Jurisdiction:  NI

Commencement:   27th September 2019

Amends:   Mesothelioma, etc., Act (Northern Ireland) 2008

Mini Summary

The Act provides for lump sum compensation payments to be made to workers with diffuse mesothelioma, or to the dependants of those persons who suffered from the disease before they died.

Amendment

This Order updates the Schedule originally set out in The Mesothelioma Lump Sum Payments (Conditions and Amounts) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008, and increases the lump sum payments to people with diffuse mesothelioma or their surviving dependants by 2.4%, in line with the Industrial Injuries Benefit.

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According to the President of the global chartered body of health and safety professionals, new technologies can help continue the drive to prevent workplace accidents and work related illness.

Professor Vincent Ho, highlighted the need for businesses to explore how technology can assist in the management and reduction of workplace accidents and work related illness, during his opening speech at the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) 2019 annual conference.

Attention was drawn to the possible risks that new technologies can create to workforces. With ways of working ever changing the associated risks need to be appropriately managed.

Nevertheless, the focal point was how technology can enhance health and safety measures and procedures to better protect employees and workers, an area that should be taken advantage of.

Recently published research has shown how digital apps can help construction project designers create safer buildings and how virtual reality can provide valuable insight into workers’ behaviour during emergency evacuations, improving safety awareness.

These new innovations in technology have the ability to reduce the estimated 2.78 million deaths every year due to workplace accidents or illnesses caused by work.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has made updates to their hand-arm vibration exposure calculator, and to the guidance document L140, on hand-arm vibration.

Hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) can be a significant health risk when powered tools are used for significant lengths of time. HAVS is preventable, but once the damage is done, it is permanent. The effects from HAVS can include making it difficult to do fine detailed work, and exposure to the cold can cause painful finger blanching (blood flow is restricted to the fingers, making them turn white).

The calculator helps estimate and record workers’ exposure to HAVS and compare them with the actions values in the regulations as part of a HAVS risk assessment.

The updated calculator and guidance to use the calculator can be found here.

The updated L140 guidance document puts more emphasis on the control and management of risks from exposure to hand-arm vibration. This can be found here.

Shortly after announcing plans to make its own operations carbon-neutral by 2025, Bristol Airport is switching to 100% renewable electricity.

The electricity supplied to the Airport will be generated across Ørsted’s offshore wind portfolio throughout the three year agreement between the two, which will result in the airports annual electricity demand of 17 million kWh (kilowatt hour) met with wind generation.

Ørsted has reduced their emission intensity from power generation by 83% since 2006, by largely changing its business model away from oil and natural gas to offshore wind. Their goal now is to achieve 98% reduction, against the same baseline by 2025.

Over the three year period it is estimated that Bristol Airport will generate 14,000 tonnes less of power related carbon emissions than their current output.

This change is seen as a significant step in Bristol Airport’s journey to carbon neutrality. As for future plans, Bristol Airport is further striving for carbon neutrality by implementing plans for more electric vehicles and charging points, before the end of 2019.

NEBOSH has revised the format of the National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety, with the aim of aligning it more closely with real life scenarios that safety professionals are likely to face.

Previously, those who took the course, would be presented with two written assessments and undertake a practical workplace inspection. In the revised format, there will just be one examination paper, and a practical risk assessment that will be sent to NEBOSH for marking.

NEBOSH states that the new risk assessments will present a holistic approach and will ensure successful learners return to work and instantly add value to their employers and colleagues.

Ian Taylor, NEBOSH Chief Executive, says that risk management is a key part of the role for anyone with health and safety responsibilities, and thanks to the practical focus on everyday tasks people encounter, learners will learn how to identify and manage the risks.

For anyone undertaking risk assessments, it should be structured in line with the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) five step approach:

• identify sources of harm in the workplace;
• identify who might be harmed and how;
• evaluate risks and decide on appropriate controls;
• record the risk assessment; and
• review and update the assessment.

A team who challenged and supported young people in Pellon to shape the future of youth services has won an award.

Reachout Pellon has won the Contribution to Children and Young People Award at North Halifax Partnership’s Our Communities Awards.

The awards celebrate individuals and groups whose work and commitment has had a positive impact on the communities within the Warley and Park wards of Halifax.

The Reachout Pellon team hit the streets to speak to young people and find out what the problems in the area were from their perspective. After identifying a lack of activities, they developed a programme, in partnership with organisations such as Newground Together, Together Housing Group, Yorkshire Housing and Halifax Boxing, Sports and Fitness Club, to get young people off the streets.

Reachout Pellon supports young people aged 8 to 25 and their families, delivering a range of activities such as arts and crafts, music, sports, and cooking as well as providing support and advice on topics such as emotional health and wellbeing, drugs awareness and bullying.

Emily Pearson, Sustainable Communities Programme Coordinator at Newground, said: “Young people in Pellon have something to do, somewhere to go and someone to talk to thanks to the support from the youth work team. Young people have worked with the staff to identify challenges they have growing up in the area and worked with the team to combat them, which has resulted in a drop in anti-social behaviour in the area.”

Samantha Harrison, Senior Sustainable Communities Officer for Newground, added: “I’m delighted to be recognised for the work we do but it wouldn’t have been possible without the young people themselves. We provided activities based on their feedback, which is why they have bought into it.”

Reachout Pellon run weekly sessions at The Hub @ Pellon: Tuesdays for 13–19 year-olds, Thursdays for 8-11 year-olds and Fridays for 11–14 year-olds. For more information email [email protected] or call Samantha on 07860 952814.

Electric vehicles (EVS) emit a ¼ of the CO2 that conventional petrol and diesel cars do on average. If one takes the manufacturing of the batteries for EVs, this would still be ½ the emissions of conventional cars.

Additionally, the increasing decarbonisation of Britain’s electricity supply, means that today’s EVs could produce just 1/10 of the emissions of petrol cars in 5 years time. This means that the electricity the EVs use comes from an increasingly low-carbon mix.

There are more than 200,000 EVs on Britain’s roads and this is growing by 30% a year. Electricity generation is decarbonising faster in the UK than anywhere else in the world. Wind, solar, biomass and hydro supplied a record of 55% of demand on 30th June 2019.

One in 40 cars sold in the UK are now electric, around ⅓ of cars are pure battery models and ⅔ of are plug-in hybrids. Britain’s EV fleet is expected to expand by ten-fold over the next 5 to 10 years.

The electrification of transport is vital to address the climate crisis and contribute to a zero carbon future.

Jurisdiction:  ROI

Commencement:   3rd September 2019

Amends:   Waste Management (Facility Permit and Registration) Regulations 2007

Mini Summary

These Regulations directly amend the Waste Management (Facility Permit and Registration) Regulations 2007, by increasing the total maximum quantity of waste which may be recovered in a Class 5 activity from 100,000 tonnes to 200,000 tonnes, subsequent to a successful new application for a waste facility permit, rather than a review application for an existing waste facility permit. 

Amendment

These Regulations directly amend the Waste Management (Facility Permit and Registration) Regulations 2007 by increasing the total maximum quantity of waste which may be recovered in a Class 5 activity* from 100,000 tonnes to 200,000 tonnes, subsequent to a successful application for a waste facility permit.

*A Class 5 activity according to Schedule 3, Part 1 in the 2007 Regulations is: €œrecovery of excavation or dredge spoil, comprising natural materials of clay, silt, sand, gravel or stone and which comes within the meaning of inert waste, through deposition for the purposes of the improvement or development of land. Occurring where the total quantity of waste recovered at the facility is less than 200,000 tonnes.€

These Regulations require a new application for a waste facility permit to be put forward in accordance with Articles 7, 8, 9, and 10 when a Class 5 activity is planned, rather than putting an application forward for a review of an existing waste facility permit.

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Jurisdiction:  Scotland

Commencement:   12 October 2019

Mini Summary

These Regulations now make it an offence to manufacture, sell, intend to sell or be in possession to sell any plastic cotton bud, in Scotland from the 12^th October 2019. Organisations can be found liable of offences as bodies corporate under this regulation. 

Enforcement officers now have powers of entry under warrant, enabling them to carry out investigations for suspected offences. Any parties found guilty, may be liable for punishment of either a fine not exceeding £5,000 and /or a prison sentence not exceeding 2 years. 

Summary

These Regulations prohibit the manufacture and sale of plastic stemmed cotton buds* in Scotland from the 12th October 2019 with the aim of protecting the marine environment from plastic pollution. 

*A plastic stemmed cotton bud is a rod of plastic which has cotton wrapped around both ends, with plastic meaning a synthetic polymeric substance that can be moulded, extruded or physically manipulated into various solid forms and that retains its final manufactured shape during use in its intended applications.  

Duties

It is an offence to manufacture, sell, intend to sell or be in possession to sell any plastic cotton bud. Organisations can also be found liable of offences as bodies corporate under this regulation. 

A party that is found guilty of an offence may be liable to punishment of either a fine, not exceeding £5,000 and/or a prison sentence not exceeding 2 years. 

Enforcement officers have powers of entry, enabling them to carry out investigations to determine whether an offence has been or is being committed. It also allows entry under warrant, where the use of force to effect entry may be required.

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The Legislation Update Service is the best way to stay up to date automatically with legislation in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Our intuitive online system helps manage your compliance obligations for environment, health & safety and food.