The Mining Act 1992 licenses mining. Safety is governed by a separate statute — the Mining (Safety) Act (Chapter 195A) — and the Mining Act ties every tenement right to it.
Safety is built into the tenement rights
| Section | Right | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| 41(1) | Mining lease — to mine, treat, build a treatment plant, waste dumps and tailings dams | “in accordance with the Mining (Safety) Act (Chapter 195A)” |
| 51(1) | Alluvial mining lease — to mine and treat alluvial minerals | Same words |
| 69(1) | Lease for mining purposes — to develop the land and undertake works | Same words |
| 84 | Mining easement — to construct and operate the facility | Same words |
| 9(2) | A citizen’s non-mechanised alluvial mining on his own land | Provided it is carried out safely and in accordance with that Act |
Because the rights are conferred in accordance with the safety legislation, operating in breach of it is not the exercise of a right conferred by the tenement. Two consequences follow:
under section 41(2)(b), the holder owns only minerals lawfully mined; and
under section 142(1), breach of a provision of the Act or a condition of the tenement is a ground on which the Managing Director may require the holder to show cause why the tenement should not be cancelled.
Where the Act itself carries safety rules
- Section 50(3) — an alluvial mining lease may be granted only to a depth consistent with the safe conduct of the mining development described in the approved proposals, and the depth shall be specified on the lease document. Deaths in alluvial workings come overwhelmingly from collapsing faces; this puts a depth limit on the face of the title.
- Section 152(7) — no timber or other material used in the construction or support of any shaft, drive, gallery, adit, terrace, race, dam or other mining work shall be removed without the consent in writing of an inspector. Stripping the supports out of a working when a tenement ends is prohibited.
- Section 66(2) — a lease for mining purposes is granted to a depth consistent with the purposes for which it was granted.
The reference to an inspector in section 152(7) is to the safety inspectorate. The same office appears in the Employment Act (Chapter 373): under section 142, an authorised officer under that Act may not enter a mine unless accompanied by an inspector or mining engineer appointed under the Mining Act.
The workforce — the Employment Act
Safety of the people doing the work is also governed by the Employment Act (Chapter 373), which applies to a mine like any other workplace:
- Section 51(3) — where an employee operates machinery or equipment the careless or inefficient use of which may constitute a danger to life, the employer shall not require or permit hours including overtime that may cause fatigue or carelessness — and the subsection does not limit any liability of the employer.
- Section 49 — a maximum of 12 hours in a day, meal and rest periods, and a 24-hour weekly rest, exceeded only in the section 50 situations.
- Section 127 — an offence to knowingly require an employee to perform work for which he is not physically fit, with a fine up to K500.
- Section 5 — the Minister may declare work to be heavy labour by National Gazette notice; section 98 then restricts the employment of women in it.
- Section 104 — a person under 16 shall not be employed in any place or under conditions injurious or likely to be injurious to health, and a medical practitioner’s certificate is conclusive evidence.
- Sections 128 to 130 — medical supervision scaled to the number of employees and dependants at the place, sick wards and hospitals, and free treatment at the place of employment.
Injury arising out of or in the course of employment is expressly outside the sick leave regime in section 65(1)(b), because it belongs to the workers’ compensation scheme.
Community and environmental safety
Risks that reach beyond the mine gate are dealt with by the Environment Act 2000:
- the general environmental duty in section 7 applies to everyone, permit or no permit;
- section 8 requires written notice to the Director as soon as practicable where serious or material harm is caused or threatened, on pain of a fine up to K100,000 for a corporation;
- section 106 allows an Emergency Direction to be issued orally where urgent action is needed to prevent serious or material harm, and section 76 allows an Emergency Authorization where action is necessary to protect life, property or the environment; and
- section 66(1)(h) allows a permit condition requiring an emergency response plan for accidental release of contaminants.
Practical points
- Read the depth on an alluvial mining lease; going below it is mining outside the tenement.
- Do not strip supports from workings without an inspector’s written consent.
- Roster within the legal hours, and never require or permit fatigue in dangerous work.
- Provide the medical cover the Employment Act requires for the number of people at the site.
- Report harm to the Director of Environment as soon as practicable, and take advice at the same time.
- Have the emergency response plan in place before it is needed.
- Landholders: abandoned workings, unstable faces and unfenced pits near villages are a safety matter — raise them with the Warden, the inspector and the Director of Environment, in writing.
The Mining (Safety) Act (Chapter 195A) is available on PacLII; its regulations, and the workers’ compensation legislation, are not carried in the PacLII Papua New Guinea databases and are named here rather than linked.
Sources
- Mining Act 1992 — ss 9, 41, 50, 51, 66, 69, 84, 142, 152
- Mining (Safety) Act (Chapter 195A)
- Employment Act (Chapter 373) — ss 5, 49–51, 65, 98, 104, 127–130, 142
- Environment Act 2000 — ss 7, 8, 66, 76, 106
Before relying on anything here, read the current text of the Mining Act 1992 and check for later amendments. If a decision matters to you, get advice — start with the Office of the Public Solicitor, or find a firm in the law firms directory.