An information deficit is restricting the development of safety policy and procedure on Queensland coal mine sites according to an industry leader.

Wednesday’s fatal accident on the Oaky Creek mine was the fourth on a Queensland coal mine this year. The dead man was in his 50s. Another man in his 20s was seriously injured.

The incidents continued despite the major advances in health and safety procedure, Resources Centre of Excellence (RCOE) chief executive officer Steven Boxall said.

Companies, miners and supply chain operators were all operating in the same industry and could contribute more, Mr Boxall said.

“Everyone is, within reason, doing the same type of activities, so there’s a lot of industry expertise around what happens in the Bowen Basin,” he said.

“I hear stories all the time that we’re not sharing as much information as we possibly could be, and that’s something that we’re trying to do at the RCOE across our current stages and our future stages. 

“It’s really about bringing people together to share industry expertise, to drive collaboration, to increase training initiatives and absolutely, to fast-track safety improvements across the whole sector.”

The flow of communication was strangled by the fear of liability, Mr Boxall said.

The proponents needed to be able to talk openly for industry safety to progress, he said.

“What it highlights for me is that we’re really only scratching the surface in terms of the work that everyone’s doing to try and make the industry as safe as it possibly can be. 

“I know that there are some positive things happening around the government and regulators and industry coming together to share information.

“There needs to be a lot more done to get in the trenches to make sure that everyone’s sharing the maximum information they can in a very protected environment and everyone working together to try and eliminate incidents and absolutely, fatalities in the industry.”

All sections of the industry were experiencing pressure, Mr Boxall said.

“I think there’s a lot more that can be done, but we’ve got to make sure that the regulators are adequately resourced, they’ve got the right funding, they’ve got the right staffing,” he said. 

“We also need to make sure that there’s no more red tape put on industry because industry is already struggling from a compliance perspective, the ups and downs of the commodity cycle, (and) the struggles around getting employees. 

“It’s a really delicate balancing act that you don’t want to make life tougher for anyone. But I think at the end of the day, everyone absolutely agrees that we want our resource sector, and particularly in the Bowen Basin, to be a world leader in safety.” 

Among other things, Mackay-based RCOE provides world-class facilities for resource development, with an underground mine simulated training and testing facility, emerging technology capabilities, training and conference facilities.