Enforcement of Section 54 stoppages ‘unclear, inconsistent’ – lawyer

While the mining industry has acknowledged the need to continuously improve health and safety to achieve its goal of ‘zero harm’, the application of Section 54 of the Mine Health and Safety Act (MHSA) is often unclear and inconsistent. International law firm Hogan Lovells partner and mining head Warren Beech explains that a Section 54 instruction, which requires the closure of a mine in its entirety or a particular mine workplace, can be issued by the Mine Health and Safety Inspectorate (MHSI) under situations that would lead a reasonable person to deem that the health and safety of any person at the mine would be endangered.