Farmsafety by the numbers
Classroom setting also works well for sessions put on by the Farm and Ranch Safety and Health Association, which offers services in several languages.
Child safety on farms is another concern that FARSHA addresses. It has resources that can help parents or guardians make informed decisions on whether children are ready for various types of agricultural work.
“FARSHA recommends farm parents do a simple risk assessment of their farm to identify hazards that may present a risk to children, and either eliminate the hazard or make it off limits.”
The association has seen success in its efforts to reduce injuries on farms and ranches. For example, workers at a large greenhouse in the Fraser Valley suffered numerous muscle strains and back injuries. FARSHA’s health and safety specialist performed an ergonomic risk assessment and made recommendations to modify some parts of the grading line. Once completed and back in operation, the manager reported that production increased and nearly all worker injuries were eliminated.
With funding assistance from Investment Agriculture Foundation of B.C., FARSHA developed a program to train firefighters to effectively respond to farm emergencies, such as someone trapped in an overturned tractor. And over the past several years, FARSHA has collaborated with the Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute to develop practical solutions to hazards known to cause numerous injuries. More recently, FARSHA completed a new supervisor health and safety training program. Johnson said FARSHA would like to see a safety culture established within
agriculture, where employers have a risk management philosophy. This would include recognizing hazards and assessing the risk to themselves and their workers, followed by a method of control.
“We recommend that all employers have an active health and safety plan or program; this is the foundation of a health and safety culture within the workplace.”
For more information on FARSHA’s services, call (toll free) 1-877-533-1789 or visit its website at
www.farsha.bc.ca. You can also email
farmsafe@farsha.bc.ca.
Serious injury claims in the agriculture industry (from 2003-2007) totaled 1,488, according to WorkSafeBC. The average injury rate per 100 person- years of employment during this five- year period was 3.5. FARSHA’s Bruce Johnson says this number dropped to 3.2 in 2008. The number of fatality claims from 2003-2007 was 16. The top five accident types in this five-year period are: fall to lower level (19 percent), ergonomic (16 percent), fall on same level (13 percent), struck by object (12 percent) and caught in/compressed (7 percent). The remaining 32 percent represented “other” accident type. Sprains, strains and tears represented 37 percent of the injury types, followed by fractures at 33 percent.
In the orchard classification unit, there were 214 claims during the 2003- 2007 period, representing six percent of the total number of agriculture claims. In the berry farming sector, there were 115 claims, three percent of the total. Johnson says the most recent data
FARSHA has received for the 2004-2008 period indicates a total of 681 claims (five year average). This dropped to 620 in 2008. The total of serious claims (five year average) was 276. This number dropped to 250 in 2008.
I. PATON & ASSOCIATES LTD.
SPRING AUCTIONS
2 BIG
1) March 27th at Abbotsford Exhibition Grounds
2) April 17th at Chilliwack Heritage Park
FARM EQUIPMENT
AUCTION SERVICES
ian@patonauctions.com FAX 604-940-0856
www.patonauctions.com . 3706-88 Street Delta, BC V4K 3N3 British Columbia Berry Grower • Spring 2010
Ian L. PATON JR. 604-940-0852
9
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24