Evaluation of occupational safety and health in surface mines

The aim of this study is to present occupational accident statistics in Turkish mineral-extracting industries and to compare the statistical data with major mine-producing countries. A comparison of safety performance indices in mineral-extracting industries in Turkey with those of other major mine-producing countries will enable authorities to develop strategies in order to take the relevant precautions and eventually improve mining industries in Turkey. Turkish data are obtained from annual reports of Social Security Institution (SSK) as well as from the safety statistics and accident reports of various surface mines and annual reports of The Ministry of Labour and Social Security. Mineral-extracting industries of Turkey have the highest incident rates and highest fatality-to-injury ratio among the major mine-producing countries. Low accident ratio is caused by serious consequences of accidents. Head and mainbody are the most affected body parts. The most common fatal accident/injury types occur in blasting operations, powered haulage and fall of face/highwall. The employees under the age of 40 had a higher risk of injuries than the older ones in Turkish surface mines. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.The authors wish to thank to Cukurova University Scientific Research Project Unit to fund this study (under Project No. MMF.2004.BAP17). They are indebted to Prof. Dr. Naki Tutuncu of the Mechanical Engineering Department of the Cukurova University, for reading the paper in draft and helpful suggestions. The authors also thank two anonymous reviewers for their useful comments and suggestions for improving the present manuscript