Health and Safety

Health and Safety Highlights

Getting Help Kicking The Habit

Syncrude adheres to all rules and regulations contained in the new Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo's Smoke-Free bylaw and the amended Provincial Tobacco Reduction Act. We offer a smoke-free work environment and also support smokers who want to quit. Employees can seek specific how-to advice and support from on-site medical staff and programs. As well, the company's health benefits plan provides coverage for tobacco cessation aids.

Emergency Nursing Certification

Two registered nurses working at the Syncrude Health Centre received their Emergency Nursing Certification in 2007. Certification requires a great deal of hard work, dedication and study and, according to the Canadian Nursing Association "is a commitment to the leading edge in national health-care standards." The two nurses are the first in Syncrude's history to earn the designation.

Bus Transport A Safe Way To Ride

transport

As an alternative to driving to and from work in their personal vehicles, Syncrude encourages its workers to take the safer and more environmentally friendly option of company-provided bus transport. Almost 1.8 million employees and contractors travelled to and from work using Syncrude's bus system in 2007. The 120-bus fleet, operated by Diversified Transportation Ltd., carries as many passengers in a year as some major metro transit systems. The bus service takes the equivalent of more than 4,900 vehicles off the road each day, eliminating the air emissions they would otherwise generate.

Safe Containment Strategies

Syncrude has 21 dams of various kinds on its sites. To ensure their integrity and safe containment of materials held within, Syncrude has a comprehensive program comprising dam design and construction, operation, maintenance, and surveillance, which is in accordance with the Mining Association of Canada's liquid impoundment storage guidelines. The program relies on a skilled staff of geotechnical engineers and technologists and also benefits from advice solicited from internationally recognized geotechnical experts. The program ensures the ongoing geotechnical stability of these structures and has enabled 29 years of safe dam operation. External assessments were completed on the Aurora Settling Basin in 2006 and the Mildred Lake Settling Basin in 2007. On-site dam structures were also subject to two management and structural safety reviews by Syncrude's Geotechnical Review Board in 2007.

Healthy Workforce Initiatives

Registered nurses

Registered nurses (left to right): Tammy Gale-Macpherson, Kristi Pinkney, Lynn Clark, Donna McNab, Lori Biggs, Marlene Gordon and Betty White-Dover.

Syncrude offers a number of company-wide initiatives to foster the emotional and physical well-being of our employees and reduce the risk of injuries on- or off-the-job. These include programs that support physical activity, healthy eating, smoking cessation, stress management, responsible use of drugs and alcohol, and occupational health and safety. Syncrude's on-site health centres allow employees and contractors to conveniently address their health issues, whether work-related or not. The majority of health centre visits are for preventative health surveillance, and evaluative testing and monitoring of employees in key occupational areas. nearly one-third of health centre visits are for nonoccupational reasons.

Sharing Safety Best Practices

Toward sustained excellence in safety performance, Syncrude's Safety, Health and Environment Group continues to draw on the experience and expertise of others through its participation in a wide variety of external groups, including:

  • Alberta Construction Safety Association
  • Canadian Association of Process Safety & Loss Management
  • Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (local and provincial)
  • Centre for Chemical and Process Safety
  • Construction Owners Association of Alberta
  • Health and Safety Association Network
  • Oil Sands Safety Association
  • Rapid Site Access Program Administrative Committee
  • Rresponsible Organization for the Safety of Everyone Committee
  • Wood Buffalo Safe and Healthy Community Network

Oil Sands Safety Association

To the end of 2007, the Association, in which Syncrude plays a leadership role, had accredited 60 training providers that meet the required standards for OSSA approved training. These training providers have issued 135,000 OSSA training credentials to oil sands workers. Several OSSA training standards and Codes of Practice are now in place, some which are accepted by employers not related to the oil sands industry.

OSSA's current roster of standards and Codes of Practice includes:

  • Fall Protection Training Standard
  • Aerial Work Platforms Training Standard
  • Fire Watch Training Standard
  • Confined Space Regional Code of Practice
  • Confined Space Entry Training Standard
  • Confined Space Monitoring Training Standard
  • Regional Orientation Program

OSSA initiatives in the review and approval stage include:

  • Safe Work Permits Regional Code of Practice
  • Safe Work Permits Issuers Training Standard
  • Safe Driving in the Mine Regional Code of Practice
  • Overhead Cranes Training Standard
  • Basic Rigging and Hand Signals Training Standard
Bus transport
removes
4,900
vehicles from
the road daily.
Western Regional Surface & Underground Mine Rescue Competition

Always Ready For
An Emergency

Syncrude's emergency response personnel prepare in part by participating in regional and national events that provide training in a competitive atmosphere. Syncrude's teams routinely deliver strong performances at these events, giving all stakeholders confidence in the event of a real emergency. In 2007, for example, Syncrude emergency response teams posted world-class performances in events like the Prairie Regional FireFit Competition, the Canadian Nationals, and the Western Regional Surface & Underground Mine Rescue Competition.

70%
reduction in lost-time
injuries since 2006

National Incident
Management System

In 2007, Syncrude began work to align its emergency preparedness program with an incident command system that meets the standard of the National Incident Management System. Emergency responders across North America are increasingly adopting the NIMS standard for crisis response. It focuses on incident management, preparedness and communications. Many experts view a unified approach such as NIMS as helpful when emergency situations require a coordinated response among the groups that are called to help. Syncrude expects to be fully aligned by the end of 2008.

Rapid Site
Access Program

Syncrude has joined the Rapid Site Access Program. This effort was implemented in September 2007 as a pilot for the construction industry. It involves volunteers who are unionized members of the Insulators Local of the Alberta Building Trades Council. Participants authorize on-site random testing for alcohol and drugs in lieu of having to take pre-site access tests. The program has been met with very positive worker support and helps foster the efficient and rapid dispatch of workers to our sites.