One of the features of this year's Canada North Resources Expo is a focus on industrial safety.
The inaugural Northern B.C. Safety Conference will be held within the expo, although it is a separate event. The organizing agency - B.C. Forest Safety - saw the benefit in partnering with the expo since so many people from the resource industries of the north would be there at the same time.
"This conference is suitable for all workers, supervisors and owners working in the forest industry in northern B.C.," said spokesperson Rachel Derrick.
"Join us for an exciting conference that will give you practical information and tools to help you manage safety challenges at work. Presentations will provide the latest information on high risk activities such as distraction in the workplace and effective supervision of new and young workers."
Conference highlights will include presentations by:
Grant Aune - Advantage Fleet Services
Karen Bowman - Drop It and Drive
Gary Anaka - Your Brain on the Job
Michael Sestito - Incident Investigation - Bennett Jones
Mary Lu Spagrud - Canadian Mental Health Association
The conference organizing committee is made up of people from across the industry including licensee, contractor, supplier, WorkSafeBC and BC Forest Safety representatives.
The expo is organized by a local steering committee of stakeholders within the resource sectors, plus professional industrial event planners Master Promotions Ltd. (MPL). MPL spokesperson Moira Pellerine said the safety conference was a welcome partner.
"With a theme of Driving Safety Home the conference offers practical information and tools to help manage safety challenges at work," Pellerine said.
"Presentations will provide the latest information on high-risk activities. The conference is free of charge with admission to the CNRE.
"Wellness is a key area of focus for this year's CNRE, and there will be a dedicated Health, Wellness & Safety Zone sponsored by the BC Forest Safety Council," Pellerine added.
"It will include interactive booths and information on a variety of important health and safety-related topics like road safety at work, workplace impairment, distracted driving, physical and mental health, forest industry safety, trucking safety and much more."
Local co-organizer Scott Hamilton said the BC Forest Safety agency was to be applauded for seeing the opportunity to create something new for the north.
"These activities are held down south, but now they are doing it here in the north, as an addition to the usual course of their business, so that is an extra benefit for Prince George, and gives worker safety a greater profile than before. That helps everyone," Hamilton said.
The CNRE runs today and Saturday at CN Centre and the adjacent Exhibition Grounds.
The safety conference happens on Saturday from
9 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. (check-in at 8 a.m.) at Kin 1.
Pre-registration closed in mid-May but to check on last minute seats available for the event contact 1-877-741-1060 or nbcsc@bcforestsafe.org for
assistance.
