A significant change has taken place to the way health and safety is regulated at New Zealand’s 13 commercial ports, including Port Taranaki.
On 1 July, Maritime New Zealand took over monitoring and enforcing health and safety legislation on land at ports as well as on ships. Previously, WorkSafe was the regulator of landside activities, while Maritime NZ regulated what took place on vessels and from vessel to wharf.
The change stems from the Government-initiated review into port safety in 2022 and resultant action plan. The action plan was created by the Port Health and Safety Leadership Group, which includes employers, unions, the Port Industry Association, and Government agencies. It recommended that Maritime NZ’s Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA) role be extended to include landside operations, which was adopted by Government.
“Health and safety is paramount at Port Taranaki and we work hard with our staff, customers, and port users to ensure it is front of mind in all our actions on-site so that everyone goes home safe, every day,” Port Taranaki chief executive Simon Craddock says.
“We regularly work with Maritime New Zealand across a number of marine and shipping-related issues, so we are supportive of this move and are looking forward to working with them on health and safety matters going forward.”
WorkSafe has retained responsibility for regulating major hazard facilities on ports, this includes the Methanex NZ and Liquigas depots at Port Taranaki.
“As we take on this new responsibility, we’ve strengthened our existing capabilities and expertise, including risk management and health and safety systems,” Maritime NZ manager HSWA regulatory operations Scott Bernie says.
“This includes considering our approach for HSWA inspections and how we handle incidents and accidents reported to us.”
For more information go to www.maritimenz.govt.nz/saferports
