Health and safety on farms

Environment Southland, (the Council) is committed to ensuring that we comply with our health and safety obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA). This notice clarifies the Council's health and safety responsibilities in respect of its own workers when visiting private property.

The Council has a duty to ensure that environmental regulations are being followed. In order to fulfil this task, we are permitted by law to enter your property. In such circumstances, the Council and the landowner / occupier will have a duty under the HSWA to consult with one another to ensure the health and safety of all persons on the property. While Council staff are on your property under law, they are operating under the Council's PCBU status.

In the case of consent inspections or incident investigation, it is the Council's practice to contact land owners or the person in charge prior to entry on to the property. This practice will be followed by the Council, unless the circumstances make it not reasonably practicable to do so.

Health and Safety legislation does not prevent or delay warranted Council staff access to private property.

Your responsibilities

To inform Council staff of your health and safety requirements for entry onto your property.

You are required to inform Council staff of any extraordinary risks or hazards that exists on the property at the time of entry. By doing so, this will assist in discharging your duty to consult with Council under the HSWA. While we would appreciate you making our staff aware of any specific or unusual hazards on your property, this will not require an extensive induction process.

Our responsibilities

Council staff are our responsibility. We have assessed the risk and have controls in place for our staff to work safely when working in the field'. Council staff have been appropriately trained and are equipped with the necessary personal protective equipment.

As far as reasonably practicable, Council staff will comply with your health and safety practices, and will follow any reasonable instructions given by you.

Council staff will take reasonable care for their own health and safety while on your property. They will also take reasonable care to ensure that their actions or presence on your property will not adversely affect the health and safety of others.

All work performed by the Council will comply with the HSWA and will be performed in accordance with the Council's health and safety procedures.