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Council Directive 92/104/EECShow full title

Council Directive 92/104/EEC of 3 December 1992 on the minimum requirements for improving the safety and health protection of workers in surface and underground mineral-extracting industries (twelfth individual Directive within the meaning of Article 16 (1) of Directive 89/391/EEC)

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EU Directives are being published on this site to aid cross referencing from UK legislation. After IP completion day (31 December 2020 11pm) no further amendments will be applied to this version.

  1. Introductory Text

  2. SECTION I GENERAL PROVISIONS

    1. Article 1.Subject

    2. Article 2.Definitions

  3. SECTION II EMPLOYERS’ OBLIGATIONS

    1. Article 3.General obligations

    2. Article 4.Protection from fire, explosions and health-endangering atmospheres

    3. Article 5.Escape and rescue facilities

    4. Article 6.Communication, warning and alarm systems

    5. Article 7.Keeping workers informed

    6. Article 8.Health surveillance

    7. Article 9.Consultation of workers and workers’ participation

    8. Article 10.Minimum requirements for safety and health

  4. SECTION III OTHER PROVISIONS

    1. Article 11.Adjustments to the Annex

    2. Article 12.Mineral-extraction by dredging

    3. Article 13.Final provisions

    4. Article 14.This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

    1. ANNEX

      MINIMUM SAFETY AND HEALTH REQUIREMENTS AS REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 10 OF THE DIRECTIVE

      1. Preliminary note

      2. PART A COMMON MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO SURFACE AND UNDERGROUND MINERAL-EXTRACTING INDUSTRIES...

        1. 1. Supervision and organization

          1. 1.1. Organization of workplaces

            1. 1.1.1. Workplaces must be so organized as to provide adequate protection...

            2. 1.1.2. Workstations must be designed and constructed according to ergonomic principles...

            3. 1.1.3. Where workstations are occupied by lone workers, adequate supervision or...

          2. 1.2. Person in charge

          3. 1.3. Supervision

          4. 1.4. Competent workers

          5. 1.5. Information, instructions and training

          6. 1.6. Written instructions

          7. 1.7. Safe working methods

          8. 1.8. Work permits

          9. 1.9. Regular review of safety and health measures

        2. 2. Mechanical and electrical equipment and plant

          1. 2.1. General

          2. 2.2. Specific provisions

        3. 3. Maintenance

          1. 3.1. General maintenance

          2. 3.2. Safety equipment maintenance

        4. 4. Protection from explosion risks, harmful atmospheres and fire hazards

          1. 4.1. General

            1. 4.1.1. Measures must be taken for assessing the presence of harmful...

            2. 4.1.2. Smoking is forbidden in areas subject to particular fire or...

          2. 4.2. Protection from explosion risks

            1. 4.2.1. All necessary measures must be taken to combat the formation...

            2. 4.2.2. In areas where there are risks of explosion, all necessary...

            3. 4.2.3. An explosion prevention plan detailing the equipment and measures required...

          3. 4.3. Protection from harmful atmospheres

            1. 4.3.1. Where harmful substances accumulate or may accumulate in the atmosphere,...

            2. 4.3.2. Without prejudice to Directive 89/656/EEC, appropriate and sufficient breathing and...

            3. 4.3.3. Where toxic gases are, or may be, present in the...

          4. 4.4. Protection from fire hazards

            1. 4.4.1. Wherever workplaces are designed, constructed, equipped, commissioned, operated or maintained,...

            2. 4.4.2. Workplaces must be equipped with appropriate fire-fighting equipment and, as...

            3. 4.4.3. Non-automatic fire-fighting equipment must be easily accessible and simple to...

            4. 4.4.4. A fire protection plan detailing the precautions to be taken,...

            5. 4.4.5. The fire-fighting equipment must be indicated by signs in accordance...

        5. 5. Explosives and initiating devices

        6. 6. Traffic routes

          1. 6.1. It must be possible to reach workplaces without danger and...

          2. 6.2. Traffic routes, including stairs, fixed ladders and loading bays and...

          3. 6.3. Routes used for pedestrian traffic and/or goods traffic must be...

          4. 6.4. Sufficient clearance must be allowed between vehicle traffic routes and...

          5. 6.5. Traffic and access routes must be clearly identified for the...

          6. 6.6. Where vehicles or machines enter workplaces, traffic regulations must be...

        7. 7. Outdoor workplaces

          1. 7.1. Workstations, traffic routes and other areas or installations outdoors which...

          2. 7.2. Workplaces outdoors must be adequately lit by artificial lighting if...

          3. 7.3. When workers are employed at workstations outdoors, such workstations must...

        8. 8. Danger areas

          1. 8.1. Danger areas must be clearly indicated.

          2. 8.2. If the workplaces contain danger areas in which, owing to...

          3. 8.3. Appropriate measures must be taken to protect workers authorized to...

        9. 9. Emergency routes and exits

          1. 9.1. In the event of danger, it must be possible for...

          2. 9.2. Emergency routes and exits must remain clear and lead by...

          3. 9.3. The number, distribution and dimensions of the emergency routes and...

          4. 9.4. Emergency doors must open outwards.

          5. 9.5. Emergency doors must not be locked.

          6. 9.6. Emergency routes and exits requiring illumination must be provided with...

          7. 9.7. Specific emergency routes and exits must be indicated by signs...

        10. 10. Means of evacuation and escape

          1. 10.1. Workers must be trained in the appropriate actions to be...

          2. 10.2. Rescue equipment must be provided at readily accessible and appropriately...

        11. 11. Safety drills

        12. 12. First-aid facilities

          1. 12.1. First-aid equipment must be available in all places where working...

          2. 12.2. One or more first aid rooms must be provided where...

          3. 12.3. First-aid rooms must be fitted with essential first-aid installations and...

          4. 12.4. In addition, first-aid equipment must be available in all places...

          5. 12.5. A sufficient number of workers must be trained in the...

        13. 13. Natural and artificial lighting

          1. 13.1. Every workplace must be provided throughout with lighting capable of...

          2. 13.2. Workplaces must as far as possible receive sufficient natural light...

          3. 13.3. Lighting installations in rooms containing workplaces and in passageways must...

          4. 13.4. Workplaces in which workers are exposed to risks in the...

        14. 14. Sanitary installations

          1. 14.1. Changing rooms and lockers

            1. 14.1.1. Appropriate changing rooms must be provided for workers if they...

            2. 14.1.2. Changing rooms must be sufficiently large and have facilities to...

            3. 14.1.3. Provision must be made for separate changing rooms or separate...

            4. 14.1.4. If changing rooms are not required under 14.1.1, each worker...

          2. 14.2. Showers and washbasins

            1. 14.2.1. Adequate and suitable showers must be provided for workers if...

            2. 14.2.2. The shower rooms must be sufficiently large to permit each...

            3. 14.2.3. Where showers are not required under the first subparagraph of...

          3. 14.3. Lavoratories and washbasins

        15. 15. Overburden dumps and other tips

        16. 16. Ancillary surface installations (additional special provisions)

          1. 16.1. Stability and solidity

          2. 16.2. Floors, walls, ceilings and roofs of rooms

            1. 16.2.1. The floors of workplaces must have no dangerous bumps, holes...

            2. 16.2.2. The surfaces of floors, walls and ceilings in rooms must...

            3. 16.2.3. Transparent or translucent walls, in particular all-glass partitions, in rooms...

            4. 16.2.4. Access to roofs made of materials of insufficient strength must...

          3. 16.3. Room dimensions and air space in rooms —freedom of movement...

            1. 16.3.1. Workrooms must have sufficient surface area, height and air space...

            2. 16.3.2. The dimensions of the unoccupied area at the workstation must...

          4. 16.4. Windows and skylights

            1. 16.4.1. Windows, skylights and ventilation devices which are meant to be...

            2. 16.4.2. It must be possible to clean windows and skylights without...

          5. 16.5. Doors and gates

            1. 16.5.1. The position, number and dimensions of doors and gates, and...

            2. 16.5.2. Transparent doors must be appropriately marked at a conspicuous level....

            3. 16.5.3. Swing doors and gates must be transparent or have see-through...

            4. 16.5.4. If transparent or translucent surfaces in doors and gates are...

            5. 16.5.5. Sliding doors must be fitted with a safety device to...

            6. 16.5.6. Doors and gates opening upwards must be fitted with a...

            7. 16.5.7. Doors along escape routes must be appropriately marked.

            8. 16.5.8. Doors for pedestrians must be provided in the immediate vicinity...

            9. 16.5.9. Mechanical doors and gates must function without risk of accident...

          6. 16.6. Ventilation of enclosed workplaces

            1. 16.6.1. Steps shall be taken to ensure that there is sufficient...

            2. 16.6.2. If air-conditioning or mechanical ventilation installations are used, they must...

          7. 16.7. Room temperature

            1. 16.7.1. During working hours, the temperature in rooms containing workstations must...

            2. 16.7.2. The temperature in rest areas, rooms for duty staff, sanitary...

            3. 16.7.3. Windows, skylights and glass partitions should allow excessive effects of...

          8. 16.8. Rest rooms

            1. 16.8.1. Where the safety or health of workers, in particular because...

            2. 16.8.2. Rest rooms must be large enough and equipped with an...

            3. 16.8.3. In rest rooms appropriate measures must be introduced for the...

            4. 16.8.4. If working hours are regularly and frequently interrupted and there...

        17. 17. Pregnant women and nursing mothers

        18. 18. Disabled workers

      3. PART B SPECIAL MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO SURFACE MINERAL-EXTRACTING INDUSTRIES

        1. 1. General

          1. 1.1. Without prejudice to Article 3 (2), the employer who, in...

          2. 1.2. The safety and health document must be brought up to...

        2. 2. Operation

          1. 2.1. Work must be planned taking into account the elements of...

          2. 2.2. Benches and haul roads must be stable enough for the...

          3. 2.3. Before the start or restart of work, stripping and extraction...

          4. 2.4. Faces and tips must not be worked in such a...

      4. PART C SPECIAL MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO UNDERGROUND MINERAL-EXTRACTING INDUSTRIES

        1. 1. General

          1. 1.1. Without prejudice to Article 3 (2), the employer who, in...

          2. 1.2. The safety and health document must be brought up to...

        2. 2. Plans of underground workings

          1. 2.1. Plans of underground workings drawn to a scale which provides...

          2. 2.2. Plans of underground workings must be brought up to date...

        3. 3. Outlets

        4. 4. Workings

        5. 5. Transport

          1. 5.1. Transport facilities must be installed, operated and maintained in such...

          2. 5.2. Mechanical manwinding or manriding facilitates must be properly installed and...

        6. 6. Support and ground stability

        7. 7. Ventilation

          1. 7.1. All underground workings to which access is permitted must be...

          2. 7.2. Where the requirements of 7.1 cannot be met by natural...

          3. 7.3. The ventilation parameters must be measures periodically and recorded.

        8. 8. Gassy mines

          1. 8.1. An underground working is regarded as gassy if firedamp is...

          2. 8.2. The main ventilation must be provided by one or more...

          3. 8.3. Working must proceed taking account of firedamp emission.

          4. 8.4. Auxiliary ventilation must be limited to development and salvage work...

          5. 8.5. The ventilation measurement referred to under 7.3 must be supplemented...

          6. 8.6. Only explosives and initiating devices specifically for gassy mines may...

          7. 8.7. The provisions of 4.1.2 of Part A are replaced as...

        9. 9. Mines containing flammable dusts

          1. 9.1. Coal mines are considered to be susceptible to flammable dusts...

          2. 9.2. In mines with flammable dusts the provisions of 8.6 and...

          3. 9.3. Steps must be taken to reduce flammable dust deposits, and...

          4. 9.4. Propagation of flammable dust and/or firedamp explosions which are liable...

        10. 10. Gas outbursts, rockbursts and water inrushes

          1. 10.1. In zones susceptible to gas outbursts with or without the...

          2. 10.2. Measures must be taken to identify risk zones, protect workers...

        11. 11. Fires, combustions and heatings

          1. 11.1. Provision must be made for the prevention and, where appropriate,...

          2. 11.2. Flammable materials taken into underground workings must be limited to...

          3. 11.3. Where it is necessary to use hydraulic fluids (fluids for...

        12. 12. Precautions for withdrawal of workers

        13. 13. Lighting

        14. 14. Underground workforce accounting

        15. 15. Rescue organization

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