The regulations associated with the Occupational Health and Safety Act, applicable to Major Hazard Installations, have recently been amended to effectively manage health and safety risks associated with such Installations. Although promulgated in January 2023, certain measures contained in the regulations were granted a grace period to allow relevant parties an opportunity to achieve compliance with the updated regulations.
These amended regulations are particularly relevant to establishments that store specified quantities of listed substances and major pipeline facilities, and impose a set of obligations on the responsible party, or “duty holder,” which broadly refers to employers, self-employed individuals, users, and pipeline operators who exercise control over an establishment. To ensure full adherence to the amended regulations, duty holders are required to conduct a comprehensive assessment to categorize their Major Hazard Installations or major pipeline establishment as a low, medium, or high hazard entity.
The following important timelines must be taken into account for existing Major Hazard Installations –
- By January 31, 2025, all duty holders are obligated to revise and submit notifications regarding their existing establishment. This submission should be directed to the Chief Inspector, the relevant Chief Director for Provincial Operations, and local government, using the prescribed documentation. This process necessitates the provision of comprehensive information, and as such, duty holders should exercise due diligence in allocating sufficient time to facilitate the completion of the requisite risk assessments and collation of the mandated information.
- Duty holders responsible for medium and high-hazard establishments are required to formulate and document a major incident prevention policy in accordance with the criteria outlined in Major Hazard Installation regulation 11 and Annexure C to the Major Hazard Installation regulations by January 31, 2026.
- Duty holders of high-hazard establishments are mandated to prepare a comprehensive, site-specific safety report in accordance with the provisions of Major Hazard Installation regulation 12. This report must be furnished to the Chief Inspector by January 31, 2026.
- Duty holders operating high-hazard establishments must initiate the process of applying for a license to operate such establishments no later than January 31, 2026.
- Emergency plans must be meticulously updated and harmonized with the SANS 1514 criteria by January 31, 2024.
In addition to the above, there are certain ongoing obligations for which transitional time periods are not applicable, making current compliance mandatory in respect of –
- The obligation to provide notifications as per regulation 4, which mandates notifications to be made 90 days in advance of constructing a new establishment or when changes to an existing establishment are anticipated.
- The appointment of competent individuals on a full-time basis for every premise where an establishment operates, charged with the responsibility of ensuring compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act and the Major Hazard Installation regulations.
- The provision of details regarding any alterations to the particulars of a registered establishment within 14 days from the date of the alteration.
- The undertaking of risk assessments in strict accordance with Major Hazard Installation regulation 10.
- The appointment of an emergency co-coordinating team and the establishment of comprehensive emergency plans.
- The reporting of major incidents or incidents leading to the activation of the emergency plan, including the submission of a preliminary incident report within seven days and a comprehensive report within six months from the date of the incident.
- The responsibility of suppliers of hazardous substances to an establishment to promptly inform other clients who have received such substances about potential risks in the event of an incident involving the said substances. In the event of a major incident, these suppliers must be available at all times, on a 24-hour basis, to attend to the needs of duty holders, relevant local government authorities, and any other concerned entities.
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