WorkSafeBC has issued almost 800 dust-related orders to sawmills and wood manufacturing facilities since the destruction and deaths resulting from last year's explosions at Babine Forest Products in Burns Lake and Lakeland Mills in Prince George.
There are 15 of these orders that have not yet been complied with, but WorkSafeBC spokeswoman Megan Johnston said that does not mean the companies are refusing to do the work.
"Orders are made for violations of occupational health and safety regulations," said Johnston. "The majority of these orders were related to accumulation of dust, and were promptly complied with. There were also orders related to ventilation."
Contractor availability, equipment installation and renovations were holding up some of the outstanding orders.
"Until ventilation requirements are met, employers are required to maintain dust levels through manual cleanup," she said. "Where orders are outstanding, followup is ongoing."
Although sawdust has not been definitively linked to the Babine and Lakeland events, WorkSafeBC made a permanent precautionary order that all sawmills adhere to new, stricter cleanup policies. More than 170 primary wood manufacturers (predominantly sawmills) were part of that initial 2012 campaign.
"Phase 2 expanded on the inspections done in Phase 1 to include other wood manufacturing facilities," said Johnston. She listed the Phase 2 facilities as shake and shingle makers, oriented strand board manufacturers, planing mills, pressed board manufacturers, veneer or plywood makers, pellet plants, finger-jointing factories, lumber remanufacturing plants, pulp and paper mills, and virtually any kind of wood component manufacturer.
WorkSafeBC and the BC Safety Authority worked together, along with other investigation agencies like the BC Coroners Service and RCMP, to investigate the two mill disasters. Their investigations are complete but are under review by Crown counsel for final legal opinions.
