Hazards Associated with Mining and Control Measures

Name of the Student
Name of the Professor
City/State
Day/Month/ Year

QUESTION 1
On the day of a field trip, it was rainy and since I was absent a friend of mine narrated to me
about their visit to the mining site. During their visit to the mining site, they observed numerous
activities such as how the mining of gold was being done with the various process being used.
Though in the course of learning, they realized that there were many risks the workers were
going through during the mining operations. There were various hazards hindering them from
performing their duties effectively due to injuries experienced from those hazards in the site.
The hazards associated with mining include;
a) Slip and trips- Most workers working in the mine were sliding and falling thus injuring
themselves since the walking paths were very wet since it was raining.
b) UV Exposure- The miners are overexposed to ultraviolet rays which can put them at a
risk of getting skin cancer. The UV rays also cause serious damage to the eye if the
miners fail to put on protective eyewear (Carey, 2016, p. 12).
c) Noise- The were various drilling and heavy machines that were used in mining which
were very noisy. The noise from the mining site causes hearing damage but workers
don’t realize since the damage occurs very slowly. Over-exposure to excessive noise
result in concentration problems, tinnitus and also permanent hearing loss.
d) Dust inhalation- So many specks of dust are released during mining process causing
black lung which is realized when one is suffering from shortness of breath, scarring of
lung tissues which results to ongoing respiratory issues (Adwera, 2008, p. 123).

The risk assessment tool will allow quick view of the likely risk evaluated in terms of
likelihood
Frequency of
Occurrence
Hazard Categories
Catastrophic
1
Critical
2
Serious
3
Minor
4
(A)Frequent 1A
Unacceptable
2A
Unacceptable
3A
Unacceptable
4A
Medium
(B) Probable 1B
Unacceptable
2B
Unacceptable
3B
High
4A
Medium
(C) Occasional 1C
Unacceptable
2C
High
3C
High
4B
Medium
(D) Remote 1D
High
2D
High
3D
Low
4C
Low
(E) Improbable 1E
Low
2E
Low
3E
Low
4E
Low

The above-mentioned hazards can be controlled so as to minimize the risk associated with
them.
Hierarchy of Controls
ELIMINATION- most effective
SUBSTITUTION
ENGINEERING
ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS
PPE- Least effective
They can be controlled by;
a) Based on Hierarchy of controls, the hazards can be eliminated by removing them
physically to avoid injuries associated with them.
b) The hazards can be substituted such that hazards such as pouring waste materials into
the lake can be substituted by constructing waste pit where all the waste materials can
be stored and then recycled.
c) People should be isolated from the hazards by putting strict measures so that to
minimize injuries associated with these hazards. (Williams, 2010, p. 453).
d) The hazards can also be controlled by changing how people work on the mining site, for
example, giving out protective measures to the workers and visitors.