINUAL PROCESS

DDeveloping
e v e lo p in g and
and
imimplementing
p le m e n t in g o f M o n it o r in g t h e
p r controls
o c ed u res e f f e c t iv e n e s s o f p r o c e d u r e s

03/28/2020 50
 ACTION PLANS

• IDENTIFICATION OF CONTROL
MEASURES

• FORMULATION OF ACTIONS

• ASSIGNMENT OF RESPONSIBILITY

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 Risk Control Hierarchy
 Elimination - Modification to the process method or material to eliminate the
hazard completely. ( 100% )
 Substitution - replace the material, substance or process with a less hazardous
one. ( 75% )
 Separation - Isolating the hazard from persons by safeguarding, or by space or
time separation. ( 50%)
 Administration - Adjusting the time or conditions of risk exposures ( 30% )
 Training - Improving skills therefore making tasks less hazardous to persons
involved. ( 20% )
 Personal protective equipment - using as the last resort, appropriately designed
and properly fitted equipment where other controls are not practicable. (5% )

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 Controlling Risks
 Remember to ask - Will the action to be implemented -
 Eliminate the hazard
 Reduce the chance of a event
 Reduce the severity of the hazard.
 Will these reductions make the threat reasonable
and therefore tolerable.”
 Try to reduce risks wherever possible to make the
situation intrinsically safe.

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 RISK MANAGEMENT PROCESS

H azard
id e n t if ic a t io n

R is k
assessm ent CONTINUAL PROCESS

DDeveloping
e v e lo p in g and
and
imimplementing
p le m e n t in g o f M o n it o r in g t h e
p r controls
o c ed u res e f f e c t iv e n e s s o f p r o c e d u r e s

03/28/2020 54
 Monitoring effectiveness
•Set a standard
•Measure performance
•Determine difference
•Find out what is the reason
•Rectify problem

Risk assessment is control before the time.

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 FOUR STEPS TO RISK MANAGEMENT

1 Identify
Identify the
the hazards
hazards

Measure
Measure the
the risks
risks
2

3
Can
Can we
we live
live with
with it?
it?

4 Develop
Develop the
the controls
controls
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 Issues regarding Implementation
Commitment of top management of company – important first step
Change to “culture of prevention” through “systematic and comprehensive
risk management” involves journey in several stages
Indian mining industry – long tradition of reactive and people dependent
on management systems
Proposed system of risk management – pro-active, empowered, systems
oriented thinking
Development of a good safety management plan – a good start
It is essential to start well – but, if perceived as just another program, it
may remain as a good plan only

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 Implementation Strategy
Appointment of Consultants – may only facilitate the process,
essential to involve mine level employees for assessment of risks
and identification of control measures;
Framing of “Safety Management Plan” is an on-going process
In recent past, though risk assessment has been done at some
places – a full “SMP” has not been developed
A working group may
Investigate and suggest optimal approaches for adoption of
the system
Company may consider creating a specialized cell for the
purpose

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 End-Note
Risk Assessment based Safety Management System has to get firmly
entrenched in all our mines
Initial targets and benefits are clearly safety based
As we travel forward cost overruns, production delays, environment,
etc. will attract as much, if not more, attention
Ultimately safety/ risk management must be seen as good business
It not only will help management focus clearly on critical issues, but
also may be the sole means of satisfactory compliance to statutory
mandates

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 THANK YOU

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